Single-origin coffees brew success online

The growth of online marketplaces in recent years has added a new channel to boosting coffee sales in the country. An estimated two dozen estate owners and vendors are selling speciality coffees online, shipping them directly to consumers from their estates located in the remote hilly growing regions of Coorg, Chikmagalur and the Shevaroys or selling through an aggregrator.

Speciality flavours “When I started selling online in April 2015, there were just six other companies selling single estate speciality coffees. In a little over two years, that number has grown to 25-30 companies today,” says Rishwin Devaya of Riverside Estate in Siddapura, Kodagu.

Devaya sells three varieties of Riverside branded coffees online including 100 per cent Arabica coffee, a 50:50 blend of Arabica-Robusta coffees and an Arabica-Robusta blend with chicory.

Of the 1,500 kg of coffee that Devaya sells at present, 250 kg are sold online and shipped free of cost via India Post to customers in Bengaluru, Kolkata, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai. He markets the brand predominantly on social media and is witnessing a 30-35 per cent rise in demand in the last 24 months.

“100 per cent Arabica coffee sells the most and are bought by uber millennials who are very particular about the kind of coffees and wines they drink. Also, these single estate coffees are gaining popularity because they absorb the natural characteristics of the region and terrain they are grown in. For instance, Riverside coffees have peppery and sweet notes as pepper is inter-planted in the coffee estate and there are many fruit-bearing trees including fig and jackfruit grown as intercrops,” said Devaya.

Similarly, for Vijayan Rajes of MSP Plantations in the Shevaroys, who launched three single estate pure Arabica coffees online under the Cauvery Peak flagship brand last year, the internet has helped take coffee marketing to the next level.

MSP has three estate-specific brands such as Shevroys Estate Reserve Coffee, Cauvery Peak Heritage Coffee and Glenfall Estate Classic Coffee. “We are curing, roasting, packaging and despatching from the estates,” said Rajes.

“On an average, we sell about 10-15 kg online daily and we have been getting orders from places such as Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Vijaywada, Tirupati, Chennai, the US and Canada,” he adds.

Consumption up For India, which produces one-sixth of the global produce and exports two-thirds of its produce, the expansion of online marketplaces is seen contributing to the rising domestic consumption.

“It is just starting and we see that online marketplace has become a fast growing phenomenon,” says Anil Bhandari, Chairman of the India Coffee Trust. The per capita consumption is estimated at around 120 grams, Bhandari said.

For Abhijit Shetty, Founder and Promoter, Seven Beans Coffee Company, a gourmet bean-to-cup coffee company, which sells on Amazon, Flipkart, Place of Origin, and TasteBells, growth of online sales has been exponential with demonetisation helping further to push sales.

“Consumer trust in online marketplaces is growing and they are especially happy as they are able to access unique blends of single origin coffees from our 625-acre Woddaegudda Estate in Chikmagalur, which wouldn’t have been possible otherwise. Besides Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai, 15 per cent of our online sales comes from Bihar, which totally surprised us. ”

Coffee machinery Additionally, online sales has also triggered a demand for coffee brewing equipment, be it the French Press or the Stovetop coffee makers. Rajes and Shetty are receiving a lot of enquiries from customers who are eager to know what kind of brewing equipment they should buy to brew the perfect cuppa.

The coffee story which is all about location, altitude, shade-grown, handpicked, single origin, etc can be best told through a mass digital medium, feels brand consultant, Harish Bijoor.

“However, it will continue to be a low volume, high margin business and will contribute to only 5-10 per cent of the total volume of sales of a grower. To popularise coffee consumption in India, it is important to bring coffee to the masses at a price they are willing to pay,” he said.

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