Jamaica Blue is a coffee-forward brand which over the years has scooped up multiple awards for its roasting. Now the business is raising the bar even higher.

Richard Goodman is the CEO of parent company Foodco. He says customers flock to the premium cafe to indulge in its fully flavoured brews. 

“We’ve always been known for our outstanding coffee. Now new equipment we are introducing will ensure a perfect cup of coffee – every time,” he says.

“The perfect cup of coffee starts with grinding the beans. Then it depends on how the grounds are compressed, the extraction time for the water to flow, and then the milk. The equipment we are offering improves every single touchpoint.”

The state-of-the-art machinery improves the flavour profile, removes the variability of barista skill and delivers a consistent cup of coffee.

A perfect cup of coffee in 46 seconds

Jamaica Blue trialled the equipment at a store in Sydney – the store is a high velocity model where speed is crucial to meet the much shorter wait time demanded by customers in transit. 

“We can make a coffee within 46 seconds and the customer has often finished paying and the coffee is ready within that time. And it’s a great cup of coffee!” says Richard.

More than 10 per cent of franchisees have upgraded elements in the two months since the equipment was launched.  

The highly popular grinder, for instance, maintains the coffee’s ultimate freshness by grinding one shot at a time. It also reduces wastage. So there are cost efficiencies all round.

“Franchisees understand the importance of an awesome cup of coffee, efficiencies and flavour benefits,” says Richard. 

Jamaica Blue’s new coffee equipment

The cutting-edge coffee machine is also less bulky on the counter than previous models which allows baristas to better engage with customers.

“In retail the interaction between the barista and customer is really important. This new machine delivers a better service outcome. We are really excited,” says Richard.

New franchisees will start up their stores with the latest San Remo coffee machines, with outright purchasing or finance options available. 

“We want to make sure we can support franchisees. It’s a big investment. Aside from refrigeration it is the second largest equipment cost, so it’s important to provide franchisees with the ability to add this in.

These premium machines will take pride of place on the counters of new look stores which Richard says will start to roll out later this year.

Fresh new look for Jamaica Blue

“We are super excited. We’ve just finalised a brilliant new design and had extremely positive feedback from two major landlords. Now we are making sure our marketing and efficiency systems can maximise that store outcome for franchisees.”

Jamaica Blue is inspired by its primary coffee source, the world’s finest coffee growing region, the Jamaican Blue Mountains. A Caribbean colour palette will celebrate the brand’s core primary colour, blue, with notes of yellow. It will deliver a more premium look to the stores, says Richard.

“Newly revamped Jamaica Blue stores will create a sanctuary for families, for younger and older generations, to relax and enjoy the amazing coffee and food,” says Richard.

The new design also offers other cost efficiencies by switching from non-sustainable and non-upgradable stores to layouts that continue to evolve over time.

More Jamaica Blue sites in high traffic areas

And it will be even easier to find a Jamaica Blue cafe as the business steps up its expansion around the country. A particular focus will be moving into high traffic areas.

Thirty-two Hudsons Coffee stores that Foodco now owns will, over time, rebrand to Jamaica Blue. These are predominantly hospital sites. Richard expects to develop a stronger footprint in this marketplace with more brand new locations.

“We thought long and hard about how to support franchisees in setting up their business, in a post-Covid world,” says Richard. “For a franchisee the first year is always the most challenging. They have just invested in the business; they are learning how to execute the template well. We wanted to give them some profit improvement in year one.”

$40K franchise buyer incentive

So Jamaica Blue has unveiled a limited time incentive that will help franchise buyers in their first 12 months of business.

A $40,000 royalties incentive means Jamaica Blue waives royalties up to that amount within the first year. This offer is available until 30 June, on brand new sites across Australia and New Zealand. 

“We did a lot of research on other development incentives and this is the most assertive offer in the market at the moment,” says Richard. “For us this was a great opportunity to help people kickstart their dream of owning a Jamaica Blue cafe.”