According to the British Coffee Association, around 95 million cups of coffee are consumed a day in the UK? That’s an awful lot of coffee, keeping coffee machines busy!
There is no doubt that we have fallen in love with coffee. Many of us cannot start the day without our favourite latte, cappuccino, Americano or flat white, whether enjoyed at home or on the high street.
This love affair has arrived firmly in the workplace too. Freshly brewed, barista style coffee delivered courtesy of a sleek office coffee machine has become an essential requirement – the days of a kettle and instant coffee granules are long gone, thankfully.
But, as well as being the only acceptable way for employees to get their daily caffeine fix, did you know that your filter, pod or automatic office coffee machine is also saving you money?
- Increased productivity
The chances are that if your business is town or city centre based you will be only too familiar with the regular am and pm coffee runs to the nearest high street café. Think about it. Each coffee run usually takes at least 15 mins, so two trips a day equates to 30 mins out of the office. That adds up to 2.5 hours a week of lost time or 120 hours a year. Or put it another way, that’s three weeks a year not at work but standing in a coffee queue – per employee! Enough said.
2. Caffeine has proven health benefits
Continuing the productivity theme…
Caffeine is one of the most common stimulants around and caffeinated coffee helps keep people alert and provides a welcome boost during those 10am and 2pm energy slumps.
Recent studies of night-shift workers showed that those that drank coffee made fewer errors than decaffeinated colleagues. Caffeine has been shown to improve short term memory which can also boost efficiency.
3. Fika is where it’s at
The Swedes have coined a phrase for it, Fika, which means ‘to have coffee’ and they believe that this is when they get most work done. Coffee breaks taken with colleagues have become ingrained in our culture too and have proven to have a positive effect on productivity and on building team working capabilities.
4. Reduce your tax bill – we like very much!
An office coffee machine is usually considered to be a deductible expense for corporation tax purposes and if you are the business owner you may be able to claim the full cost of the machine if certain criteria is met. It’s worth checking with your accountant so that you make the right decision before any purchase is made.
5. The hidden cost of DIY coffee at work
Taking into account the cost of the groceries and the time lost making the drinks, companies spend on average £300* per employee per year on supplying free tea or coffee. (The average person spends roughly 45 minutes every day making hot drinks and chatting by the kettle).
So if you employ 15 people and they all enjoy the freebies then your generosity could be costing you roughly £4,500 p.a. With 40 employees the bill shoots up to a staggering £12,000.
Feel the love
Consumer expectations are rising and DIY coffee will no longer cut it in the workplace.
Investing in a quality office coffee machine will help motivate employees with a highly valued perk which offers feel good hygge (as well as Fika!) whilst improving productivity and saving you money at the same time.
*Data from Indicator – FL Memo Ltd
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