Tuatara Taproom has launched the unofficial "DB Hospo Lab", undergoing a digital makeover to elevate the customer experience.
Tuatara, the acclaimed New Zealand craft beer brand, has launched a new taproom experience in Brewtown, Upper Hutt, bringing brewery-to-glass freshness, seasonal experimentation, and world-leading technology innovation under one roof.
Owned by DB Breweries and operated by Star Group, the Tuatara taproom will continue to evolve Tuatara’s legacy with a venue that blends innovation and excellence with relaxed Kiwi hospitality.
The taproom will be home to the unofficial ‘DB Hospo Lab’, a first-of-its-kind test lab for trialling new DB products produced at the Tuatara brewery through an innovative consumer feedback loop. It will also house a new technology ecosystem trialling how data, AI, and smart hardware can reshape service, profitability, and customer experience.
Dick Stevens, Digital and Technology Director at DB Breweries, said the taproom experience has redefined how customers can give feedback on what they are drinking, and how this feeds into the brand’s innovation process.
“Our real-time digital feedback loop transforms every sip into a voice, letting punters instantly rate drinks and watch the leaderboard shift before their eyes, before this is fed to the innovation team at the brewery so they can make adjustments. It’s not just feedback, it’s a live, data-driven experience that turns tasting into a game-changer for innovation in the drinks industry,” said Stevens.
Stevens said the hospitality industry has been largely doing it tough since COVID, and technology isn’t always helping as it should. At the moment, for example, simple tasks such as planning for stock levels, or how many staff are needed each day, are hard tasks for businesses. He added that DB believed that having good data insights is the way of the future, and has launched the unofficial DB Hospo Lab to help gather these insights for its partners.
“The unofficial DB Hospo Lab will help redefine product innovation and will test a full-stack rethink of hospitality operations to ultimately help refocus on elevating service, while saving time and money as well,” said Stevens.
There are several systems that will be trialled, including digital systems to allow a real-time customer feedback loop. Customers will be offered a fun digital way to give feedback on beverages served, so punters will be able to scan and evaluate each drink immediately, with a leaderboard in store to show the most popular beverage at that time. This will then be fed back to the innovation team at the brewery as they adjust the products for scaling.
Digital tap badges will also be trialled that can show not only the drink and brand name, but the taste profile, and will also have the ability to play videos/animations or have real-time data (like the score of a game, or the temperature outside, for example).
A New Zealand first trial will see Tuatara taproom using a piece of hardware that acts as a sensor between the keg and tap that tracks pour volumes, times, servicing needs, and variables like temperature. This data will allow the team to check they are pouring the right amount, that the quality is high, and also feeds into AI that can combine this data with other inputs (such as what music is playing at the time, the weather, how busy the venue is, lighting levels, etc.) to make smart suggestions about how to improve sales.
Another New Zealand first trial will see the taproom testing a retail-grade POS system that can deliver real-time customer insights to staff.
“Imagine a VIP-style experience where, before customers sit down staff welcome you, know your name, favourite table, drink, and visit pattern, all powered by data.”
The venue is designed to attract beer fanatics, curious locals, and weekend explorers alike. It’s a space to meet friends, discover flavour, and experience Tuatara’s brewing philosophy up close.
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