Haagen-Dazs has launched a new line of coffee at its stores in China to capture a piece of the country’s quickly growing coffee market.
The introduction of the “rainbow latte,” a mix of Haagen-Dazs ice cream and Illy coffee, served in uniquely designed hand-blown glass cups, is the culmination of several years of planning by the ice cream chain. The company also plans to open stand-alone Haagen-Dazs coffee shops to diversify beyond the ice cream market, according to Want China Times.
The company’s choice to serve the “rainbow latte” as its first coffee offering is a conscious shift in its marketing strategy in China in order to attract young coffee drinkers in their late twenties and early thirties, according to the company.
Though Haagen-Dazs had billed itself in China as the Rolls-Royce of ice cream, it is overhauling its strategy to connect with young consumers’ affinity for unique experiences over luxury, reflecting the increased sophistication of Chinese consumers.
Though average coffee consumption in China currently sits at under one cup of coffee per person annually, rising to 5 cups per person in urban areas, it is becoming a lucrative market with the entrance of international coffee chains such as Starbucks, Costa Coffee, Pacific Coffee, and Maan Coffee.
In 2012, average coffee consumption per capita in China was 47.6 grams, well below the consumption in Japan and South Korea, which averaged 3.4 kg and 2.1 kg per capita per year respectivelly. Though the worldwide coffee market is expected to grow only 2 percent annually, China’s coffee market will see growth rates around 15 percent.
