Consumer advocacy group CHOICE has awarded Michel’s Patisserie top honours in a review of ten of Australia’s coffee chain stores. CHOICE brewed and reviewed espressos made from the standard beans used at ten of Australia’s top coffee chains. Michel’s Espresso beans came out ‘a clear winner’, with a taste test score of 80%. Reviewers commented on the ‘good colour’ of its crema, its ‘smooth’ flavour and ‘pleasant’ aftertaste, with... ...Read more »

Boost Juice Bars, one of Australia’s most successful franchises, is the latest Australian company to take its brand to China with Shanghai to be the entry point. Boost, which opened its first store in Adelaide in 2000, already has 190 stores operating in Australia and has now set up in 16 countries. The company yesterday announced it had signed a franchising deal worth over $1 million to set up 100 stores in China over the next 10 years. The decision comes after studying the differences between... ...Read more »

Innovation and continued technological improvements were the themes of the MYOB Excellence in Franchising Awards announced in Sydney on Saturday night, as a number of franchisors in the food and beverage sector walked away with major awards. Bakers Delight, The Coffee Club, 7-Eleven and Gloria Jeans were all among the winners. Bakers Delight received the ‘Media Campaign of the Year’ award for its Top Sports community engagement program. The Top Sports campaign was entered as an... ...Read more »

Starbucks cafés are set to close at 2pm this afternoon for a meeting between managers, which has fuelled speculation the company may close stores in Australia. An email sent to the Sydney Morning Herald last night suggested that store managers were asked to shut up shop at 2pm to attend a 4pm meeting, and rumours are beginning to circulate that the Seattle-based giant may even pull out of Australia. The news comes following the announcement of 600 store closures in the US at the beginning of the... ...Read more »

McDonald’s is attempting to appeal to the growing number of Australian consumers looking for environmentally friendly products. Via their McCafe outlets, McDonald’s are planning to ensure that all the coffee they sell comes from environmentally friendly coffee growing areas. To do this they will need to source almost 500 tonnes of coffee this year from farms in South America which undergo an annual inspection by the Rainforest Alliance, an international not-for-profit conservation... ...Read more »