September 14, 2009

Delaware North Companies partners with NEXTEP SYSTEMS to attract more customers and boost revenue at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

NEXTEP SYSTEMS, a leading developer of intuitive Touch-Screen Ordering, Digital Menu Boards and Online Ordering solutions for the foodservice industry, and Delaware North Companies Travel Hospitality Services, today announced the launch of new Digital Menu Boards at two Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf locations inside Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County International Airport.

Each of the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf sites at Detroit Metro Airport will display four NEXTEP digital menu boards with the capabilities for audio, video, animations and still images. At each location, one board will serve as a feature board to show video of coffee and tea harvesting, planting and processing while the other boards will display menu items.

“Our high-tech digital display menus with dynamic content are perfect for attracting the attention of travelers moving through the airport,” said NEXTEP SYSTEMS President and Co-founder Tommy Woycik. “They reflect a growing demand for NEXTEP SYSTEMS technology from airport foodservice operators all across America.”

Delaware North Companies, a global leader in food service and hospitality with operations at more than 20 airports including Los Angeles International Airport and Detroit Metro Airport, inked an exclusive partnership with Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf earlier this year. Just months later, the partners secured the right to open two new concepts at Detroit Metro Airport.

“NEXTEP SYSTEMS and Delaware North Companies are both respected leaders in their industries and this partnership enables us to play off of each other’s strengths,” said Matt King, president, Delaware North Companies Travel Hospitality Services. “We are already seeing more customers at our foodservice locations at Detroit Airport and an increased order size since introducing the menu boards.”  

NEXTEP develops self-service solutions for foodservice providers in a number of industries, including airports, deli operations, casinos, restaurants, stadiums and arenas.

In 2008, NEXTEP implemented the largest kiosk install at any airport in history at JFK International Airport’s JetBlue Airways Terminal 5 (T5) gate area, known as re:vive, which now includes 250 touch-screen self-order kiosks to service its more than 20 million customers annually.

Since its founding in 2004, NEXTEP has grown more than 100 percent annually and has implemented more than 1,000 self-order kiosks throughout the U.S. and Canada. As foodservice providers seek more advanced and efficient methods of serving their customers and increasing sales, NEXTEP provides them with the most effective self-service solutions tailored to fit their needs.

Delaware North Companies is a global leader in hospitality and food service with operations at such places as Wembley Stadium in the U.K., Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida, Busch Stadium in St. Louis, and Yosemite National Park in California. The company’s Travel and Hospitality Services division operates at more than two dozen airports worldwide, including Los Angeles International Airport, Detroit Metro Airport and Melbourne Airport in Australia.