Arthur McGowan making Blue Mountain Coffee affordable for everyone
Published:Monday | January 15, 2024 | 12:08 AM
Businessman Arthur McGowan has embarked upon what he describes as a radical mission – to Make Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee accessible to and affordable for every Jamaican.
As owner and chief executive officer of the Trumpet Tree Coffee Factory based in Constitution Hill in the Blue Mountains, since 2021 McGowan has been marketing individually packaged single coffee tea bags, which are also available in a 10-pack under the Betta Cup Coffee brand. ‘Drink di bess! Don’t Settle fi Less’ is the tagline for this 100-per-cent Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee 12-gram offering.
McGowan was one of the exhibitors at last Tuesday’s official launch of the seventh staging of the Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee Festival which will take place at Newcastle, St Andrew in March, at the Edward Seaga Suite, Devon House.
He shared the thinking behind his mission with The Gleaner, pointing out that this highly sought-after premier morning beverage is out of the reach of most Jamaicans.
“Ninety per cent of the population cannot afford it and even if they can, they have to make a choice between having a good cup of coffee and a boxed lunch because of price.
“What has led me to move in this direction is that in order for you to have a good cup of coffee, first of all, you have to have the time to brew it. You have to have the gadget to brew it - percolator or French Press or whatever is needed. So, buying the coffee is expensive, the gadget to prepare it is expensive. So in order for you to be a coffee connoisseur or a coffee person, you have to be well-off. You pocket haffi deep.
“This whole idea is to change all that to ensure that the farmers, the house wife, the person who goes to the little corner shop can get a good cup of coffee even if you cannot buy the whole 10-pack. How much for this? Less than $100,” he said, holding up a sachet of Betta Cup Coffee.
McGowan is looking to tweak his marketing and distribution strategy as a result of some negative experiences with supermarkets and other outlets, even the product enjoys growing popularity on the north coast where it has found favour with Duty Free and other specialised outlets.
Most supermarkets want to take the goods on consignment, but that system cannot work in the coffee industry where the people who pick the beans are paid at the end of their work schedule and farmers demand payment as soon as they deliver the cherry coffee.
For this reason, the coffee business cannot run on consignment. It has to be cash on delivery of a reliable and consistent credit payment, according to McGowan.
Another problem the company experienced was where distributors take the product with at an agreement to sell at a set price, but then based on the positive feedback from consumers, choose to jack up the price
“You may get companies to distribute, but the agreement was to market and sell at an affordable price, but that change after they get the product and see the quality and realise the growing demand. Price gone up all three fold and it just can’t work like that,” he insisted.
“We have done some improvements as it relates to inside filter bag and we are coming back to the market to ensure that the poor man, in fact, every Jamaican can afford Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee.