One of my favourite brands of coffee has always been Van Houtte.
Last year I had a craving and went on a hunt for it. It had been a number of years since I had it. Our closest grocery store doesn’t carry it so I kind of forgot about it.
The assortment for Van Houtte ground coffee in grocery stores once I found it (Metro, Walmart and Sobeys stock it) was smaller than what I remembered. Only a handful of options were available and some stores only carried one sku. Disappointing but I was willing to take what I could get.
I bought the Medium Columbian and love it! It is a staple in our house now, a part of our regular coffee repetoire. My significant other tried it and was very happy with it. We have to make a special trip to a store we don’t normally shop at but its so worth it.
During our Canada Day barbeque, someone asked if I could make them a coffee. I decided to use the Van Houtte coffee because why not share the love. Quite a few people commented on how good the coffee was. One friend asked me the brand and said she was going to buy it.
She did buy it which resulted in her putting away her Nespresso machine and buying a drip coffee maker. All she could have her Van Houtte coffee. What dedication! I’m happy to say she is hooked! I feel a bit proud to have played a role in this.
One day her mom was visiting. She made coffee for her mom and they had the same conversation her and I had at the barbeque. Now her mom is a fan as well! I love when I can introduce people to new brands and it keeps on going.
When a brand has customers act as ambassadors for them, it is better than any marketing could buy. I always feel this is the level brands should strive for. The one part in this chain they can control is the product. Make consistently good quality product for a price your market is willing to pay and it is a great formula to get customers to spread the word. It’s influencer marketing before that was a thing.
Now my friend and I are considering doing a joint order on the Van Houtte website to have more variety to choose from and hit the $80 order minimum for free shipping.
If you haven’t tried Van Houtte I highly recommend it. I buy the large tin because we drink a lot of coffee. Its usully around $20-21 depending where you shop. My friend picked up a bag of Hazelnut Vanilla for me when she saw it in a store while in cottage country. I can’t wait to get my hands on that! Hazelnut Vanilla is one of my favourite coffee flavours.
*I can only vouch for the ground coffee being amazing. I don’t have experience with their pods.
Not A Shopaholic 