Could improved Hydration sit at the heart of improved Productivity, Mental Health, Wellbeing and even saving the planet?

It is fair to say that there is much concern and conversation taking place around many business boardroom tables to do with the impact of good hydration on talent, retention, productivity and mental health.  Research has shown that there is a need for business to embrace new thinking, better solutions and open a new dialogue if positive change is to be achieved.

Productivity and its links to mental health and wellness are also well documented and if we know that 73% of our brain is water, it’s probably not a surprise that hydration also has an impact on our cognitive performance. Research has shown that even a body water loss of 1-2% (which is considered mild dehydration) will impair cognitive performance and productivity by more than 12%.

Liquidline provides high quality coffee and water machines to corporate clients all across the country and as a company are actively engaging with businesses to help improve productivity through better hydration. Having grown very successfully over the last sixteen years, they have become a key market leader in the provision of coffee and water machines across the UK.

The company founded in 2003 has passed the £10m turnover mark with its sights firmly set on doubling that figure. Despite impressive growth, their focus is still firmly on helping business improve the productivity of their staff and ensuring a better solution for businesses when it comes to providing a quality and sustainable coffee alongside an appropriate hydration offer.

The man behind this success is Gavin Pooley, who grew up in Ipswich and initially joined the family business. However, personal frustration soon set up as Gavin possessed a vision in something healthier in the workplace and initially founded a company providing water cooling machine (aged just 19). He then recognised the potential within the fast growing coffee market.

“The food service sector is constantly evolving and both hot beverages & chilled water are arguably as important in a food service offer as anything else”. “Liquidline feel that they have a pivotal role with their clients, they feel that this will become even more important in the future. As workplaces become ever busier, the value of high quality coffee and improved hydration will influence those that work”.

Helping to grow the business in the UK are Anthony Groombridge and David Houslander, who are both hospitality industry experts and passionate about Liquidline’s focus on wellness, productivity and sustainability.

“Liquidline as a business are able to offer National coverage with offices across the UK. The company has extended our range continuously and possess both great quality coffee machine and hydration equipment. Most importantly we have been led by the aspirations of our clients and with those clients being amongst the leading companies from across the country, including the likes of Mercedes-Benz, Baxter Storey, Bartlett Mitchell, GAM, Audi, Cushman & Wakefield, Bannatyne’s, Savills, DLA Piper LLP and more.”

“We really are able to deliver what our clients need, and we have seen that the conversation with our clients has really evolved over the years. Clients are starting to seriously engage on issues affecting their staff wellbeing as well as on other issues which their staff may also see as important, such as productivity and sustainability. We as a business take this very seriously and work with our clients to help them satisfy these needs, looking after their staff and local communities at large. We believe that by providing high quality equipment and hydration solutions to our clients does help them ensure that their staff are properly looked after, well hydrated and consequently more productive. We know how easy it is to get caught up in your day and forget to hydrate effectively and so we make this easy.”

“Many businesses are facing challenges when it comes to their employee retention and productivity. They need to be more focused than ever on the wellbeing of their employees, ensuring that all are well looked after with easy access to proper hydration alongside an excellent coffee offer. Employees do now look at businesses through different eyes and are expecting businesses to do more than just maximise income. They expect businesses to impact positively on their employees, the local community as well as the environment at large.”

Sustainability clearly comes into this and is something that Liquidline have at the core of their business. They are constantly looking at ways to innovate and support their clients to achieve their sustainability ambitions.

“Sustainability is something that all of our clients and many within the hospitality industry are looking to improve on."

Liquidline take pride in having strong and longstanding relationships with their clients and so work even harder to support them with this.

“Coffee and hydration has seen many revolutions over the years and we pride ourselves in continuously striving to innovate and improve our offer as well as working in partnership with others to give our customers more.”

“Partnerships, especially when they embrace sustainability have really been a turning point for Liquidline and we are proud to be working with Bio Bean to give our spent coffee beans a new lease of life. Bio-Bean turns our old coffee grounds into fuel logs for wood burners and open fires. Recycling coffee grounds reduces greenhouse gases and avoids costly landfill.”

“This is where our values have kept us strong, coupled with our belief in supporting communities and working with those striving to make things better. Supporting communities is really important to us. I am pleased that we are working with EP’s Fuelling productivity campaign as I do believe that people need great nutrition and hydration. I am further excited by the work that is potentially happening within schools.  The world is changing and I think that those of us who are fortunate enough to be in leadership roles and are able to help others must do so.."

“It may sound old fashioned but we do believe that the support we give to communities now is not just the right thing to do but also our investment in the future. Those that we work with, our partners, our clients, our people and our communities will all become ambassadors and influence how we act and behave today. This will in turn determine our future success."

Influencing the discussion and improving the dialogue around hydration really can have a substantially positive impact on wellness, productivity and mental health. This being in addition to strong and traditional partnerships which support innovation and seek to have a positive impact on sustainability – good hydration within the workplace can therefore make a very important contribution to employee wellbeing, productivity and retention.