Filterfresh Coffee Service Inc., the Westwood, Mass based coffee service operation, recently placed Tassimo Professional brewers throughout the Clearview Cinema chain of 46 movie theaters in New York and New Jersey. The concession staff uses the Tassimo Pro brewers to prepare coffee by the cup for its cinema customers.
Some of the theaters have as many as four Tassimo Pro brewers.
The system’s bar code technology reads every T DISC individually and adjusts the temperature, water volume and brew time to ensure that each beverage is made just right.
The system offers one of the best quality cappuccino and latte products on the market.
Robert Jones, concessions and project analysis manager for Florham Park, N.J.-based Clearview Cinema, said the chain wanted to provide patrons with the same quality and variety they were buying at specialty coffee shops and bringing into the theaters. He said the Filterfresh contract is the first chain-wide coffee service contract for his company.
Jones said Clearview Cinemas previously used another single-cup brewer in 25 of its theaters, but that system did not provide the espresso-based beverages that the Tassimo Pro provides. He said the Tassimo Pro doubled the unit sales and tripled the revenue over the previous brewer. He said the theaters price the beverages similar to what specialty coffee retailers charge; $1.75 for regular and $3.75 for latte and cappuccino.
“The Tassimo Pro makes it really nice because we can brew every cup fresh,” Jones said.
He said the installations were completed in October.
In the months that the cinemas have had the Tassimo Pro systems, Jones said the Signature Blend and the Columbian have been the strongest selling coffees. He further noted that some of the milk-based coffee drinks, the cappuccinos, mochas and lattes, have been good sellers and have accounted for more than 20 percent of total sales.
The theaters have provided special signage to announce the coffee to their patrons, Jones said. He said they have 5- by 3-foot banners in the lobby and counter cards. One lobby has a digital menu board. In the future, the theaters will advertise the products as part of their standard screen commercials that run before the movies.
Joanna Kim, national accounts manager at Filterfresh, said the company views the Tassimo Pro as a big success in the Clearview Cinemas. “It’s a great product, which is why we’re proud to stand behind it,” Kim said. “We’re always on the lookout for new technologies.”
She said the fact that the espresso-based drinks use a genuine espresso is a big part of their success.
