Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. (GMCR)

Prepared For
Gary L. Payne, MBA
Sam Houston State University

Prepared By
Eric Robinson
Fall Semester 2013
Part I
History
The coffee and tea manufacturing industry has become a $70 billion annual global sales commodity (First Research, Industry Overview). Business continues to boom and coffee manufacturers are able to broaden their revenues by reaching new segments and geographic areas through creative marketing initiatives. According to First Research (8/12/2013), the US US coffee and tea manufacturing industry includes about 300 companies with an annual combined revenue of almost $12 billion. That equates to less than one third of the global annual sales.
With Starbucks corralling the majority of the upscale retail coffee consumers; Dunkin’ Donuts, the blue-collar, no-frills brand coffee drinker; Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) went looking for a way to capture the self-serve specialty coffee consumer in North America and Canada. This customer tends to be a gourmet beverage drinker who doesn’t compromise on taste but likes quickness and convenience. The GMCR state of the art eCommerce portal allows customers to create the ultimate coffee experience in the home, in the office, and in food service environments. GMCR is so committed to the outstanding coffee experience that they purchase some of the highest quality Arabica beans available from the world’s coffee producing regions and match it with the appropriate process to optimize the coffee’s taste and aroma.
From a small café in Waitsfield, Vermont to a recognized leader in specialty coffee and brewing platforms, GMCR is now leading the way to the successful marketing of expanding their brand awareness and enabling environmentally and socially responsible business practices. By partnering and promoting with Keurig® Brewing Systems, GMCR realized a