With improved sentiment in the ready-to-drink coffee market, Nestle (Thai) Ltd, a leading food and beverage company, is launching a new product to boost consumption after experiencing the first contraction in the market last year due to the pandemic.
Thanatorn Punpanishgul, the company's senior marketing manager for ready-to-drink coffee and tea, said that due to the pandemic last year, consumer lifestyles faced a major shift as more people stayed and worked at home which led to a decline of 5% in Thailand's 12-billion-baht ready-to-drink coffee market in 2020.
Of the overall ready-to-drink coffee market, 95% comprises coffee mixed with milk, while 5% is black coffee.
Prior to the pandemic, the ready-to-drink coffee market continued to grow with an average growth of 2% over the past three years.
However, the ready-to-drink coffee market is showing positive signs with steady growth in the first quarter of this year.
In light of this, the firm is launching the new product to stimulate consumption of ready-to-drink coffee this year and to increase the opportunity to expand into a new customer base.
Mr Thanatorn claims Thailand is the first country in which Nestle has launched Nescafe Triple Espresso.
The new product is an initiative of Nestle's Thai team, which was developed to meet the demand of consumers and new generation workers who need refreshment and to help them stay alert.
Nescafe Triple Espresso will target the upper mainstream segment, including the new generation of consumers, energy drink customers and gamers.
He said Thailand has around 46 million gamers, of which 88% play games on their mobile phone.
The company has allocated 100 million baht for the marketing campaign which will be able to connect with a new generation of coffee consumers.
"This product will be a game changer to stimulate consumption of ready-to-drink coffee this year and marks Nescafe's biggest product launch in the first half of 2021,'' he said.
At present, Nescafe is the market leader in the country's coffee market. However, it is second in the ready-to-drink coffee market with 36% market share, trailing Ajinomoto's Birdy.
"We believe Nescafe Triple Espresso will soon become a favourite drink for the new generation, gamers and people who want to stay alert, reinforcing Nescafe as the number one coffee brand in Thailand."