Wake up! Owl Coffee is here

MANILA, Philippines - It was at a food show in Singapore in 2012 when Kerwin Wong, CEO of TransaXion Unlimited Corp., had his first taste of Owl coffee. “What attracted me first was the packaging,” he shares. Owl’s traditional packaging appealed to his conservative tastes.

He is not much of a coffee drinker, Kerwin admits, but he tried it anyway, sampling the Gula Melaka, 3- in-1 white coffee with creamer and coconut sugar, which had a distinctive, aromatic taste. The next thing he knew, he was talking with the company representatives and making plans to bring Owl coffee to the Philippines and introduce it to the local market.

Kerwin’s wife, Kimberly, is a coffee drinker. At times, he’d hear her complain that although there are numerous brands of 3-in-1 instant coffee in the supermarkets, there’s really not much variety to choose from. Each one seemed like every other.

Owl coffee is different, Kerwin says. Based in Singapore, the company, which was established in 1956, boasts more than 50 years of experience in roasting and blending coffee “to infuse rich flavors and aromas into every cup,” Kerwin says. “Each Owl sachet is carefully prepared to ensure consistent flavor, taste and body.”

Kerwin points out that Singapore is strategically located in the Straits Asian region, which extends from Penang to Malacca to Java in Indonesia. With its name synonymous to good coffee, Java is recognized as one of the top coffee producers in the world. Owl coffee captured the Straits Asian coffee-shop culture, Kerwin notes. “Every coffee shop has its distinctive way of preparing coffee.”

At the recent launch of Owl coffee in the Philippine market, which was held at the Cocoon boutique hotel in Quezon City, coffee expert Robert Francisco gave a brief talk on coffee, from the planting and harvesting of the coffee cherries, to the roasting and blending of the beans, to the methods of making soluble or instant coffee.  The soluble coffee market is a big market, he says. There is a huge demand for instant coffee.

Owl 3-in-1 instant coffee comes in different variants, which include the 3- in-1 strong Authentic Straits Asian coffee, the regular low-fat 3-in-1 instant coffee, Nanyang white coffee with creamer and sugar, Nanyang white coffee (Gula Malaka) with creamer and coconut sugar, and Kopitiam Roast 3-in-1 Kopi C milky coffee with creamer and sugar.

“The ‘C’ in Kopi C refers to evaporated milk,” Kerwin explains, “which was originally created to satisfy the milky preference of British officers.”  Also Kerwin’s personal favorite, “this milky and sweetened blend is both creamy and velvety-smooth.”

The Owl brand also carries teas.  There are two variants: Teh Tarik (literally “pulled tea”) instant foamy tea, which is a hot milk tea, and instant Ginger Tea with honey, which reminds us of our own salabat.

Tea drinking is popular in many cultures in the Asian region, and Kerwin sees this as a growing market in the

Philippines also.

Owl coffees and teas are available in major supermarkets. For its introduction, there will be product sampling as well as product premiums for lucky buyers, says Marvin Hung, chief finance officer of TransaXion Unlimited Corp.

“Coffee means lots of things for everybody,” Marvin says. For some, having coffee means meeting up with friends or, it could even be the icebreaker on a tentative first date. “Owl will mean something to you,” Marvin says.

And you no longer have to go to Singapore to get your Owl coffee because now, it’s in the Philippines.

Mona Lisa Chua, TransaXion Unlimited Corp. VP for sales and marketing, relates that while she is a regular coffee drinker, she did not favor any particular brand. But this changed since she tasted Owl coffee, which was brought to her by a friend from Singapore. “I never thought 3-in-1 coffee could be so good,” she shares. She’s even more delighted that there are many variants “to suit different tastes and offer alternative flavors. “Owl coffee not only starts my day; it makes my day,” she says.