From the masters of Italian espresso, enjoy the pure pleasure of illy issimo coffee anytime, anywhere.

The 100% natural Arabica coffee and finest ingredients offer the quintessential Italian espresso experience.

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Coffee Drink The pure pleasure of illy coffee to go. Men and women, 30-40 Authentic illy coffee from 100% natural Arabica coffee beans, no preservatives and sweetened with beet sugar. illy issimo is OU Dairy Kosher and has 15-110 calories and 0-19 grams of sugar per can, depending on the flavor. Can Caff, Caff No Sugar, Cappuccino, Latte Macchiato, Mochaccino

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- I was smart enough to bypass my morning coffee the day I interviewed Beverly Stotz, VP-marketing at Illy Caffe North America. Upon arriving at the company's Manhattan office I was handed a cappuccino brewed using one of the family-owned company's single-serve capsules. Single-serve is the future of coffee, Ms. Stotz tells me, and I can see why, after witnessing how easy it is to use and sampling the results.
Beverly Stotz

"In a time when people are busy and rushed to do so many things, this notion of simplicity, ease of use, yet terrific quality is very appealing to people," explains the 25-year marketing vet who is responsible for all aspects of the Italian coffee company's North American marketing. She reports directly to Barry Sheldon, seniorVP commercial and marketing operations.

The company considers its competition to be established names in espresso, like Nespresso, as well as a growing cadre of smaller roasters and producers of gourmet packaged coffee, such as Starbucks, so marketing its Italian authenticity in an increasingly crowded category is a challenge. And while more people are using Illy's espresso machines and pods at home, plenty are still looking to enjoy the brand away from home too. To showcase Illy's in-store experience, the team has planned a visit to At65, the caf at Lincoln Center. But just as we're headed out the door, Illy's team realizes the caf isn't yet open. After a quick confab, the group decides we'll head to

The Food Emporium at Third Avenue and 68th Street instead. I'll admit to being a bit surprised; I expected a carefully scripted store visit. But apparently, Illy is just that confident in its retail partners. The baristas brewing Illy typically receive a week of training, Ms. Stotz says. And often, Master Barista Giorgio Milos, a charismatic Italian and longtime Illy employee, visits new accounts to teach them the art of brewing a perfect espresso. I can vouch for his training techniques: The Food Emporium employees, who clearly had no idea Illy's VPmarketing was in their midst, served up my second perfect cappuccino of the day. Over our cappuccinos -- Ms. Stotz tries to limit herself to three a day, though some of her Italian colleagues have as many as seven daily -- the L'Or al and H agen-Dazs alum talked about marketing what she says is a "discovery brand," why Illy might be in the market for an agency, and the impact cheap espresso drinks are having on the category. Ad Age: Who drinks Illy? Ms. Stotz: First, they're passionate about coffee. They tend to live in urban centers, and we're very much a bi-coastal brand and an urban brand. They tend to be professional, highly educated. Somewhere around 25% have a graduate-level degree and the age break would be mid-30s to late-50s. Psychographically speaking, they're interested in food, wine and in seeking the best in life. Ad Age: How do you market a 'discovery brand?' Ms. Stotz: We could summarize what we do in marketing of Illy here in North America as active engagement. I've been here now for 12 years, and I can say that when you're a small brand, when you're really a high-end brand, you have to be very deliberate in the kinds of marketing that you do. We could do a lot of passive marketing or media, but what we believe is that, in order to really convert a consumer to drinking Illy, we need to actively engage them. They need to taste the coffee, try the coffee, and we need to talk to them a little bit and educate them about the coffee. Ad Age: According to Kantar Media, Illy spent just $3 million on measured media last year, so what are you spending on? Ms. Stotz: We've done a number of initiatives where we tie in with events. An example; We participated in the New York Wine and Food Festival. We had a pop-up lounge for about a week where we were able to bring in foodies, journalists and consumers, to showcase our love of art, one of our core brand associations. At the same time we were

sampling and serving coffee the whole week. That's a good example of experiential marketing. Ad Age: Have you considered an agency of record? Ms. Stotz: Not at the moment, because we don't spend that much in paid media. However, in the digital space, because social media and digital marketing are emerging so much, here's an opportunity to connect with a partner that could understand our ethos and what we stand for, to help us with social media and word-of-mouth marketing. Essentially, we're targeting 10% to 20% of the U.S. population, so broad-based stuff doesn't really work for us. It's really about our group of brand advocates and then finding more of them and more of them. Social media and word of mouth is a sweet spot we'd like to explore further. Ad Age: How have you seen the competitive landscape shift, with the emergence of cheaper espresso-based drinks from places such as McDonald's? Ms. Stotz: It's great for the market, in general, because it democratizes the coffee experience and it gets more people thinking about espresso-based drinks. If you could consider a trade-up strategy, it would allow people to come in at an entry level, and as their taste gets more sophisticated there's an opportunity to continue trading up. Also, similar to what's playing out in the beer industry with craft brewers, there are a lot of small roasters emerging. How is that impacting the business? These guys have their philosophy on how they do it, and we have ours, and it's different. Ours is authentic Italian, that's what we believe in. But in any case there's been a lot of dialogue as a result of Intelligentsia and Blue Bottle [Coffee] and a bunch of these local roasters. Ad Age: Earlier you mentioned single-serve as a big growth area. Why has it been so slow to catch on? Kraft, Sara Lee and Procter & Gamble spent a lot of money pushing single-serve systems in the earlier part of the decade. Ms. Stotz: Changing behavior can take a little bit longer, but I really see a good momentum going now, and every day you see more and more. Retailers are even starting to dedicate huge linear footage in their shelf sets to single-serve coffee. Ad Age: Illy has teamed up with Coca-Cola on a joint venture to market Illy Issimo, a ready-to-drink coffee beverage. Is that also an area of growth? Ms. Stotz: It's been an incredible synergistic effort. The mother brand Illy really is the driver of awareness and trial, but at the same time, Illy Issimo appeals to young, urban professionals who can now take Illy with them on the go. It's much more occasion-

