When Big Business Attacks

A few years back my wife bought me a Tassimo single serve brewing system for my birthday. I had mentioned the Tassimo system countless times before in passing conversation, and I was grateful that she took the hint.

I fell in love with Tassimo months before I actually had one in my possession...actually, months before I even tried a cup of their coffee. What persuaded me was their partnership with Starbucks, which allowed me to enjoy a cup of Cafe Verona, Sumatra, or Breakfast Blend, one cup at a time, from the comfort of my own home.

This past March, Starbucks ended that agreement, and instead are now offering K-Cups for the Keurig brand system.

My first reaction was anger. I bought this system specifically so I could drink Starbucks, which was, essentially, the ONLY major brand not offered by Keurig. Now my $150 machine was going to sit in the kitchen, collecting dust, while I brewed entire pots of coffee, wasting half of it.

Now that my caffeine demons have settled down, my anger has been redirected at Kraft (who owns the Tassimo line).

Starbucks' primary complaint was the lack of market exposure to their coffee brand. This was absolutely true. My local grocery only occasionally offered Tassimo discs (T-Discs), and they were usually Maxwell House or Gevalia. The only store where I was guaranteed a hefty selection of Starbucks' T-Discs was at, strangely, Bed Bath & Beyond.

Keurig's are everywhere, it seems. Our slightly impoverished grocery store even has a Keurig system in the deli where customers can purchase coffee for $0.50. Keurig (or Green Mountain, who owns the Keurig line) did everything the right way:

- They offered a variety of choices, and the choices seem to be growing (I can count the brand options for Tassimo with one hand)

- They offered discounted equipment and coffee to offices (we have several in ours). We got ours because one of our executive assistants brought her Keurig to work, and our CEO was hooked after one cup.

- They made their product available EVERYWHERE. K-Cups are sold in grocery stores, department stores, Wal-Mart, Target, Dunkin Donuts, and Bruegger's Bagels.

I bet this is how people that invested in BetaMax felt: kind of embarrassed, very disappointed, and stuck with a product that is going to eventually disappear. It was, definitely, not a smart investment.

Tassimo's new "exclusive" deal is with Gevalia. Their coffee is okay, but they suffer the same lack of exposure and availability that Starbucks endured. Gevalia -- known primarily for being a mail-order/online coffee brand -- probably won't care as much, thankfully; but part of me wishes they got just as fed up and everything was discontinued. I'm too proud to fully admit that I made a mistake, and that would be the only way I could finally join the ranks of the Keurig crowd.