Can you give us a brief overview of Sunraysia Five Star? When, why and how it was founded?
The Sunraysia Five Star brand was created in the 1990’s after I met with the Food & Beverage Manager of the leading luxury hotel in Hong Kong. The Food & Beverage Manager was convinced that supermarket brands of juice sold at inflated prices did not satisfy the tastes of his luxury guests and was seeking a juice product for the minibar that was in line with the image of a luxury hotel. He requested a product fitting the following criteria:
- The juice could not be available for purchase in any supermarket or convenience store.
- The juice brand image must suit the expectations of luxury guests and not look like a supermarket product.
- The juice would of course need to be of the highest quality.
The Food & Beverage Manager was sure that he would be able to enhance the luxury guest experience by placing attention to detail in the juice offering, particularly if it were to have a taste and an appearance that was tailored to the luxury consumer. And so, the Sunraysia Five Star brand was born. A luxury fruit juice brand available exclusively to the luxury hospitality industry, with a luxury brand image and, of course, a premium quality, natural beverage that would satisfy the tastes of the discerning luxury guest.
What are the brand’s core philosophies and how are these incorporated into the products?
To provide discerning consumers the best tasting natural juice and drink products in the marketplace. Our litmus test is when a discerning customer says: “This is the best juice I have ever tasted!” If our customers don’t agree then we have not done our job.
When it comes to the Sunraysia Five Star range, no expense has been spared in terms of the ingredients, processing and of course presentation, and we hope the result speaks for itself.
How did you get into this business and what is your favorite/most rewarding part of it?
The founding philosophy was to provide juices of the very highest quality and that taste delicious. It was that simple.
What are some of the difficulties you face in this industry and how do you overcome them?
Even though luxury hotels focus on the quality of alcoholic beverages such as wine and spirits, they have less focus on non-alcoholic beverages. As they learn more about Sunraysia Five Star, they understand there are many quality differences in juices.
Where do you source your fruits and why you have chosen to source from here specifically?
We spend a lot of time sourcing the very best. Like wine, fruit and fruit quality can change from season to season and from farm to farm dependent on the weather conditions, so we have to keep abreast of these developments to ensure we deliver the best.
Interestingly, a lot of our fruit comes from the best wine-growing regions. It makes sense that the regions producing the best wine grapes also produce the best fruit and veg. Our fruits are sourced from the following areas:
First Pick Oranges – Murray Valley, New South Wales, Australia
First Pick Apples – Batlow valley, New South Wales, Australia
Mango – Tropical North Queensland, Australia
Pear – South Australia and New South Wales, Australia
Tomato – Goulburn Valley area, Victoria, Australia
Cranberry – North America
Pineapple – Costa Rica
Can you tell us more about the production process – how do you maintain quality, taste and freshness when producing and dispatching your juices?
The team at Sunraysia Five Star strives to consistently meet the quality expectations of the discerning luxury travelers. Unlike many other juice brands, the Sunraysia Five Star juice range is:
- Made from ‘first pick’ fruits – eating quality fruits
- Not made from concentrate (except Sunraysia Five Star Cranberry)
- Halal and Kosher certified
- Does not contain artificial colours, sweeteners or preservatives
- Enjoys two years shelf life from date of manufacture thanks to the pasteurization process
All Sunraysia Five Star juices are packed in glass and are vacuum fresh sealed. Glass is the most chemically inert form of packaging which means there is no chemical interaction with the juice.
Your juices are only available at luxury hotels, correct? Could you expand on this and tell us why this is important to you and your brand?
Sunraysia Five Star is not available in retail and is exclusively dedicated to service the luxury hospitality industry globally. It is the essence of the brand and exclusivity is what our luxury hotel partners look for when selecting amenities for their discerning clientele – they don’t want their guests to find the same products in their hotel room and then again on a supermarket shelf.
Which hotels can your juices be found in at the moment – and why do you think these hotels have chosen to work with Sunraysia?
Sunraysia Five Star is available in over 400 luxury properties around the world; some of our luxury partners include The Lowell New York, The Setai Miami, The Peninsula Beverly Hills, The Boston Harbor Hotel, Park Hyatt Sydney, Shangri-La Singapore, The Murray Hong Kong and the NUO Hotel Beijing to name just a few.
Tell us more about your partnership with Forbes Travel Guide…
Sunraysia Five Star has been appointed a Brand Official by Forbes Travel Guide (FTG), the creators of the original Five-Star rating system. As The Official Juice Of Forbes Travel Guide, Sunraysia Five Star joins a stellar list of FTG Brand Officials, all handpicked for excellence within their sector.
Forbes Travel Guide is renowned for its prestigious annual Star Ratings of hotels, restaurants and spas worldwide. It takes an equally considered approach to each Brand Official, ensuring the brand aligns with its high standards and perfectly complements its Star-Rated properties.
Sunraysia Five Star is proud to receive the endorsement of Forbes Travel Guide for the fourth consecutive year as their official luxury juice of choice; an humbling recognition of the Sunraysia Five Star team’s dedication in serving the luxury hospitality globally for the past twenty years.
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To find out more, visit Sunraysia Five Star’s website or Instagram page.