Nongnapa Wongvaree, executive director of the Aroma Group of Companies, a leading local coffee producer and parent company of operator and franchiser Ultimate Beverage Products, said that Ninety-Four Coffee would be rebranded as a premium coffee house.

Ultimate Beverage Products currently operates 44 Ninety-Four Coffee outlets, of which almost 70 per cent are owned by its franchisees.

The group set up subsidiary Food Gallery earlier this year as an import arm for fine food ingredients, including frozen bakery products and all fresh berry fruits. The new unit will supply its Ninety-Four Coffee network as well as outside customers. It is part of the Aroma Group's vision to become a total food-service company. Aroma has produced coffee for almost 50 years. The group expected to increase its total sales to Bt400 million this year, of which almost 70 per cent would come from its coffee business.

"We will promote Viva Cafe as a coffee house for travellers, providing not only coffee but also easy meals. The average menu price at Viva Cafe will be 30 per cent lower than those offered at Ninety-Four Coffee. The price for hot coffee at Viva Cafe, for example, will be about Bt35," said Nongnapa. Nongnapa said that the company had already rebranded its Ninety-Four Coffee outlets at Esso gas stations in Bangkok's Ngamwongwan and Vibhavadee to the new Viva Cafe. The company has also opened Viva Cafe at Shell gas stations in Sara Buri and on Bang Na-Trat Road KM 18.

The Aroma Group also provides operational man

agement to Amazon, a coffee-house brand owned by PTT. The company also manages Cafe Corner at Yamaha motorcycle showrooms.

It formed Food Gallery to import original French recipes, including frozen products such as croissants and puff pastries, as well as fresh strawberry and berry fruits from Japan and the US.

"All new food ingredients imported by Food Gallery will fit in with our coffee houses," said Nongnapa, adding it would help the company to utilise the database of its customers.

She said the company was seeking permission from the Food and Drug Administration to import premium dairy products such as butter, cheese and fois gras.

Nongnapa said it would also expand its customers outside the company. The products could be processed through its central kitchen Aroma Fine Food, which has already supplied bakery products and meals to Ninety-Four Coffee outlets.

She said the company would open its Food Gallery outlets for selling bakery products at leading retail complexes, while imported berry fruits would be sold at premium supermarkets.

The Aroma Group will have a 200-square-metre pavilion at the Thaifex-World Food Asia 2007 exhibition to be held from tomorrow to Sunday at Impact Muang Thong Thani.

With an investment of more than Bt2 million, its display will create a coffee experience to visitors by demonstrating production from the planting process to a drink.

Kwanchai Rungfapaisarn

The Nation