Tag Archives: Food industry

January 29, 2016 · 12:51 pm

The Pimp Of Shrimp

Our Foodie Friday Fun this week comes to us courtesy of “Restaurant Startup“, a show on CNBC. If you’ve never seen it, the people behind two restaurant concepts pitch for an investment. One is selected, given a budget, and has 24 hours to produce a pop-up version of that concept. If all goes well, they receive an investment. This week’s episode featured a fast-casual concept restaurant serving South African food. What struck me as I watched the show is something from which any business can learn. 

The restaurant is called Peli Peli Kitchen and the food was really good according to the people who tried it.  Of course, many people had no idea what the food was as they were ordering it because the menu descriptions of this unfamiliar cuisine (can you name a South African dish off the top of your head?) were terrible.  One dish was described as “the pimp of shrimp”.  Say what?

The issues with the descriptions were pointed out to the guy producing the menu early on.  He did a very smart thing as he was editing.  He had his young son read the menu and tell him what the food was.  Of course, when he asked the kid if he knew what “the pimp of shrimp” was, the kid had no idea.  I’m not sure if the writer was in love with his alliteration, but he didn’t change the description.  Not surprisingly, when the hosts and potential investors asked diners who were waiting in line if they knew what the various dishes were, based on the description, most said no.

The point is pretty obvious.  We can’t do things in business that confuse our customers.  We can’t be so in love with our own clever marketing that we lose sight of that marketing’s main purpose: to inform consumers about the product so that consumers become customers.  I realize that some marketers like to cause confusion – think placing sugary fruit juices near the fresh fruit as an example – but I’m not a fan of that technique.  If we need to cause confusion to sell a product we probably ought to rethink the product.

The menu confusion, in this case, wasn’t a deliberate attempt to mislead.  It was just dumb.  Then again, how many pimps of shrimp are on your marketing materials?

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January 15, 2016 · 11:53 am

Cheering Chipotle

I have a question for you this Foodie Friday. Are you paying attention to what’s going on with Chipotle? You should be because I believe the events of the last few months will be studied for years as a terrific example of how to handle what really could have been a crisis that threatened the chain’s entire existence. Lucky us: we get to watch it unfold in real-time!

Español: Restaurant Chipottle Mexican Grill in...

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In case you’re not aware, there was an E. coli outbreak at Chipotle stores in the Pacific Northwest. The outbreak widened to include nine states in which 53 people reported being ill. On the other coast, more than 140 people became sick with norovirus in the Boston area after eating at a Chipotle. Most restaurants take a hit when a single person becomes sick because inevitably that person tells the world via social media. A couple of hundred illnesses, the involvement of the CDC, and the mandatory shutting down of restaurants is well beyond your basic bad day at the office.

The good news is that zero customers have reported getting sick from E. Coli since late November and the crisis seems to have abated. What’s been fascinating to watch is how Chipotle management has been handling this. The stock tanked, understandably. Did they deny anything was wrong or blame suppliers? Nope. They have been incredibly transparent and proactive. As one article reported:

The first step of Chipotle’s food safety plan is to analyze every ingredient and all of the restaurant procedures in a “farm-to-fork” risk assessment. High-resolution sampling and new sanitation protocols will prevent contaminants such as E. coli from entering the restaurants. Chipotle is sampling all of its ingredients using DNA-based tests to ensure the quality of its ingredients.

They are also shutting down the entire chain in February so that management can tell employees everything they know about the E. coli outbreak and what they’re doing to ensure it doesn’t recur. They’ll review food safety as procedures as well. And if that’s not enough, they’ll be giving away free food.

This is a chain that built up an enormous amount of goodwill among its customers through its food. They position themselves as using responsibly farmed ingredients and as a healthy, inexpensive alternative to fast food. Any business can learn why keeping customers happy and making deposits in the goodwill checkbook is so critical as you see how customers are reacting during this crisis. They know there has been a problem but the goodwill will get them back in the stores once the crisis has passed.  Another key point has been to recapture consumer trust by being as transparent as this management team has been.  Finally, being proactive and fixing things is way better than just “letting the crisis pass”.

I’ll be back at Chipotle.  You?

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January 8, 2016 · 12:59 pm

Opaque Oil

It’s Foodie Friday and I’ve got olive oil on my brain. If you cook, you use olive oil at some point. You might even pay the premium for extra virgin, especially if you’re using it in a dressing. That’s where the fun begins today.

Oil tasting, BAIA October 2006 Wine Tasting, C...

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I read a book a couple of years ago called Extra Virginity. It’s written by Tom Mueller, who continues to write about the Italian olive oil business, which is rife with fraud. That’s right: you may be paying for a product that is not what you think it is. As reported in the Guardian:

Top Italian olive oil producers are under investigation for allegedly passing off lower-quality products as “extra virgin”, raising fresh concerns about allegations of consumer fraud in the industry. Turin police are examining whether seven companies – Carapelli, Bertolli, Santa Sabina, Coricelli, Sasso, Primadonna, and Antica Badia – have been selling virgin olive oil as 100% extra virgin. According to allegations in Italian press reports, an analysis of samples from all seven brands found that they did not meet EU labelling rules for extra virgin olive oil.

It’s not just the olive oil guys. There is a significant risk of fraud with fish, honey, milk, select spices (saffron, black pepper, chili powder), fruit juices, meat, grains and organic foods. This topic is way too long for a daily screed, but there are two business points which are applicable to any of us in business. The first, and most obvious, is that when consumers can no longer trust your brand, they will move on. Look at what has happened to Volkswagen after they rigged the results of their auto emission tests. You might think that your brand is strong enough to come back after that sort of loss of trust, but you’re delusional. We’ve spent a fair amount of time on honesty and transparency this week, so you know my point of view.

Second, and less obvious.  Chances are that the consumer won’t realize that they’ve been deceived.  They will probably think their dish is just not great or that they did something “wrong” when the fraudulent product doesn’t perform well.  Even if they don’t lose faith in the brand, they might just stop being a consumer of that category altogether.  I am unaware of any industry that wants to shrink its user base, and while people won’t stop cooking, they might switch to another kind of oil that has the same characteristics or to another type of car than a diesel.

I realize that fraud in the food world – or any other business – isn’t new.  There are reports of doctored products going back centuries.  The difference now is that detection and reporting happen more rapidly and that reporting can be widespread instantly.  The damage never goes away because the reports turn up in searches forever.  The solution?  Don’t do it!

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