Some people have a lot of ideas. Inventor and chemical engineer David Edwardschronicles the ones he makes happen on his personal website—everything from text books hes written to new companies hes started.
In the past, he figured out a way to make and sell “breathable” food, but his latest idea, and the startup he founded to commercialize it, is one that actually may change the way we eat.
WikiCells is a form of edible packaging that will attempt to eliminate societys wasteful addiction to packaging—millions of tons worth end up in landfills each year, according to the EPA.
According to the new ventures website, the idea for WikiCells is rooted in the way nature has always delivered nutrients: in a digestible skin “held together by healthy ions like calcium.”
Apples, potatoes, tomatoes: they all have an edible exterior that protects the treat within. Even something that isnt exactly delicious—like a citrus peel—finds its way into the kitchen in the form of zest.”This soft skin may be comprised primarily of small particles of chocolate, dried fruit, nuts, seeds, or many other natural substances with delicious taste and often useful nutrients,” writes the WikiCells team.
“Inside the skin may be liquid fruit juice, or thick pudding.” So far Edwards and his collaborators—chief among them the industrial designer François Azambourg—have experimented with a gazpacho-stuffed tomato membrane, a wine-filled grape-like shell, and an orange juice-laden orb with a shell that tastes like, you guessed it, an orange.
Possibilities like an edible milk bottle or yogurt container are not out of the question. This summer WikiCells plans to market ice cream in an edible shell to a French audience—a high-tech version of something the Japanese have long enjoyed: ice cream-stuffed mochi.
Periodic lulls in business are a fact of life for most retailers, and we’ve already seen solutions including daily deals that are valid only during those quiet times.
Recently, however, we came across a concept that takes such efforts even further. Specifically, Korean Emart recently placed 3D QR code sculptures throughout the city of Seoul that could only be scanned between noon and 1 pm each day — consumers who succeeded were rewarded with discounts at the store during those quiet shopping hours.
Dubbed “Sunny Sale,” Emart’s effort involved setting up a series of what it calls “shadow” QR codes that depend on peak sunlight for proper viewing and were scannable only between 12 and 1 pm each day. Successfully scanning a code took consumers to a dedicated home page with special offers including a coupon worth USD 12. Purchases could then be made via smartphone for delivery direct to the consumer’s door. The video below explains the campaign in more detail:
As a result of its creative promotion, Emart reportedly saw membership increase by 58 percent in February over the previous month, they also observed a 25 percent increase in sales during lunch hours. Retailers around the globe: One for inspiration?
We’ve seen numerous ways to add personalized messages to products ranging from chocolate bars to cookies to cans of soup, but recently we came across one that has an interesting new twist.
Created by Seattle cloud texting company Zipwhip, Textspresso is an espresso machine that can not only send and receive text messages, but can also print those messages on coffee foam using edible ink.
To create the Textspresso device, Zipwhip installed a Jura Impressa Xs90 espresso machine with SMS and printing capabilities using an Android app, servo motors, an Arduino microcontroller and a retrofitted Canon printer. Users can text their order to the device, which will then brew their coffee and keep it hot on a warming plate until they pick it up. Perhaps most interesting of all, though, is that the machine can use edible ink to print text on the coffee’s foam, opening the door to a world of personalization possibilities. For example, the machine can be used to text the last digits of a customer’s phone number, enabling them to easily identify their coffee when they go to pick it up. The video below explains the premise in more detail:
Zipwhip actually created its Textspresso machine as a way to showcase its cloud texting service, and it has no plans to produce more of them, it says. The code and plans for making the device are open source, however, and available to anyone seeking to make their own. Tech-minded entrepreneurs and coffee shop owners worldwide: time to build one for yourself?
Sustainability at retail can be perceived as being illogical if not contradictory. Because according to logic, if the purpose of retail is about promoting only purchase and thereby consumption, then it runs counter to sustainability principles such as reduce, recycle and re-use. But retail in its broadest sense is not just about stores. It also refers to having a physical, local or direct to community business presence (i.e. a bank or post-office would qualify as retail). But in order to bring the concept of “sustainability” out beyond the niche and to the masses, we will need to transcend logic and find more ways to get people to care about life tomorrow – today.
This is why retail is vital. Because the power of retail comes not from logic, but that which inspires emotion. Great retail brands i.e. Nordstrom or Amazon, have the ability to not only respond to needs, but also open our eyes to new ideas through delight and surprise. Retail adds physical and experiential dimension to concepts that would otherwise be too cerebral. And through retail storytelling the principles of sustainability can come to life in ways that can truly excite interest, promote engagement, and quite possibly change behavior.
Skeptics need to remember that only ten years ago when the thought of buying shoes without ever touching or trying them-on seemed incomprehensible. It took a retailer such as Zappos to change behavior and raise the bar on service expectations. Since then, shopping for shoes has never been the same. In fact the experience of shoe shopping (whether online or in-store) has only gotten better because of Zappos’ impact.
