AUCKLAND, New Zealand – New Zealand’s home espresso machine owners are making good use of their machines, according to survey results from consumer satisfaction company, Canstar Blue.
The nationwide survey of 544 espresso machine owners showed that nearly half (48%) are using their machine daily, says Jose George, Canstar General Manager New Zealand.
“It’s very easy to get used to good coffee and once you’ve had a taste of it, hard to give up.
“Luckily, those with home espresso machines aren’t taking their coffee consumption too far; just 12% report withdrawal symptoms when cutting down on the amount of coffee they drink.”
With the price of a top end home machine costing close to three thousand dollars, it’s not surprising that a small minority see their coffee machine as a status symbol.
For most of us, the average spend for a home machine is $399, with those in the Waikato prepared to devote a bit more ($638), and men ($427) investing more in a machine than women ($376).
The most common type of machine owned was a capsule style (53%) followed by manual (29%) and automatic (16%) that grinds and/or dispenses coffee at the push of a button.
“The convenience of a capsule or automatic machine, takes all the hard work and vagaries of science out of making coffee and delivers a consistent result. There’s no grinding or extraction issues, and I think the majority of espresso machine owners are happy to leave that to the baristas.
Just over 40 per cent of machine owners said they were saving money on café coffees since buying their machine.
“If you’re getting your coffee fix at home, your machine will soon start paying for itself, leading to savings in the long run.”
Espresso machine owners reported spending less than $500 a year on capsules for their machine.
More than 1-in-4 capsule machine owners said they were not recycling used capsules, despite providers like Nespresso recycling more than 75% of capsules sold worldwide since 2013.
When it comes to choosing an espresso machine, it’s useability that counts, says George.
“Reliability and ease of use are the two most important drivers of satisfaction, followed by value for money. How the machine looks was the least important factor. Kiwis want to know that their machine will produce a great cup of coffee every time and that it isn’t too complicated. It’s coffee, not rocket science.”
The Canstar Blue survey measured customer satisfaction across six variables:
1. Reliability
2. Ease of use
3. Value for money
4. Design
5. Cleaning and maintenance
6. Overall satisfaction.
Nespresso customers were the survey’s most satisfied espresso machine owners, rewarding their brand with top scores for reliability, ease of use, design, cleaning and maintenance and overall satisfaction.
George says: “Nespresso makes it easy to enjoy great tasting coffee. The machines are foolproof and easy to use, and the coffee range is interesting and innovative.”
