Key takeaways
- Consistency across locations is critical for multi-site coffee chains, especially when it comes to serving your signature drinks.
- Automated dispensers like Flo-Smart reduce human error, ensuring accurate and repeatable volumes and quality every time.
- Multi-tap systems help you prepare complex drinks quickly, from signature coffees to matcha and even cocktails.
For multi-site coffee chains, consistency is everything. You need to make sure that no matter where customers buy your signature drinks, they’re getting the same flavour and quality. Otherwise, they may have a great experience at one of your locations, and then be put off by how their drink tastes at another.
To minimise these concerns and guarantee consistency across your sites, automatic dispensers like Flo-Smart are an ideal solution. With pre-determined dispensing volumes and one-touch controls, chains can set the standard for drink dispensing.
That said, consistent volumes and quick dispensing are also important for baristas, particularly working across numerous locations. To learn more, I spoke to Vladyslav Demonenko, the founder of Kolo Coffee and the 2023 Ukrainian Brewers Cup Champion.
How equipment helps multi-site chains maintain the quality of signature drinks
For Vladyslav, the main factors behind consistent drinks service are accurate measurement and precision. “To achieve consistency, everything needs to be accurately made in advance,” he tells me. “This means the right measurements – and for baristas, the right extraction of coffee.”
In practice, measuring out the right amount of liquid by hand can be imprecise. Especially in multi-site coffee chains, where the priority is on fast service and managing queue times, it’s easy for staff to make mistakes. Whether it’s pouring too much milk and spilling it, or pouring the wrong kind of milk, the result is wasted product.
With systems like the Flo-Smart, you can prepare your signature drinks consistently across locations while avoiding these bottlenecks. For instance, you can program the system with pre-determined dispensing volumes. Then, your baristas can pour a serving of milk, espresso concentrate, matcha, or even cocktails with one touch. This can save valuable time when serving customers, helping you to drive more sales in a day.
It’s also crucial for serving your signature drinks, where customers have a clear idea of what to expect. They are becoming more popular than ever, with each multi-site chain launching its own signature drinks to stand out to customers.
For instance, Benchmark Coffee offers its own “long black” iced coffee. Other independents like Barth Lane Coffee Roasters have started serving Mont Blanc with cold brew, which combines cold brew, cream, and ice.
These unique drinks are a great way to stand out – but standardising preparation is important for repeatable quality. Often, they require some manual preparation and additional recipe steps, which can hinder speed and consistency. By determining the correct proportions and volumes of each ingredient, you can use your Flo-Smart system to prepare the drink automatically.
However, Vladyslav acknowledges that some drinks are easier to keep consistent than others. “It’s very dependent on the type of drink,” he says. “For some, it’s good and easy, but for others, it’s not possible.”
For this reason, you should look for automated solutions that are compatible with a range of drinks and service requirements. Systems like Flo-Smart are compatible with a wide range of non-carbonated liquids, ranging from milk to espresso concentrates and matcha. You can also choose from two- or four-tap options, meaning you can pour different drinks simultaneously to meet diverse customer requests.
For multi-site chains with a wide menu and signature drinks, these systems standardise your dispensing volumes and ingredient requirements. It means baristas of all experience levels can prepare menu staples and special drinks with the touch of a button.
How does dispensing equipment help with consistency?
While there are manual ways to ensure your signature drinks are prepared consistently, such as by providing precise instructions, using equipment is more efficient. Flo-Smart machines have preset memory programmes, so you can share these settings with team members in other locations to standardise the process.
“I think in terms of coffee, machines absolutely provide consistency,” Vladyslav says. The use cases are incredibly diverse for multi-site chains. For instance, you can use a multi-tap machine to pour espresso concentrate and milk into the same cup for an instant iced latte, saving time on pulling an espresso shot. Since you can dispense different liquids at once, you can also set up containers with different plant milks or even iced matcha, ready to pour on demand.
For chains with a signature drink, that level of repeatability is essential. You can program your Flo-Smart to remember the exact quantity of milk, espresso concentrate, and any other ingredients required for the drink. Then, it’s just a case of dispensing it. Flo-Smart systems also have an automatic jug sensor, meaning you can dispense large quantities of your signature drinks at once to serve multiple customers in an instant.
The versatility on offer goes beyond just coffee-based drinks. “In terms of cocktails, things can be more complicated,” Vladyslav says. “But in practice, cocktails made in your bar or shop can be dispensed very consistently.”
It’s proof that for multi-site chains, the main benefit of investing in dispensing systems is their consistency and repeatable quality, no matter who is using them. Conversely, manually preparing and serving drinks is inconsistent by nature. Staff members will have different experience levels; some may excel at preparing your signature coffee drinks, but not the cocktails on your menu.
With equipment that automates the process, simply dispensing from a container of pre-prepared liquids, you minimise the risk of mistakes and customer disappointment.
In turn, this has a positive impact on the customer experience. Visitors can order your signature drinks from any of your locations and know exactly what to expect. As a result, you’ll build up a reputation for distinctive, quality drinks with unmatched consistency, no matter where your customers order from.
In conclusion, using systems like Flo-Smart can uplift your signature drinks service, ensuring the drinks you’re famous for are served consistently across your locations. Features like one-touch dispensing and multi-tap functionality help you adjust ingredients in an instant, keeping you agile as consumers order their favourite drinks.
If you’re interested in a Flo-Smart dispenser for your multi-site chain, visit our website or get in touch with us directly.
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