PROFILE Franke
Automating Australia FRANKE COFFEE SYSTEMS IS CATERING TO A MATURE BUT UNDERSERVED MARKET FOR FULLY AUTOMATICS IN OCEANIA.
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The Franke A300 features a compact design so it can be set up in a greater number of locations.
ustralia’s coffee industry is renowned for its focus on quality and innovation. While most obvious in the wealth of micro roasters and independent outlets that contribute to the café scene, this focus on quality reaches across the wider coffee market. David Downing, Sales Director Oceania of Franke Coffee Systems, says the strength of Australia and New Zealand’s cafés has heightened the standards of consumers across the board. “We’re all kind of coffee geeks in Australia, regardless of individual levels of expertise. We live for our coffee. It’s a trend driven by the café market, but it’s expanding to everyday life,” Downing tells Global Coffee Report. “The rest of the market, particularly in the Asia Pacific, watch what we do in the café sector and the innovations roasters bring to the market. Australia is a very mature market and
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it drives a lot of what happens in the global industry, particularly in equipment and fully automatics.” Downing has helped grow Franke Coffee Systems’ presence in Oceania for more than a decade. In the last few years, he says there has been a rise in demand for reliable automatic coffee solutions. “We’ve seen an increase in the need for companies to invest in these styles of machine, particularly with innovations in the technology. The introduction of telemetry has become prolific within segments across Australia and NZ,” Downing says. “Super automatic technology has evolved to provide consistency every time you use it. There’s a lot of personal preference in coffee. We may prefer certain drinks or brands, but quality – and the ability of the machine to deliver it – is the most important aspect.” Franke’s presence in the Australian market is best seen in the corporate sector, with offices wanting to provide inhouse coffee solutions for its employees. Other growth markets include the convenience store sector, HoReCa and hospitality, retail outlets, and – unique to Australia – the mining industry. “When miners return home for breaks from work, they go to cafés and interact with their friends and families. Afterwards, they go back to their jobs at remote mining sites and still want their high-quality cappuccinos and lattes,” Downing says. Another distinguishing factor of the Australian coffee culture is consumers’ preference for milk-based coffees. Downing says this is different to the filter or black coffee-focused American and Asian markets, or the simpler European palate. With different people preferring flat whites, lattes, cappuccinos, and other beverages, automatics need to be capable
