Beverage

You’ve probably heard that Gen Z — those born between 1997 and 2012 — drinks much less alcohol, compared to older generations. But that doesn’t mean they’re not thirsty.

Driven in large part by younger consumers, beverage consumption in the United States has recently seen robust growth. This “could be due to consumers increasingly seeking out specialty beverages away from home — the average number of beverages purchased from foodservice has increased since 2020 — as a more affordable way to treat themselves,” Katie Belflower, associate editor at Technomic, told The Food Institute. 

They’re drinking punch. Mocktails. Slushies. Iced coffee drinks. Bubble tea. Arnold Palmers. Refreshers. Energy drinks. Gen Z’s taste in drinks is adventurous, wide-ranging, and insatiable. Let’s take a look at some of the beverage trends they’re defining.

What’s the one thing everyone wishes they had more of? Time.

What’s one business that promises to give you more time? Convenience stores.

As a result, we’re seeing incredible growth in the c-store industry. The global market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.6%, reaching $3.12 trillion by 2028, according to Grand View Research. To ensure your company captures a healthy piece of this pie, we have three words to guide your strategy.

In the last few years, the restaurant business has evolved — and so has our signature high-performance blender. The Summit® Edge High-Performance Blender, the newest addition to the Hamilton Beach Commercial beverage blender line, is more powerful, more versatile, and even easier to operate.

We invested four years in designing and engineering the new Summit Edge, then put it through rigorous testing in the field and in our lab. The result is a commercial blender you can count on to make drinks consistently creamy and customers consistently delighted.

Restaurant operators in the United States have one thing on their minds: Labor. Low unemployment rates, immigration restrictions, changes to overtime pay and rising minimum wages have made it hard to hire great staff. 

Retaining good employees is the biggest challenge for 80% of operators, according to Technomic’s May 2019 Foodservice State of the Industry report. Recruitment’s a close second, with 76% naming it as a problem.

One solution to this persistent challenge is investing in equipment upgrades — not to replace the staff you don’t have, but to assist the staff you do have.

When shopping for commercial blenders, most restaurant operators zoom in on three numbers: horsepower, capacity, and price. Those numbers are important… but they don’t entirely address the needs of your business. To ensure you’re buying the right model, look a little closer. The best commercial blenders on the market have these six features in common.

You know the old saying, “only the best will do”? For budget-conscious restaurant owners, that’s not always true. If you haven’t blended a dozen margaritas back to back since the weekend of the Parrothead convention, then you may not need to invest in the best commercial blender on the market.

Here at Hamilton Beach Commercial, our high-performance blenders are the stars of our product line. These machines are built for maximum efficiency, power and consistency. They can create a flawless drink profile in seconds, and are built to last for many years in a high-volume commercial kitchen.

But if frozen drinks and smoothies aren’t a core menu item, then you may be able to get away with a more affordable, less powerful bar blender. They’re workhorses too! Here are five things to consider when you’re making a blender buying decision. 

People never seem to lose their thirst for smoothies. The global smoothie market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.8% until 2023, according to Mordor Intelligence, driven by the demand for healthy, quick meal replacements. 

On the surface, a smoothie seems like the easiest possible addition to a café menu. Fruit, ice, blend, pour. Right? Not quite. There’s an art to making smoothies that will win over customers and keep them coming back for more.

Psst. Want to see a magic trick?

In just 20 seconds, this ordinary blender will turn regular skim milk into silky, frothy cold foam. Amazing!

For our next trick, we’ll combine some raspberries and heavy cream. Voilá: indulgent, flavored whipped cream — and yet the delicate berries haven’t been smashed to pieces. How did we do it?

It’s the magic of the AirWhip frothing jar. This innovative jar harnesses the power of a Hamilton Beach Commercial high-performance blender to rapidly foam, whip and emulsify while treating delicate ingredients with care. What can it do in your kitchen?

Go ahead: Order 1 million smoothies. Heck, order 2 million.

“No problem,” says the Quantum^®950. “Coming right up.” 

On June 8, 2018, we flipped the switch on a Quantum^®950 High-Performance Blender in the lobby of the Hamilton Beach Commercial^® headquarters in Richmond, Virginia. Since then, it has been running nonstop for more than 6,000 hours. You can see it for yourself in our livestream.

So, why did we build a high-performance commercial blender capable of making a million drinks? And will it ever quit?

Juice and smoothie flavor trends come and go, but the immense popularity of both juice and smoothies continues — and the power players won’t be juice bars, but restaurants that have all-day foot traffic, predicts John Craven, founder and CEO of BevNet.  

Maybe this will be the year your business adds a juice or smoothie program. But in the battle of juicing vs. blending, who wins? Is one healthier than the other, and is one a smarter choice for operators?