UK Coffee Week Founder Jeffrey Young, CEO of Allegra Strategies and the World Coffee Portal, talks about the challenges and opportunities arising from the current crisis – and warns businesses must adapt to survive.
He said: “Covid is providing a number of challenges for our industry, in actual fact the impact is going to be absolutely catastrophic for some players. People that don't adapt and don't find their way into this new normal really won't survive this moment.
“There is a lot of structural change within our cities, within our workplaces and also a lot of anxiety among consumers. And it requires a mindset to really move with the times and embrace a moment of new normal, new ways of working - taking new initiatives and a lot of innovation to thrive in this environment that is probably going to take a couple of years to get through for us as an industry.
“There's a lot of opportunity with those who want to embrace this new era. We have a lot of growth in the home coffee market, we have a lot of growth in local independents, and we have this fundamental need for British consumers to embrace the local, and to embrace their local community.
“There's a lot of opportunities for brands to build those bridges to communities…so we all move forward into a positive future together.”
