P S Sundar

A colourful advertisement in the Indian media recently caught the attention of the hospitality industry. It showed 12 varieties of coffee in matching cups, glasses and mugs, identified as : Black Coffee (Birmingham), Frappe(Athens), Café Liegeois (Nice), Kaffee Mit Milch (Dusseldorf), White Coffee (Manchester), Kaffee Mit Sahne (Frankfurt), Cappuccino (Rome), Einaspanner (Munich), Café Au Lait (Paris), Schwarzer Kaffe (Zurich), Frappe Latte (London) and Doppio Espressi (Milan). The interesting thing is that it is not a sales pitch for coffee. It is an advertisement by Emirates Airlines.

How did the copy link coffee with the airlines? Through the sensible canvass: "Next time you travel the world, try something new". The visible message is the invitation to try new varieties of coffee in each place, but the implied message lies in the advice: "Start with how you fly". The punch line is "Keep discovering".

No connoisseur of coffee or of good text in an advertisement can fail to appreciate the excellent link Emirates has made between coffee and its flights to "over 60 destinations worldwide". Subtly, of course, coffee stands to gain because of the listing of a dozen of the varieties in which it is drunk in different parts of the world. To that extent, it is a generic promotion for coffee and its varieties.

All the same, this is one of the many ways in which coffee has come to the help of other sectors to promote their products and services. As a frequent flier of the KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, I have seen them claiming 'high class' through a coffee message. The airline has printed on paper kerchiefs, creamer and sugar cartons etc., the prominent message: "KLM serves Colombian coffee, the richest coffee in the world". The trademark emblem of Café de Colombia is also carried.

This is, of course, a contribution of the Colombian coffee sector to promote the country's coffee, but, KLM has obviously taken pride in treating this as a class massage to elevate its own amenities overboard, so, this is a joint campaign by the Café de Colombia and KLM. All over Europe, one can see such messages aboard KLM flights. I had also noticed this in the Indian skies as well.

But, when I have had occasions to refer to my neighbour inside the flight that Indian coffee is also rich in the cup. I have had indigestible responses like: "oh, does India grow coffee?" So, I had to start from the beginning! And that too, nearly four centuries after coffee was introduced into India and with the country presently exporting its coffee to some 40 countries, accounting for some five percent of the global trade. But then, one question that the foreigners frequently ask is: "If India introduces coffee and exports, why is the promotion so weak?"

I did ask this question to many in the industry over the years. But, until recently, the Indian planters and exporters did not see any merit in such promotions through airlines etc.

Their unshaken belief was that no one noticed these and the real promotion should take place with the traders or the importers whose feet were on the ground. Admittedly, the efforts to promote coffee in restaurants and homes in India and abroad are insufficient.

So far, people thought coffee was bad as it had caffeine. Now, researchers have shown that coffee can fight cancer, boost brain cells, bring in mental happiness and hence is generally healthy. Coffee deserves promotion as it means good business.