Tea and coffee distributor, blender, and roaster Royal Cup Coffee and Tea has rebranded its product portfolio, consolidating several existing brands into four core identities. The 120-year-old firm, with offices in 26 states and the Caribbean, will now market its ready-to-drink tea as Royal Cup Signature. Premium loose leaf will be featured in the H.C. Valentine line. ROAR is the company’s office coffee brand and Prideland Coffee & Tea is a new identity. Royal Cup CEO Bill Smith said “For us, rebranding goes far beyond reimagining our portfolio’s aesthetic representations. From procurement to manufacturing to distribution, we’ve optimized and streamlined our internal processes and operations to deliver the highest-quality product lines and equipment to the right customers at the right time. This is a game changer for Royal Cup, and for all those with whom we have the pleasure of doing business.” He explained that during the past 18 months of strategic review “our team discovered several key areas in which we could evolve to further meet our customers’ dynamic tastes and preferences, as well as to continue differentiating our company within the industry.” As each brand is rolled out during the next few months, Royal Cup will work closely with its customers to leverage the strengths of its new product lines through informational campaigns, video trainings and other educational tools, writes Smith.
Royal Cup was recently recognized for a high-tech expansion of a 33,000-square-foot, green bean receiving facility that effectively automates the process of moving beans from the receiving dock into storage. The equipment scans incoming product to output a precise inventory as telescopic conveyors are extended directly into semi-trailers to unload, eliminating the need for manual unloading with a forklift, saving time and improving safety. Last April the company launched an RTD tea and more recently a bottled cold brew. “The rebranding of Royal Cup’s product portfolio was a purposeful, 18-month strategic endeavor to enhance the value of our goods and services, bolster our growth both nationally and internationally and position Royal Cup as an industry leader now and into the future,” said Anne Pritz, CMO at Royal Cup. “We conducted extensive consumer research and industry segmentation in more than 25 markets across the country, executed multiple rounds of customer intercept interviews and thoroughly vetted our channels before finalizing a path forward. Through this complex initiative, we collectively have come away with an even stronger sense of who we are as an organization as well as how to best serve our valued customers, which is and always will be our primary goal,” she said. Sources: Royal Cup Coffee and Tea