Since as much as 80 percent of communication is nonverbal, then what better way to communicate the principles of sustainability than to allow people to experience it first hand. And because human thought and memory is formed not from words but from images and emotions, what better way to get people to care and identify with a new concept than to show them how it can be applied today.
Such principles are the reasons why Chipotle’s “Back to the Start” video is a stellar example of sustainability storytelling. Unsustainable farming is a universal and serious issue. It affects the lives of all in one way or another. The magnitude of the issue is a key reason why people find it hard to connect to the issue. For the general public, systemic issues such as this or climate change and social/community health and well-being are such complex and overwhelming issues. When we are unable to understand, let alone relate, our human instinct is to distance ourselves and possibly disconnect through indifference.
Chipotle’s video does a brilliant job of taking a huge and complex issue and humanizing it to a level that makes us care. The story is powered by pure emotion. It is endearing and enlightening as it illustrates the bigger picture issue while inspiring us all to take part. No words are needed. No voice-over to direct our thoughts (unless you count Willie Nelson singing). No numbers, charts or science is ever used to convey the story.
But even with or without words, there is still the real challenge of overcoming public perception and biases. There is such a limited range in how “sustainability” is articulated today – especially on a local retail level. It is why I believe that “sustainability” has become such a polarizing word. We need to find ways of giving it added dimension and broader relevance. We won’t get sustainable thinking to stick through ubiquitous use of the word. Nor can we expect people who are indifferent to willingly pursue greater understanding of the term. We need to be able to communicate the principles and concepts of sustainability in ways that are not limiting interpretation or opportunities of relevance.
Consider for a moment how “sustainability” principles are brought to the attention of people on a daily basis? In order to gain critical mass support, we need more than reminders i.e “Remember to Recycle,” or ”green” products, eco-friendly materials or responsible choices called out in marketing materials (i.e “We run on clean energy).” Many brand efforts that call out support for the environment is often presented at retail as being more like an FYI or directional signage/labeling.
Promoting sustainability conscious ways at retail must strive to connect – not just be present.
Retail brands must have the courage to not only make a statement, but to do so in a way that transcends the norms of what I refer to in the chart below as the “What” and “How” in sustainability communication.
Humanizing Sustainability :Requires reinterpretation, re-scaling and reconnecting the principles of sustainability to the issues that matter to people today.
Within retail it seems that every store these days features their own line of re-usable shopping bags, or will ask for a donation upon checkout to support a cause. In principle, there is nothing wrong with any of this. But if you look at it through the eyes of someone who may not even care in the first place, all of this “me too” and very predictable promotion of environment and community related causes can eventually dilute if not potentially repel further support or interest.
We need retail brands to leverage their unique storytelling ability to find new ways of manifesting sustainability principles on a humanized, physical and local level. There is far more room for sustainability storytelling and expression. Retail has the unique ability to expose new ideas, experiences and opportunities to engage. We need all of this and more so that people will not only understand, but also care enough to actively apply such principles going forward.
I believe the shift in expanding retail’s relationship with sustainability needs to begin with how we think about “retail.”
Retail brands who understand and embrace the social role they play in a community’s well being will act with a greater sense of duty and civic responsibility. Through their active participation they will not only contribute to improving the local ecosystem, but also benefit from community trust and loyalty.
Retailers need to enrich the community, not degrade or overpower their identity. Retail that is thoughtfully managed and conscientiously integrated into the social ecosystem can become an enduring source of local pride. Sustainability on a local level means “me” becomes “we.” Consumers are now valued and regarded as people. Retail becomes a citizen of the community and conduit for the endurance of social well-being.
I mention this example not because Steiner & Associates, the developers of Easton, is a client of E.B. Alliance, but because of the integrity of their development and management ethos.
It exemplifies the symbiotic relationship that retail can have with its local community. Since the opening of Easton ten years ago, it has evolved into becoming not only the benchmark for the development of mixed-use property (retail, entertainment, office and hospitality). More importantly, it gave residents outside of the city of Columbus a true sense of community identity and a meaningful sense of “place.” In fact, Easton has become a beacon for the central region of Ohio because of the yearly traditions (i.e. Summer Concerts, Outdoor Movies, Holiday Parades etc.), community access to green and open spaces, and generous philanthropic support of local causes. Easton has become a truly beloved retail brand (even though it is not even a store) so much so that Easton has earned a net promoter score that is even higher than Apple!
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Here are some examples of how retail brands have brought the principles of humanizing sustainability to life in the form of actions, commitments and support of citizens/local communities. Their bold actions and dedication towards community building and environment enrichment are great examples of how to express “sustainability” without using the same language or means of communicating reinforcing ideas.
