If it’s true that since the time of Confucius the Chinese beverage of choice has been tea, it is also true that coffee is fast becoming a favorite in the local consumers’ market, benefiting from its wide dimensions and dynamic buying power. The main movers of this revolution are young people and more generally a public that is fascinated with new trends. Coffee is riding this wave to become a sort of social drink, and people are enthusiastic about experimenting with the thousands of possible variations, from cappuccino, to lattes to creative beverages. There is also a growing interest in technology and design.
It’s no coincidence then that the Astoria company’s cutting edge technology, expressed in its high-end and top-of-the-range products, stole the show at the last edition of Hotelex, the international trade fair for the restaurant and hospitality industry that took place from April 1st to the 3rd at the Shanghai New International Expo Center. Official distributor Render Coffee Shanghai Co. Ltd. set up the space that caught everyone’s eye with the restyling of the Gloria model as well as the flagship machine Plus4You, which also starred in the first edition of the China Latte Art Championship, the event that declared the current National Champion who will go on to compete in the World Finals to be held at the Scae World of Coffee in Nice, France from June 26th to the 28th, 2013.
“Astoria was an exclusive sponsor of the event, which attracted a large, interested public,” says Flavio Urizzi, Export Area Manager – “The formula was also a success. It included a series of demonstrations and practical lessons which were a perfect way to offer maximum visibility to the performance of the Plus4You. The great interest of the Chinese market in the world of coffee goes hand in hand with a strong sensibility to the technological factor: that means they are aware that the final product in the cup is the direct outcome of the quality of the espresso machine.”
