UCC Europe reveals how its Total Coffee Solution works for businesses of all sizes – from independent coffee shops to international chains.
From its origins in 1930s Japan as a Western food store, Ueshima Coffee Company (UCC) has grown to become the fifth largest coffee business in the world, firmly establishing itself as one of the major players in the international coffee industry.
Over the past 90 years, the company has expanded across the whole value chain ‘from seed to sip’, with a global network of coffee farms, roasteries, and manufacturing plants. Its history covers many milestones, including producing the first ready-to-drink canned coffee product in 1969 and its first directly managed coffee plantation in Blue Mountains, Jamaica, in 1968. In 2012, it established UCC Europe to tap into the continent’s rapidly expanding coffee industry.
Drawing on almost a century’s worth of coffee experience, UCC Europe works in partnership with its customers to deliver “exceptional coffee experiences” through its Total Coffee Solution.
“Our Total Coffee Solution is unique because it enables us to work in true partnership with our clients to build a bespoke coffee offer that 100 per cent meets the needs of their business and their customers,” says Elaine Swift, Out of Home Director of UCC Europe.
“Through our Total Coffee Solution, we give all of our clients access to five key factors: exceptional coffee, world-class equipment, tailored insight, data-driven training, and market leading maintenance. The value that we add through Total Coffee Solution helps our clients to grow their coffee business faster and more profitably than the competition – whether it’s an individual coffee shop or a multinational chain.”
The Total Coffee Solution process starts with the coffee. With a buying team based in Geneva and quality-assurance hubs in Vietnam and Brazil, UCC is well placed to provide an expansive portfolio of coffee blends for its customers, with options for private label, white label, or one of UCC’s coffee brands.
“Every coffee is 100 per cent traceable from origin. We also buy a wide range of certified green beans, which enables our customers to align their coffee strategy with their sustainability goals,” says Swift.
Alongside the creation of the coffee blend, UCC works with its customers to identify the right equipment to fulfill their coffee ambitions. From traditional espresso machines to super-automatic bean-to-cup and batch brewers, strategic partnerships with innovative machine manufacturers enable the company to supply its clients with equipment that will work for their venues, teams, and customers.
“The machines we supply feature market leading technology and telemetry systems which enable us to monitor what’s happening on-site remotely. We then develop bespoke training programs that tackle the specific needs of individual businesses, ensuring they can drive and grow their coffee sales,” she says.
UCC’s expert and knowledgeable insights team are continually focused on understanding the latest research and trends in the European coffee market. Tailored insights play a crucial role in informing the customers’ decision-making processes when it comes to coffee.
“We draw on smart data from leading sources as well as our own in-house research program, so we always have the latest actionable insight available for our clients,” adds Swift.
When coffee and equipment has been chosen, UCC works alongside its customers to embed a deep coffee culture within their business through deployment of the COFFEEWORKS training program. It has been developed to reduce operational complexity, increase understanding, and upskill team members to ensure they deliver consistently great-tasting coffee every time.
“COFFEEWORKS focuses on three golden rules: availability, quality, and consistency. These are guaranteed to deliver outstanding results, making something that has historically been very hard, very simple,” says Swift.
The fifth and final element of the Total Coffee Solution is service and maintenance, for which UCC takes a preventative approach through the utilisation of SMART technology and self-support. This is in conjunction with COFFEEWORKS and the company’s team of specialist engineers who have a 98 per cent first-time fix rate.
UCC has an extensive range of clients spanning across multiple sectors in hospitality and retail, from big name global brands to local independent coffee shops. The business’ ability to deliver total coffee solutions has been key to its success.
“Our individually tailored approach to all elements of the coffee experience twinned with our incredible team of people who have outstanding knowledge and expertise within the coffee industry means that, by working in partnership with our clients, we can help them to create memorable coffee experiences and grow sales and profitability faster than the competition.”
For more information, visit ucc-coffee.co.uk
This article was first published in the May/June 2024 edition of Global Coffee Report. Read more HERE.