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Coffee Nation

Coffee Nation
Coffee Nation
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Often accompanied by:WHSmith
Introduced:1999
Removed:most in 2012
Predecessors:Kenco, Baristo
Successors:Costa Express
See also:J.J Beano's
Official Website:
www.coffeenation.com/

Coffee Nation was an influential brand of automated coffee vending machine, used at many forecourts, convenience stores and supermarkets.

It was introduced to the roadside in 1999, based on lessons from American convenience stores. One of their first major partners were Texaco, followed by Welcome Break, who went on to become very loyal and supportive partners.

Promoters were careful not to focus on the quality of its coffee, where it couldn't be better than a café, and instead to look at how it is faster and cheaper than a human barista, which they believed was important to customers and retailers. It was introduced to petrol station shops, followed by motorway newsagents and then service station lobbies, outselling previous coffee machines and introducing new products to customers who weren't currently buying anything. As competitors began to emerge, Coffee Nation focused on their reliability and the little staff maintenance required.

The third generation machines could dispense eight varieties of coffee, and two hot chocolates, and could take cash payments for lobby areas where there was no till nearby.

The widespread roll-out of this seemingly innocuous coffee machine made a big change to the industry. Petrol stations cannot be regarded as service stations in their own right (and therefore signposted from major roads) unless they serve hot drinks. Automated coffee machines allowed even the smallest of petrol stations to meet this requirement without hiring any additional staff, and allowed large service areas to close down at night safe in the knowledge that the adjacent petrol station would meet all their contractual obligations. Meanwhile, the success of Coffee Nation meant many food brands were now heavily investing in their own machine coffee, so they could match customer's expectations of convenience.

Coffee Nation was bought by Costa for £59.5million on 2 March 2011 (around £85million in 2025). Over the following five years the machines were re-branded as 'Costa Express', and introduced to more places across the country. Alongside their coffee shops across the country, this meant parts of Britain were now Costa dominated.

A protective brand like Costa would once have never wanted to be associated with petrol station machines, but Coffee Nation had shown it can be done without having a bad reputation. Applying the Costa name to the machines meant even more clients would be attracted to it.

Partnerships

Coffee Nation's roll out with Welcome Break saw them appear in their forecourts and WHSmith branded stores, replacing a small number of Kenco-operated machines. The Oxford forecourt was Coffee Nation's first motorway site, where it became the top-selling product in the shop, followed by the retail stores at Warwick.

They were less lucky with the other operators. A trial with Roadchef took place, but they were won offer by a new rival, J.J Beano's, who Coffee Nation felt were sacrificing quality to offer a better rate. Moto's relationship with SSP meant they were less receptive to outsiders, but after that relationship ended in 2006, a trial at Leigh Delamere soon followed. This turned into a widespread roll-out, replacing Moto's 'Baristo'.

Meanwhile, the Tesco Express at Acre Hill services was labelled a "runaway success", selling 90 cups of coffee a day. It was hoped this would turn into a roll-out across British supermarkets, but that took some time, with Tesco and Sainsbury's eventually getting on board.

Agreements were made with Esso and Malthurst Pace, and then BP and Total.

Locations

Coffee Nation used to be found at the following service areas: