Big milestone for f’real with installation of 900th machine

Luxurious milkshake brand f’real has achieved a major milestone with the installation of its 900^th machine in the convenience sector.

The brand said a new retailer becomes a f’real stockist each day, installing one of the self-serve milkshake, smoothie and frappe machines.

“We’re over the moon to have installed our 900^th convenience store machine in the UK, and it’s only the beginning,” commented Emma Wood, head of F’real EME at brand owner Rich Products.

“We have lots of exciting plans in the pipeline, including NPD so that convenience retailers can offer their customers even more choice.”

A recent survey found that over half of the consumers (55%) visit their local convenience store just to get their hands on a f’real, which enjoys a repeat rate of over 75 per cent.

“We recently expanded our Stamford site, which is our busiest store. Thanks to the success of f’real machines in our other stores, especially during the summer months, we decided to install another, and it has proved a huge footfall driver,” said Emily Rosa Ranjini, owner of Costcutter Stamford.

“Customers come to the store to purchase a milkshake and pick up other items at the same time, which is brilliant for business.”

Ranjini added that the support from the f’real team has been impressive, setting up the machine within a week of the order.

Made with real ice cream and with the option to customise the thickness of the shake in-store, the blend-it-yourself frozen beverage has greatly benefited from the pandemic-induced shift of dairy drink shoppers to retail as many out-of-home outlets remain closed.

“Sales and new installations of f’real have remained strong during the past few months and our data shows that milkshake is seen as a year-round drinks offer, unaffected by the seasons or weather,” Wood said.

“Shoppers have been looking to their local independent retailers for a take home or an on-the-go treat, and f’real, with its premium, restaurant-quality, is ideally placed to meet this demand. Unique in the market, it also offers a real point of difference for a store.”