One in four New Zealanders have admitted they can't function properly without their cuppa joe, according to a survey conducted by Colmar Brunton.
The Canstar commissioned study asked 1846 New Zealanders about their dependency on coffee -- and the results demonstrated conclusively that Kiwis well and truly love the stuff.
Unsurprisingly, it's Auckland leading that trend -- with 32 percent of participants from the country's most populous city saying they are unable to function without their daily java hit.
Auckland inhabitants are more likely than those from any other city to suffer withdrawal symptoms when they don't quite drink as much coffee as they are used to (23 percent), and to see coffee as an alternative to breakfast (30 percent).
Canstar general manager Jose George says while that's a worrying statistic, it's not isolated to Aucklanders.
"A quarter [of Kiwis] overall and a third of 18 to 29s and 30 to 39s say they often consider coffee to be their breakfast," he said.
"Thankfully, this habit declines as people get older. Coffee is a great beverage but it's no substitute for a healthy breakfast."
However it's not just Auckland -- Wellingtonians, too, are accustomed to having their daily infusion of liquid energy.
The survey shows 38 percent of those from the capital do not see café coffee as a treat, while 41 percent are attempting to cut down buying coffee to save money.
Otago and Canterbury residents appear to be less reliant on coffee to kickstart their day than anywhere else in New Zealand.
Interestingly for cafés, loyalty programmes prove to have little to no effect on the number of customers that come through their doors.
Just 4 percent of Kiwis said a loyalty programme was a factor in where they buy coffees from, and Mr George says that is something cafés need to be aware of.
"Loyalty programmes rated least important of all the factors examined, suggesting that if coffee chains get the most important factors right then customer loyalty might just take care of itself," he said.
"Certainly a loyalty programme couldn't compensate for poor tasting, overpriced coffee and bad food."
Taste was proven to be the most important factor in driving customer satisfaction, followed by value for money.
Newshub.
