UPDATE 1-Nespresso sees over 20 pct sales growth in 2009

* Nestle unit's new plant gives capacity to double sales

* To open more boutiques

* Trend for "at home" luxury to persist

(Recasts with comments from interview)

By Emma Thomasson

AVENCHES, Switzerland, June 10 (Reuters) - Nespresso, the premium portioned coffee product that is Nestle's (NESN.VX) hottest brand, should still record growth above 20 percent this year in spite of the financial crisis, the unit's boss said on Wednesday.

Nespresso, which aims to replicate a cafe-style brew at home with coffee in capsules for machines that brew one cup at a time, has recorded average sales growth of more than 30 percent over the last eight years.

"We are very confident about double digits for 2009," Richard Girardot told a news conference as he opened a major new plant in the Swiss town of Avenches.

Nespresso saw sales growth slow to somewhere in the 20s in the first quarter of 2009. Asked how sales had developed since then, Girardot said the trend had stayed about the same and he expected a similar rate for the full year.

"We know that 2009 will be tough until the end," he told Reuters in an interview. "When you are making sales of 2.2 billion, it is much more difficult to make 50 percent growth ... Now I am more focusing on growth in absolute value."

Girardot said sales of coffee pods to offices were hardest hit by the downturn while sales direct to consumers -- which make up most of the business -- were still above expectations.

Sales doubled in two years to hit 2.26 billion Swiss francs ($2.1 billion) in 2008 and Girardot said the new Avenches plant -- which will be able to produce 4.8 billion capsules a year -- would give the capacity to double sales again in the coming years.

BIG GROWTH POTENTIAL

As Nespresso is growing so fast he said it is already thinking about where to locate its next major production site, possibly in one of its biggest consumption centres.

Girardot said the company still expected to expand fast, including in established markets like Germany and France and elsewhere, noting that 90 percent of sales are in Europe to just 5 percent in Americas and 5 percent in Asia.

"Just think of it in terms of potential. It's huge," he said, adding that it also hopes to break into tea-drinking China, focusing on big cities like Shanghai and Beijing. "Where there is an urban lifestyle, that is where we could do business."

Nespresso expects portioned coffee to increase to about 12 percent of total coffee consumption in 2015 from 5 percent now, while its share of value should rise to 25 percent from 10 percent now.

Nespresso differs from many of its competitors like the Keurig system from Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR.O), Senseo system from Philips (PHG.AS) and Sara Lee (SLE.N) in that it does not sell its coffee capsules via retailers.

Instead, customers buy the pods and machines direct from Nespresso boutique stores, online or on the phone.

Expanding premium products is one of the pillars of Nestle's strategy, but it comes at a time when slowing global economic growth is prompting many consumers to trade down.

Nespresso has benefited, however, from a shift to at-home consumption in the downturn that has hurt restaurants and cafes like Starbucks Corp (SBUX.O), the world's largest coffee chain.

Girardot said this trend could persist even when economies pick up. "At home luxury, pleasure at home, perhaps is the trend," he said. "We are relatively comfortable with this trend." ($1=1.075 Swiss Franc)