In this article, you’ll learn:
- What to look for in a commercial iced tea dispenser
- Why factors like speed and versatility are essential
- The other drinks your iced tea dispenser can serve
As the market for coffee shops becomes more competitive, carving a niche is more important than ever. While coffee – whether espresso drinks or cold brew – will likely remain the backbone for most cafés, demand for drinks like iced tea is rising fast.
As such, there’s an increased need for equipment like a commercial iced tea dispenser. These systems quickly and efficiently dispense a pre-set serving of iced tea, helping you increase daily output without sacrificing quality. But are they an essential investment for coffee shops?
To learn more about the benefits of a commercial iced tea dispenser, I spoke to Gayle Lawrenson. She is the founder of Quick Mixology, which manufactures cocktail machines for rental in the UK. Read on for her insight.
Do coffee shops need an iced tea dispenser?
Coffee shops and other businesses can benefit from a commercial iced tea dispenser because you can add high-margin drinks to your menu with ease.
Consumer tastes are evolving, and now they want more than just coffee from coffee shops. Other drinks like matcha and iced tea are increasingly important – and investing in specialised equipment helps you match these expectations.
In particular, modern consumers are focused on wellness – drinks that are low in sugar and provide a clean, refreshing flavour. Iced tea, with its natural ingredients and range of flavours, perfectly meets these demands.
Up to 83% of adults in the US drink tea, and 85% of that consumption is iced tea. With an annual growth rate of 4.4% globally, it’s clear that iced tea is now a year-round menu item. By investing in a commercial iced tea dispenser, you can cater to this demand without compromising your other drink service.
In particular, Gayle recommends dispensers that fit into your existing workflows and even serve other drinks like cold brew. “With this system, iced tea isn’t a standalone product that needs new equipment or ingredients. Instead, tea becomes another high-margin, low-labour option.”
The financial benefits of this investment speak for themselves. “For coffee shops, cafés and multi-use venues, this means no additional SKUs, no extra prep or brewing during service, and no reliance on bottled iced tea,” she adds.
For instance, systems like the Hardtap are suitable as a commercial iced tea dispenser. It connects directly to brewing equipment for iced tea, like the Baby Hardtank, meaning you can quickly prepare and dispense iced tea from the same line. It also uses digital dosing technology to automate serving sizes, ensuring consistent, quick, and hygienic service.
For Gayle, a dispenser is an investment that unlocks new high-margin products without adding to your staff workload. “Coffee shops can introduce iced tea confidently, knowing it will be fast to serve, consistent, profitable, and sustainable,” she says.
What features are best for an iced tea dispenser?
When selecting an iced tea dispenser for commercial use, factors like reliability, speed, hygiene compliance, and versatility are vital. Modern systems like the Hardtap address these factors with food-safe design, automatic dispensing programmes, and compatibility with various drinks.
“From my perspective, the key features are the same ones that make a cocktail system,” Gayle says. “Speed is important – iced tea needs to pour in seconds, just like cocktails. It’s essential for peak daytime trade.”
Hardtap meets these expectations thanks to its significant dispensing capability. Each unit can serve up to 50 litres of iced tea an hour, drastically increasing your daily output. Especially during peak hours, that service speed helps you turn customers around quickly and improve your efficiency.
Next, Gayle emphasises the need for consistency in your equipment. “You need the same balance of tea and flavour every time,” she says. “That allows venues to price correctly and deliver a repeatable experience.” Ideally, this means dispensing pre-prepared batches of iced tea, rather than preparing a new mix with each serve. As such, systems that connect to kegs, containers, or extraction baskets are the most effective.
Sustainability is another key benefit of a commercial iced tea dispenser. By preparing all of your iced tea in-house with fresh ingredients, you can minimise waste – both from packaging and excess product. “It leads to fewer bottles and cans, and less single-use packaging,” Gayle says. “This means better stock control and reduced waste.”
Therefore, you need to take several factors into account when investing in a commercial iced tea dispenser, from consistency to speed and sustainability.
How important is a versatile iced tea dispenser?
Versatility is arguably the most important factor for coffee shops investing in a commercial iced tea dispenser. If your system can serve drinks outside of just iced tea, it can optimise your entire drinks programme as well.
This means that as consumer tastes evolve – especially towards functional beverages, botanical infusions, and low-sugar options – you can launch drinks without investing in new equipment.
The Hardtap is designed to work with a wide range of drinks, from cold brew and iced tea to wine and cascara. This gives businesses the flexibility to respond to trends quickly, constantly evolving their drinks menu.
“With this setup, you can also dispense lemonade, mocktails, cold brew, and other flavoured drinks,” Gayle says. “So, one system supports coffee-led daytime menus, afternoon soft drinks and non-alcoholic drinks, and evening cocktails.”
This versatility also helps you to expand your menu. You can adjust your daily offerings based on the season – such as preparing and serving more iced tea in the summer months. Then, if your customers are ordering more cold brew than usual, you can simply brew and dispense more. You don’t need to worry about external ingredient sourcing or storage kegs. Instead, you can prepare it fresh using a cold brew maker and dispense it with your existing tap.
Importantly, dispensers like the Hardtap are designed with scalability in mind. Whether you’re running a single café or expanding your franchise, it ensures consistent dispensing and dosing at each location. Combined with the Baby Hardtank’s recipe memory features, it guarantees consistency as you open new coffee shops and add to your menu.
In the face of evolving consumer trends, modern coffee shops need to deliver more than just great coffee. As iced tea gains ground with health-conscious demographics, a commercial iced tea dispenser empowers businesses to meet this demand with ease.
Commercial iced tea dispenser: Key takeaways
- A commercial iced tea dispenser allows coffee shops to add high-margin drinks without increasing labour or equipment costs.
- The best dispensers integrate into existing workflows, meaning you can prepare and serve iced tea from the same line.
- The most versatile systems are also compatible with more than just iced tea, meaning you can serve cold brew coffee, lemonade, mocktails, and more from the same setup.
Ready to invest in your own commercial iced tea dispenser? Learn more about the Hardtap here or speak with a member of the team.
Commercial iced tea dispenser FAQ
Is a commercial iced tea dispenser only useful for the summer months?
No – iced tea, cold brew, and other chilled drinks have gone from seasonal beverages to year-round menu items. The demand for them is consistently increasing, so specialised dispensing equipment is a worthwhile investment.
Can a coffee shop use the same dispenser for other drinks?
Yes, systems like the Hardtap can also serve cold brew, iced tea, lemonade, cocktails, cascara, and fruit infusions. Therefore, you can use it for your entire drinks menu, not just iced tea.
How does an iced tea dispenser improve profitability?
You can boost your profit margins by reducing labour time and speeding up service, meaning you can fulfil more orders in a day. Similarly, iced tea is a naturally high-margin product because of its low ingredient costs, so you can optimise your margins that way.
Want to learn more about our commercial cold brew dispenser?
- See how the Hardtap works: Watch our product demonstration.
- Discover your savings: With our ROI calculator.
- Speak to a specialist: Contact the Hardtank team.
