Consumers’ behavior towards instant coffee drinking in Malaysia

Abstract

Over the last decade or two, the amount of imported coffee beans has been increasing significantly with the development and expansion of coffee café outlets, the 3- in-1 coffee sachet producers, and the increasing demand for coffee by Malaysians. Understanding Malaysian consumers’ coffee-drinking behavior is important for manufacturers and marketers of coffee and coffee-related products to achieve success in the industry.  The objective of this study is to disclose the behavior of coffee drinkers in Malaysia focusing on consumption trends and preferences. A survey was conducted using a structured questionnaire in Klang Valley, Selangor where a total of 500 respondents were selected using the systematic random sampling method.  Descriptive analysis, factor analysis, and binary logistic regression were applied as analytical methods. The results of descriptive analysis indicate that 85.4% of the respondents are coffee drinkers, while 14.6% of the respondents are non-coffee drinkers. Factor analysis underlined six latent factors, which indicate each coffee drinker’s dimensional preference for instant coffee. The factors are price, convenience, product attribute, influence by others, and promotions. The binary logistic regression analysis shows that marital status, occupation, education, convenience, and influence by others are influential determinants of coffee preference between instant and other types of coffee. By identifying Malaysian consumer’s preferences, manufacturers, marketers and retailers can understand how they can attract Malaysian consumers to purchase more coffee. Furthermore, this study can enhance retailers’ marketing strategy to attract more consumers to purchase their instant coffee.