Building site hipsters Down Under behind rise of coffee-flavoured milk

During the 12 months to June 2014, 1,314,000 Australians—or 6.8% of the population over the age of 14—drank bottled iced coffee at least once in any given seven-day period, Roy Morgan Research has found. 

Moreover, nearly five percent of the population consumed a brand of milk that offers coffee flavour only—a slight increase of almost 1.5% over figures released five years ago.

Faring less well over this period have been flavoured milk brands that offer coffee alongside a selection of other flavours. Whereas they these were consumed by 3.6% of Australians in 2009, this has since fallen to 2.8%.

Dare to grow​

Leading the dedicated coffee brands is Dare, with its drinkers growing from 0.7% of the population in 2009 to 1.8% in 2014. Consumption of its nearest rival, South Australian brand Farmer’s Union, rose only slightly from 1.2% to 1.3% over this period.

Anyone who’s seen an ad for coffee-flavoured milk lately won’t be surprised to learn that those who favour it are significantly more likely to be men than women. What’s more, the enduring image of a hard-working tradesman knocking back a carton of iced coffee at the construction site isn’t far from the truth.

On the whole, blue-collar workers such as construction and mining labourers, construction trades workers and mobile plant operators are more likely to drink coffee-flavoured milk over an average seven days than white-collar workers.

Building site hipsters​

According to Roy Morgan’s Angela Smith, Australia’s taste for coffee-flavoured milk comes on the back of its booming café culture.

“This has resulted not only in rising café visitation and ownership of coffee machines, but also in the increasing popularity of flavoured milk brands dedicated to coffee. Consumers have become much more discerning and knowledgeable in their coffee choices, and these dedicated brands are tapping into this trend​,” she said.

“While market leader Dare is clearly targeting socially active, white-collar young men with its funny ‘When your place is all over the head’ advertisements, close rival Farmers Union is appealing to the classic tradie/’blokey’ market with ads promoting its tough ‘stubby’ packaging and encouraging playful affection for its brand​.”

The findings reveal that this latter market is especially likely to consume coffee-flavoured milk, possibly due to the ease with which they can get their caffeine fix at a building or other outdoor work sites, as well as on the road. 

“Because it’s not all about the great taste: the caffeine content of these coffee-flavoured milks is also a major part of its appeal​,” Smith added.

“In this increasingly competitive market, flavoured milk producers need to understand their target market in depth so they can communicate in a way that inspires and resonates with them​.”