The ‘word ‘takeaway’ is being used more and more in conversations around the world. The concept of having something to eat or drink while attending (to other duties, and lifestyle demands, is one that has become prolific in recent years. For example on the way to work a person may want a coffee, but has not the time to sit in a shop and drink it; or you have a tight deadline at work and you need to eat lunch while you work. In addition the changes in the work place have reduced lunch breaks from 1 hour to 30minutes or less makes it harder to have time to eat so the solution is takeaway food and takeaway coffee. The takeaway food or drink seems to answer the question of getting the morning caffeine or the midday food which are important modern daily requirements. In the 19th century coffee houses were used for meeting people, having business meeting which in today’s society has changed to a place where you get your takeaway coffee or food during the day. This essay is going to look at the concept of takeaway food and drink as consumption phenomenon.
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The industry of takeaways seems to have had an increase in the past few years due to changes in work places, and in our everyday lives. The takeaway coffee has taken off as a fashion, a cool thing to do, following the celebrities and so on. The coffee business industry has increased in the past few years especially in UK and the rest of European countries. The coffee chain companies have their brand name mentioned in every day conversation more in today’s society than they used to a few years ago. In the coffee shops today there is a large variety of coffees and different ways of making them, allowing a customer to more or less design their own drink. The changes that the coffee chains have made to (adapt to the changes of the society are working very well when it comes to pulling in customers for coffee, and perhaps food.
The visual representation of the products on the shelf is carefully put together to make it irresistible while you are queuing to buy a takeaway coffee. As the ORINS MITH, Starbucks CEO put it “We changed the way people live their lives, what they do when they get up in the morning, how they reward themselves, and where they meet (CRAIG J. THOMPSON, 2004).
The take away option makes it possible for the people that like a cup of coffee but can’t to find time to sit down in a coffee shop to drink their coffee. The coffee chains have made it possible for the customers that like a coffee in their way to work or while the going around to do shopping or to attend other tasks that they have to do by not sitting down but by moving around as the time is so precious in this age. In the early 1960’s with the introduction of computers into work places people thought that they would have more time to themselves, and increased recreational time to spend with their families. It seems that the whole idea of more free time stemming from computers doing a large amount of work for humans, has not turned out to be completely true. The idea has almost backfired and it seems to have decreased the free time and increased the working time. A few years ago at Christmas holidays the shops would close for few days and people had to stack up food and drinks for the holiday time however that is not the case in the twenty first century as the only day that coffee shops or markets and supermarkets are not operating for business seems to be Christmas day.
Picture 1 Picture 2
Picture 1 a person that is going to work with a smile on his face after purchasing a takeaway coffee which would supply the morning caffeine that he needs to start work. Picture 2 a celebrity (Megan Fox) walking with a takeaway coffee while smiling. The pictures shows the increase in the self esteem it makes the person feel, and the increased comfort a person has when walking around and drinking coffee. The image claims centre stage and reinforces the visual dominance of the takeaway as a must have element of the modern lifestyle image (Borgerson, 2005). It identifies a market communication throughout society for the product by putting the product in direct public focus. Marketing uses this way of communication to penetrate deeper into the mind of the commuters that do not have the time to sit down in a coffee shop and drink a coffee while reading the daily newspaper or for the people that like to follow fashionable images, such as that presented by celebrities. At the same time it tries to increase personal image, through allowing them to keep up with current trends. It has also shaped the consumer lifestyles and identities by functioning as a cultural model that consumers act, think, and feel through in their every days lives (CRAIG J. THOMPSON, 2004).
(The coffee brands categorise customers into commuters, sociable, family when it comes to the coffee consumer has led to people trying to find their place. They consider Which category fits them better, how can they change to fit in the trends that change during the time, following others for example celebrities walking with a cup of coffee and a smile.
The globalization of the other ideas for products ideas that have come from other countries has helped the expansion of the chains around the world. For example a TV show that is made in USA and is being broadcasted around the world would show celebrities with certain brand names which in return make people think that they want to look like that or want to try that way of drinking a coffee. The concept of self image, and the question of how they would like to be seen by others can be influenced by the images in the media. The celebrities are carefully selected for the purpose of the shot, with a certain body size, the right looks and so on. The customer gazes at the celebrities which helps to build a relationship between customers and the celebrities (Borgerson, 2005).
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The way (in which businesses advertise their product origins, seems like they are trying to make the customer believe that they are benefiting those who grow the coffee, and the habitats in which it grows. For example the idea of ‘fair trade’ coffee, or ‘rainforest alliance’ coffee growing conditions. Using this as a marketing tool tries to make the customers feel better when they are buying a takeaway coffee and at the same time beneficial to the producing countries as it provides jobs.
The language used on the menu boards of major coffee chains often make it difficult for the customer to order the coffee size he/she wants because they use Italian or another language. For example Costa uses the words Primo (small), medio( medium) and Massimo (large). In Starbucks it is something different such as (regular), Grande (large). This is a marketing strategy to sell a medium coffee instead of small because the margin is higher. For a non regular coffee consumer the offer from a barista (a person that makes coffee) when the customer asks for a coffee is to offer a medium or a large size not the small one and offering a pastry or cake to accompany the coffee. What is offered depends on the time of the day, in the morning a pastry is offered, and for the rest of the day a cake or muffin is suggested to the customer
The same design that the chain coffee shops uses in the first shop it uses in all of their shops which makes it less difficult to go and have your favourite coffee almost everywhere around the world, as they would have shops in many countries which would serve the same drinks and the menu looks the same. People that live there and that like to follow others around the world in their morning caffeine intake, can do it without difficulty as there is a recognisable brand within reach. The Costa coffee brand has not advertised any of the products in television in UK until few months ago that it came out with the advertisement where monkeys were trying to make coffee. This shows that the in store marketing has worked in spreading the word. The way that the coffee shops are designed inside out from the marketing department is very successful in the race to increase the number of customer especially with the idea of flexibility and diversity on the coffee choice. The increase on the takeaway coffee has led to non coffee chains to sell takeaway coffee too, for example McDonalds, Burger King Etc.
A takeaway coffee may be one of the luxuries we still allow ourselves to boost morale in our everyday lives. The idea of having takeaway coffee or other food is being implemented in our society more and more everyday as the demand for more takeaway food and drink seems to be rising. Up until a few years ago the UK was known all over the world for it’s traditional drink: tea. However that seems to have changed with the expansion of the chain coffee shops of Costa, Star bucks, Nero. The multinational (globalization) of the coffee chains has standardised the whole process. The bigger the company the higher the standards the employees are expected to work to for the customer. The competition is fierce, and one unhappy customer can turn into two. The coffee shops rely heavily on the customer to market them by word of mouth to spread the brand name. Furthermore the understanding of customer needs and want from the coffee brands seems to have changed (from) a decade ago when there were only few choices whereas today there are infinite choices, this shows that the customer is the centre stage now not the coffee shops, which have changed to suit the public desires.
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