centric. In a way, it's an easier access point. Price point is about $2.50. So it's a great way to get first trial on the brand and maybe convert them to the roasted product. Ad Age: Do you see your customers coming out of the recession? Ms. Stotz: We're seeing really good growth in the high single digits to close to doubledigit growth from a lot of our retailers, Sur La Tabla, Williams-Sonoma. Things are starting to turn around, and we're seeing it in our numbers. In the on-premise side, at our partners like Ritz-Carlton and Four Seasons, we know that their occupancy rates are up, that they're able to again charge room rates that are appropriate for them, so we're seeing good positive signs across the board.5 5 TIPS 1. Give partners the tools they need for success. Then trust them. 2. Actively engage consumers; give them a reason to choose you. 3. Become a part of your consumers' ritual. 4. Continually refine your distribution strategy to maximize consumption occasions. 5. If you're a high-end brand, give the general consumer a point of entry but stay true to your equity.

illy issimo is the first premium Ready To Drink coffee range made of illys 100% Arabica Coffee unique blend, and natural ingredients without artificial colours, aromas, flavours or preservatives added. This gives you the pure pleasure of true coffee, to awaken your senses and add a touch of uplifting reward to your day, even on-the-go illy issimo can be enjoyed in four versions: caff, cappuccino, latte macchiato and caff no sugar. The traditional illy expertise has now been re-interpreted to propose the classic illy taste to people who love to be on-the-go.

Discover Illy issimo:

Bold and energizing, full-bodied character, a real Italian chilled coffee experience. Dedicated to those who want to taste the pleasure of a coffee without compromise. The first ready-to-drink coffee to offer a total black version, without milk.

The same bold and energizing, full-bodied character, real Italian chilled coffee experience, but without sugar. A new variant inspired by a typical Italian way of drinking coffee: 30% of Italian consumers, in fact, have their coffee bitter to enjoy its taste at best.

Intense, uplifting aromas of illy espresso, blended with velvety milk and a touch of dark cocoa. Soft and delicate.

More milk, less coffee. Energizing, smooth, fresh illy espresso experience, swirled with pleasurable milky notes.

A new indulgent espresso experience blended with velvety milk and premium Domori TM cocoa (winner of the Golden Chocolate Award for 8 consecutive years).

There are various Coffea species, but the two most common are Coffea Arabica and Coffea Canephora, commonly known as Arabica and Robusta. Arabica grows in the tropical and equatorial strips of America, Africa and Asia and it is the most delicate, highly prized and valuable specie. Arabica coffee flavor can be described as fragrant, sweet, round, slightly acidic and often chocolaty. Arabica and Robusta differ only slightly in appearance, they are genetically quite distinct: for instance the caffeine content of Arabica ranges from 0.9 to 1.7% while the Robusta species is much higher at 1.6 to 2.8%. illy produces a single coffee blend including nine ingredients made of the best arabica beans, the finest coffee type, a choice guaranteeing qualitative continuity and product excellence with respect to the single origin. It is an excellent combination that distinguishes the illy blend, ensuring the same taste and aroma are the result of each productive process. The excellence of the illy blend is the result of the pursuit of perfection in every detail, from the harvesting of the beans, through all the steps of the transformation process. The excellence of the products is guaranteed also by an electronic selection system, the unique result of the technical productive department know-how at illycaff.

Carried out before roasting to perfectly mix Arabica beans from different origins and ensure qualitative and taste continuity of the blend. Gives the coffee the "unmistakably illy" aroma, body, taste, and colour. Preserves aromas and ensure a higher quality of the product thanks to reduced humidity absorption. illycaff pursues a policy of sustainable coffee cultivation in respect of the green coffee grower, the environment and the consumer. The final objective is the highest-quality coffee to offer the consumer, for which the consumer is prepared to pay a premium price. One hundred percent of illy raw material, the green coffee, is bought in a sustainable manner, directly from the growers to whom illy pays a sustainable price, that is, one that assures they always receive a margin above their own costs. The firm have followed this policy for over 15 years also transferring to the growers know-how and technology over a long term program.

More info.s about coffee are here http://www.illy.com/wps/wcm/connect/it/caffe/benefici-caffe

Complete web info: http://www.illyissimo.com/illy-issimo