ISS has pointed out the old coffee machine is losing ground and that larger workplaces are demanding their own coffee shop and barista. Instead of brewing coffee more canteens are getting catering coffee machines that make fresh coffee.
At larger workplaces, this trend is being been taken even further. In the last 10 years ISS has established 12 to 15 coffee shops in Norwegian workplaces.
Department chief at ISS Catering in Norway, Bodil Hilton said: “The coffee wave has arrived at the work place. The classic cafeteria coffee which has been in the coffee pot for two or three hours is history and is no longer served in our canteens. People want good coffee while they are at work. For companies who want to reach young, skilled workers a good canteen has become one of the important benefits. A coffee shop with its own barista is a step further on that road.”
Coffee bars are physically separated from the canteens as a separate area with counter, tables and chairs. And they keep the same standard as regular coffee shops, both interior and variety of coffees.
Behind the counter stands a barista – someone specialised in preparing coffee. Barista Therese Pedersen, who serves a steady stream of guests at the coffee shop in the office community Strømsveien 102 in Oslo, commented: “The café latte is most popular. It is mostly women who buy it, but men too. The americano will propbably remain the choice of drink for men for a while.
“People think good coffee at work is important. We often hear complaints about the free coffee machines on the floors around the building. They then choose to come down here and buy a proper cup of coffee instead.”
Most of the ISS coffee shops are located in Oslo at companies such as Siemens, ABB, Statkraft, Aker Solutions and IT Fornebu.
“We saw that there was basis for having own coffee shops at larger workplaces. We recommend that a workplace should have around 500 employees before starting up a coffee shop,” noted Hilton.