I often get asked about what a specialty beverage actually is? Well, specialty beverages are drinks that offer the consumer new taste sensations through creative combinations of flavours and textures.

With the consumer of today being significantly more sophisticated and aware due to social media, access to travel and the inspirations of shows like MasterChef and My Kitchen Rules, many expect more flavour, variety and customisation, not only at home, but also when enjoying the dining experience.

Many business savvy owners now realise this and are finding that with high profit margins, specialty beverage menu items are a winning recipe.

There’s also no doubt that the popularity of beverages such as smoothies is still on the rise. The major trends that are driving this are the push to eat more fruit and the overall desire for health and wellness. With obesity on the rise and nutritionists encouraging us to eat more fruits and vegetables each day, an indulgent smoothie is an easy, tasty way for someone to fulfill the fruit requirement.

The additional benefits of specialty beverages are that they not only assist with differentiating your outlet from your neighbours, but they can also provide you with the opportunity to connect with a broader range of customers, whether they are the health-conscious patrons or the Gen Y patrons looking to push boundaries.

Having a unique offering subject to location/demographic can generate an increased revenue stream, both by bringing new customers into store and extracting more from current clientele.

Through a few amendments to your current menu, you can offer your clientele an improved beverage offering which will service all times of the day effectively.

The process, if done effectively, will allow you to keep your core products intact whilst trending with high margin offerings, allowing for upselling opportunities.

This unique portfolio offering also brings with it the benefit of brand building opportunities, depending on the uniqueness of the choices you make.

There are, however, a few things which need to be kept in check when looking at venturing down the specialty beverage road.

The first is to avoid operational issues associated with serving drinks that are time consuming to prepare. Don’t forget; your customers expect to receive their beverage in a timely manner. The DaVinci suggestion is that any new beverage being developed needs to be able to be made in less than one minute.

It should also be viable. Anything which has a make-up cost of over 25% of the sell price of the drink should also be avoided. This is a rule which really should cover all products in your business portfolio.

Another thing to remember is to try not to introduce too many new products: simple but indulgent should be the key to your choices.  Use unexpected mixers that boost the taste profile; you don’t want to add things which are too specialised and then just as they are becoming popular, find that they are twice the price due to seasonality.

The final one is: does the finished product meet all the previous guidelines and most importantly, the customers’ needs?

Although it’s hard to nail down the demographic of your customers’ needs, you can look at them psychographically.

When deciding on your specialty beverage menu, use your understanding of your customers to your advantage.

Are your customers the types who care what they eat and want to do more for themselves from a health and wellness perspective? Or, are your customers those who see food as fuel, are a touch less health-conscious but who still indulge and throw calorie counts out the window? The choices you make on your beverage menu will be very influential on the customers’ willingness to invest in your business over the counter.

A venture into the specialty beverage business will undoubtedly require an additional investment of money and time, so operators are advised to discuss with us which specialty beverages are a good fit.

Some companies will advise that a separate machine is required for each flavour or style of beverage offered. However, with the expertise offered through DaVinci, any specialty beverage suggestions will be made from your current core products and amended with our flavoured syrups. This allows for operators to offer multiple flavours with minimal additional outlay on product.

This approach also allows the opportunity for customers to interact with the café and make suggestions for future menu items or promotional beverages.