Last year, coffee consumption was temporarily relocated to the home environment due to the pandemic. Costa Coffee conquered the Hungarian market during this period: customers were especially welcoming to high-quality coffee that provides a special coffee experience at home. The shift towards at-home coffee has also strengthened the position of competing brands in retail, including Costa Coffee. At the same time, there’s a growing demand for quality coffee in the coffee machine market as well, which is also supported by the sales data of the largest Hungarian e-commerce company, eMAG.
When Costa Coffee was launched last May, Coca-Cola HBC Hungary aimed to achieve a 20 percent market share in the premium segment of the Hungarian coffee market in the first 12 months – the company has successfully reached this goal.
The demand for quality coffee is constantly growing in the domestic market and there is also a noticeable shift from functional coffee toward coffee experiences.
A coffee maker or coffee machine is essential for making coffee at home. Tendencies similar to coffee sales trends can be detected in the coffee machine market: customers are placing more and more emphasis on quality coffee and the tools needed for it. This is confirmed by sales data of coffee machines and coffee makers. According to the experiences of eMAG Hungary, one of the largest domestic e-traders, Hungarians have been continuously developing their at-home options even in the coffee machine category since the beginning of the pandemic: automatic espresso machines with built-in grinders are generating an outstanding turnover, but the sales of capsule coffee machines have also increased significantly at eMAG.
More and more consumers are choosing the convenient coffee capsule solution at home, but quality coffee bean sales are also increasing in Hungary – Costa Coffee is the strongest in these two categories, with its 100% sustainable, Rainforest Alliance Certified coffee. Coffee capsules also provide delicious coffee at-home for those who may not have enough space in the kitchen for an automatic coffee machine or would like to have guaranteed high-quality coffee at the touch of a button. According to eMAG's sales numbers, the purchases of moka pots and traditional drip espresso machines are decreasing, while Hungarian customers are moving from filter coffee machines to capsule or automatic types, because of the more convenient use.
Since the launch of the supermarket product category, many people have ordered non-perishable food, including coffee from eMAG: according to the company's data, both coffee capsule and coffee bean sales have increased significantly since the start of the pandemic. Although ground coffee still has the largest slice of the market in Hungary, the coffee capsule and bean segments have been growing strongly in the last few years. This increase is supported by eMAG’s sales numbers: 52 percent of the coffee they sold is capsule coffee and 31.5 percent is coffee beans, while ground coffee is only 6 percent. Hungarian customers have clearly moved towards quality at-home coffee consumption in the past year and even now, after the pandemic situation has eased.
In addition to at-home consumption, Coca-Cola HBC's Hungary’s goals include gaining a foothold in the HORECA sector – hotels, restaurants, and cafes – with the "We're serving Costa" sub-brand. Quality is also a priority in this segment, which the company maintains through continuous training and high level of service.