Restore, Enrich and Revitalize
Zappos & Downtown LasVegas – Zappos & Downtown LasVegas – “Return on Community” is Tony Hsieh’s (CEO of Zappos) guiding philosophy. And given the success and impact Zappos has had in retail within the last decade, there should be no doubt as to the merits of such an approach. In fact, late 2011 Tony committed $350 million towards the revitalization of downtown Las Vegas. The goal is to build “The most community focused large city in the world” and to do so within five years!
Loren Becker, of Zappos – is responsible for stewarding the move of the company into downtown Las Vegas over the next year and a half. I’m thrilled to have Loren join me at Sustainable Brands c0nference this coming June for our talk on “Retail with Purpose.” Loren will be sharing more about how the community minded culture of Zappos has now become a physical and culture lifestyle reality.
Climate Change, Waste, Sustainable Raw Materials, Health & Fair Partnerships
Marks & Spencer’s Plan A CSR program was launched in 2007 with 100 commitments to achieve in five years. They were so effective in their efforts that they increased their commitments to 180 by 2015. The retail brand’s ultimate goal is to become the world’s most sustainable major retailer. What is refreshing to see in their execution is the amount of personality, wit and even humor put into their communication efforts. For example, just the name of their CSR program is crafted to make the point via the punchline “Plan A –we believe it’s the only way to do business – because there is no Plan B.”
Recently Joanna Lumley, the iconic actress and TV personality launched ”M&S “Shwopping” an effort to raise awareness about the impact of wasteful attitudes towards clothes. The goal is to reduce the 1 billion items being dumped into UK landfills each year by encouraging shoppers to drop off their unwanted clothes at M&S for recycling or resell by Oxfam.
Lumley was quoted as saying “I think young people have been encouraged to buy something, wear it for months and throw it out.” So perhaps M&S with the help of Lumley will be able to discourage enough people to make a sustainable difference. Although the use of retail as recycling centers is not a new idea, it is the way in which such ideas are communicated and brought to life that make even old ideas seem new again! It’s OK to re-use and recycle campaign ideas – only if it is done in a way that gets notice and drives emotional appeal.
I’m looking forward to having Gwen Morrison, Co-CEO of WPP Retail also joining me at SB’12 for my “Retail with Purpose” session. Gwen’s talk at NRF in 2010 about retail innovation in emerging markets was so inspiring that I felt compelled to write about it a year go. Gwen will be sharing more about M&S as well as some of the examples mentioned in my earlier post. What retailers are doing throughout South America or South Africa serve as great reminders that you don’t have to be a big brand or have big budgets to make a big sustainable difference in people’s lives.
It is in the best interest of every retailer to be amongst a thriving and enduring community. It is also smart business. Retail can only endure if the economic and emotional health of its local community is sustainable.
Now more than ever, retailers need to bring to bear all the magic of storytelling and experiential communication that can give people more reasons to care and engage a more eco-conscious way of living.
If a retail brand such as Zappos can even get shoe fanatics such as I to change the way I shop for shoes, then why would it be difficult to imagine that retail can inspire the change in people’s attitudes and behaviors towards sustainability? (Anneliza Humlen for Sustainablebrands.com )
We have already seen food outlets in the US doing their bit to tackle global hunger with the Halfsies initiative, which donates to charity when customers order half-sized meals. Now a risky advertising campaign cooked up by agency ONIRIA/TBWA has seen two pizzerias in Paraguay provide a deliberately slow service to raise awareness of hunger.
Teaming up with the Food Bank Foundation, the agency persuaded the “two most important pizzerias in Asuncion” to accept delivery requests from customers, advising them that the food would arrive within 45 minutes. Feigning bad service, all the pizzas were delivered much later than this specified time frame, prompting angry calls from those who had placed an order. However, when the food finally arrived, each box came with a note explaining: “When you’re hungry, you understand hunger.”
Couriers then told each customer that the pizza was free of charge, but any money they did give would be donated to the Food Bank Foundation to help those for whom hunger is a genuine fear, rather than an irritation. The idea behind the concept was to help those who can afford takeaway food to put their complaint into perspective, in return offering them a pizza for free as a thank you for taking part in the experience.
Where traditional campaigns may appeal to rational thought or emotion to convince viewers to help, the ONIRIA/TBWA campaign gave pizza customers an unusual experience they are not likely to forget. According to a Fast Company report, the campaign helped collect 50 tons of food for the Food Bank Foundation, but would you be prepared to risk permanently dissatisfying your customers for a single campaign?
Just as sites such as Brayola have used the crowds to help women find recommendations for bras, now a new site is providing hints at the most popular color choices in three European cities. The Pimkie Color Forecast analyzes webcam footage to provide infographics detailing current trends in Paris, Milan and Antwerp.
