Putting the human back in hospitality

Coffee operators invested heavily in digital channels during the pandemic, but service, storytelling and placing customers at the heart of the brand experience are crucial in the post-Covid world, says Tempest-Jody Larrichia, Director of Brand at Flash Coffee

In 2016 Jack Ma coined the term ‘new retail’ – the advent of a fully digitised gateway to consumer purchasing behaviour. No two events have shaped the new retail era greater than the Covid-19 pandemic and the coming of age of Gen Z – both in their growing spending power and as the first digital-native consumers.