By Claire Reilly
Swiss coffee machine brand Jura is known for its strong presence at the IFA appliance trade show held in Berlin every year. Last September, the brand used its large stand at the show to exhibit its full range of machines to European and international retail buyers — including a strong contingent from Australia — and visitors had a chance to sample fresh coffee made by all the new machines.
This year will be no different, with Jura taking to the enormous Messe Berlin trade hall in the west of the city to launch their new range for the European market.
But when Australian retailers arrive at the European stand from 6 September 2013, they will also be greeted with a totally new machine that is due to make its way to the Australian market next year.
While the bean-to-cup machine manufacturer is staying quiet on all the details, Jura Australia head of sales George Liakatos said it was a very exciting development for the brand.
“Normally when we launch a new machine, it replaces or is an improvement on a particular range or model,” said Liakatos. “We have series such as the Z series and the J series, so now we’re going to have a new series launching next year. So it’s exciting!
“In terms of international shows, we get so many Australians going over to IFA, which is why I go over there with all the buyers and show them all the products — it’s a good opportunity to see what’s coming in 2014.”
According to Liakatos, the new machine will offer a “new platform” as well as a “compact [and] incredible” design. But while the machine will offer plenty for retailers to get excited about, the same pillars of strength that Jura stands by will still be present.
“So it’s always about the quality of the coffee. Design aside, at the end of the day we need to ensure the machine is delivering an amazing cup of coffee.”
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In other Jura news, the brand has received more validation that it is making amazing coffee after picking up a swag of awards at Germany’s Plus X design awards for its Impressa Z9 One Touch TFT. Similar to the local Australian International Design Awards or Europe’s Red Dot awards, Plus X recognises design achievements across a number of categories, as Liakatos explained.
“Plus X is a German-based award, and they’ve been around for over ten years. They’ve got criteria that they look at when they’re assessing awards, which they call seals of approval; they look at innovation, quality, design, ease of use, functionality, ergonomics and ecology.
“The Z9 received awards in four of these areas, which was the most for the small appliances category, which is why it was also then recognised as the best product of the year. So it achieved the Plus X award for High Quality, Design, Ease of Use and Functionality, and it got an additional award and was honoured for Best Product of the Year.
“It’s a fantastic achievement.”
Stay tuned to Current.com.au for all the news on IFA 2013, or head to the Internationale Funkausstellung website for more information.