Chatime bets on coffee to attract older Millennials
Coffee was Australia's most consumed beverage in 2024, with six of 10 Aussies drinking it.
Chatime Australia is expanding beyond bubble tea with its range of Level Up coffee products, targeting older Millennials and tapping into Australians’ enduring love for coffee to fuel its next growth phase.
“Our approach to introducing the coffee within Chatime has been customer-driven,” Rachel Druce, national marketing manager at Chatime Australia, told QSR Media via video conference. “They wanted a coffee option.”
Customers can choose from three Level Up Coffee drinks — Iced Long Black, Iced Latte, and Brown Sugar Cookie Latte.
A study by Chatime showed that it has strong appeal amongst consumers aged 18 to 34. Druce said their coffee would target older consumers aged 35 to 44.
Coffee was Australia's most consumed beverage in 2024, with six of 10 Aussies drinking it, according to German data portal Statista.
Carlos Antonius, Global CEO at Chatime, earlier cited the commercial potential of coffee, especially when paired with Chatime’s strengths in customisation, creative mix-ins, and the indulgent, experiential qualities define its boba and tea products.
Druce noted that for the Level Up range, they used a pour-over brewing method instead of just adding coffee. This allowed Chatime to repurpose its tea brewing machines for coffee, avoiding costly investment.
“We needed to ensure that the new range complemented the Chatime brand while offering something distinctly valuable,” she said. “So there’s an option to add our signature pearls with the iced latte or the Cream Mousse with the Iced Long Black.”
Chatime promoted the coffee products on digital channels, including YouTube and through its app.
“With coffee, we’re aiming to target a new customer, Druce said. “It’s essentially trying to change customer behaviour in that they don’t normally get their coffee from Chatime but now they can.”
Druce said the company is boosting its digital presence through its loyalty app and marketing whilst also introducing self-serve kiosks for convenience. Chatime is also luring budget-conscious customers by giving them a chance to win various prizes.
At its coffee launch early this month, customers had a chance to win one of three custom-built gaming PCs.
Druce said they would offer more personalisation and loyalty experiences and conduct more research on what drives customer loyalty. The brand is also refining its catering assets as part of a plan to expand into the catering market, she added.
