Commercial juicers aren’t just for trendy pressed juice bars.
Sandwich shops, smoothie shacks, cafes, caterers, and restaurants all depend on commercial juice machines.
Fortunately, there’s no lack of juicers on the market. The challenge is finding the right one for your goals.
Business owners have more variables to consider than regular juicer consumers.
Learn more in this complete guide to buying a commercial citrus juicer.
Calculating Your Commercial Juicer ROI
Imagine buying a juicer for your home, but it breaks right after the 1-year warranty is over.
Would you consider that juicer a good investment? Probably not.
The same philosophy applies to your commercial juicer, but it’s even more critical.
Business owners also need juicers that stand the test of time. ROI calculations help decide if an investment is worth it.
ROI stands for return on investment. There are many types of business investments. Examples include marketing strategies, analytics tools, and juicing equipment.
Follow these steps to calculate the ROI of your commercial cold press juicer:
- Subtract the juicer price from the net profit of the investment
- Divide the juicer’s net return by the initial price (investment)
- Multiply the number by 100
A good ROI percentage for small businesses falls between 10% and 30%; of course, a higher rate is even better.
Remember to consider repairs when calculating the juicer’s net profit.
Features That Last
ROI highlights the importance of long-lasting commercial juicers.
When comparing products online, look for reviews that discuss lifespan.
Are customers dealing with frequent repairs? How often do customers troubleshoot their juicers? Does the juicer have durable or breakable features?
Understanding technical specifications (specs) also helps.
For example, while searching for Robot Coupe juicers for sale, look for durable features like stainless steel, maintenance-free parts, and heavy-duty motors.
If you do run into a problem, you need reliable support. Fast support is essential for busy food businesses. Look for manufacturers that offer quick product support, warranties, and replacements.
How Much Juice Do You Need?
There are several juicer designs. Your next step is to select the appropriate juicer for your particular business.
Think about how much juice you require per day. In fact, you could look at sales data and make a data-driven decision!
If you run a busy breakfast establishment, you probably serve a lot of orange juice. You would likely need a high-volume commercial orange juicer. These juicers fill pitchers quickly during the weekend brunch rush.
A medium-volume juicer would make more sense for a small walk-up cafe. These juicers are best for quickly filling glasses. If you run a small kiosk, you may find a low-volume juicer more convenient.
Low-volume juicers are also good for food fairs, wellness conventions, and trade shows.
If you have a busy breakfast crowd, you’ll fare better with two or more juicers. It also helps to have a backup, even if you only need one to serve customers.
Do you want to make vats of juice?
Large restaurants and hotels rely on powerful sieves to make juice in large batches. Sieves are also used for making soups and sauces. Thus, they can press many types of fruits and vegetables, and even meats!
Think About the Type of Juice You Serve
When people think of juicers, they typically think of citrus juicers. These juices are great for making delicious orange, lime, lemon, and grapefruit juice.
However, you can’t use a citrus juicer to make energizing wheatgrass juice. You’ll need to buy a separate wheatgrass juicer. This appliance is a must for any smoothie shop and organic cafe.
You can also use a wheatgrass juicer to make healthy ginger juice!
There are also juicers designed to make fruit and veggie combo juices. Like wheatgrass and ginger juice, citrus juicers aren’t designed to make veggie juices.
Consider Juicer Speed
Busy restaurants (and customers) don’t have time to wait. You need a speedy juicer that pumps out juice in seconds.
While reviewing customers’ thoughts online, look for opinions on speed and efficiency. Malfunctioning juicers greatly impacts speed, as well.
You can also buy juicers with adjustable speeds. This option is great when switching between pulpy and no-pulp juice.
Contrary to popular belief, manual juicers are pretty fast. In fact, you could squeeze out a glass of juice even faster, especially if there’s a long queue for the electric juicer.
Manual juicers are excellent for bars and pubs too. Bartenders rely on these juicers to make fresh-squeezed mimosas, screwdrivers, and other juicy cocktails.
Manual juicers are limited in their features. They only work with citrus fruits. You would need to buy an electric juicer for Bloody Mary cocktails too.
Juice prep can also slow down the process. Look for juicers with feeds that accommodate large fruits and vegetables. These juicers cut prep time in half since you don’t have to chop up produce after coring and peeling.
User-Friendly Commercial Juicer Design
Juice is simple. Your commercial juicer shouldn’t be complicated.
Choose a juicer with user-friendly features.
Here’s a quick rundown:
- Visible power on/off switch
- Retractable adapter cord
- Easy speed adjustment
- Detachable parts for easy cleaning
- Removable strainers
- Reliable spinning motors
The simplest juicer of all is the classic reamer. This simple handheld juicer is a household kitchen staple, but it’s also a secret weapon in commercial kitchens.
Think About Price
Next, think about your budget.
Prices start at $200 for most manual juicers. However, many electric juicers start at $200, as well. $200 is the lowest end of the scale for any commercial citrus juicer.
Centrifugal juicers are typically more expensive. These juicers are designed to juice hard produce, like apples, cucumbers, and carrots. Masticating juicers are also more expensive than citrus juicers.
Some commercial juicers are more than $3,000. These juicers come with more features, like pulp extractors and high-tech feeds. You’ll find many heavy-duty juicers within the $1,000 range, as well.
Start Juicing
Is your current juicer working for your business?
Remember these tips as you choose the right commercial juicer for your restaurant, cafe, or smoothie business!
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