With the help of interactive artist and software developer Pedro Miguel Cruz, France-based fashion retailer Pimkie has set up webcams in the “most fashionable” areas of the three cities, the images from which are then put through a computer program. The program isolates the pixels that represent people by monitoring their motion over time – the environment stays still but people move across the image space. The color of these pixels is then logged and the data is organized and presented in an easy-to-understand way to visitors of the Color Forecast.
Users can watch the live feed, see the most popular shades at different times of the day, week or month (in bar chart or pie chart form), or check Pimkie’s clothes recommendations for each city based on its most popular color.
These recommendations can then be purchased through the Pimkie store. The video below explains more about the process behind the site:
The fashion industry is full of opinions on the latest trends, but the Color Forecast provides digestable information based on actual data from the street, as well as providing a unique way to engage customers for the brand. Retailers, could you take inspiration from Pimkie’s lead?
Peter Madden for the Guardian Professional Network
I was on a panel this week to launch BT’s Retailtopia, a study event which examines the immense impact that information technology is likely to have on shopping over the next 10 years. On current trends, online shopping will account for over half of all purchases in a decade, with Amazon set to overtake Walmart as the planet’s biggest retailer. And although UK companies are currently world leaders in online and digitally-enabled shopping, I think that very few of the big retail players are really prepared for the scale of the changes to come.
We are likely to see not just more online shopping, but a blurring of the online and physical experience, with shoppers at home able to visit virtual changing rooms and shoppers in store able to access a cloud of information about products.
We are likely to see the arrival of the “internet of things” with every product given a digital identity, every movement mapped, and every preference logged. Information will overlay all areas of our lives. This will produce a rich seam of data to be mined, and analysing – and acting on – those data patterns will be key to retail success.
We are also likely to see a whole load of new players enter the game – peer-to-peer sellers, small independents or online farmers’ markets – as new technologies democratise the market and bring down barriers to entry for smaller players.
When people do visit stores, it will be for entertainment and the leisure experience, so expect to see chef demonstrations, children’s entertainers and food tastings.
What could this all mean for sustainability? On the one hand, people will be presented with more opportunities to consume. By 2020 the store will come to the consumer, via whatever handheld device we are using then, with personalised offers to entice us to spend. There will be few physical, technological or geographical boundaries to making purchases. We certainly won’t need to carry cash. We’ll just click for what we want.
On the other hand, this cluster of new technologies does offer the opportunity to reduce the environmental impact of consumption.
Shopping may become way more efficient. With intelligence embedded in everything, retailers can use that intelligence to cut the waste they produce and reduce energy and water use. Logistics will be smarter, and adjustable in real-time. Retailers will probably start to share more infrastructure. And the higher volume and density of home deliveries should allow for efficiency savings.
Shopping could be dematerialised. There will certainly be fewer journeys to physical shops, as more people buy online. And we can also expect a far greater proportion of the nation’s wealth to be generated digitally rather than physically, with many more goods and services to be provided virtually. Just think about how the MP3 file has almost completely replaced record shops or how the Kindle is currently becoming a serious rival to bookshops.
Shopping could be more informed. The new technologies, and the information that they generate could help customers make wiser choices. There will not only be total transparency around products in terms of their ingredients and provenance; but that information can be packaged and communicated in ways that make sense to the individual shopper. The climate-change conscious could get a carbon score for their weekly shop, with suggested adjustments; people with health issues might receive nudges to ensure their purchases fit their dietary plans; while people who care about fair trade will be able to click to watch a live video feed of the farm or factory on their smart phone before buying.
The technological changes are likely to come thick and fast. The consumer experience will probably be more seamless, more personalised, more ubiquitous. And if these technologies are applied in the right ways, I hope that it might just also be more efficient, more informed, and more sustainable.
May 19th is the FOOD REVOLUTION DAY and DESITA has obviously joined the Jaime Oliver Foundation’s campaign for a healthier food on public places – schools and workplaces.
Food Revolution Day on 19 May is a chance for people who love food to come together to share information, talents and resources; to pass on their knowledge and highlight the world’s food issues. All around the globe, people will work together to make a difference. Food Revolution Day is about connecting with your community through events at schools, restaurants, local businesses, dinner parties and farmers’ markets. We want to inspire change in people’s food habits and to promote the mission for better food and education for everyone.
We at DESITA feel very close to Jaime Oliver Foundation‘s mission – “(..) educating, empowering and inspiring people to make better food choices” – being our ECOFFEEproject also about healthier food choices based on sustainability.
So what are you waiting for? Join us at the FOOD REVOLUTION DAY!
And if you are passing by Milan from next 19 to 27 May, you will be welcomed by the fourth edition of the the Milan Food Week, celebrating the pleasures of the table at selected shops, art galleries, showrooms, bars and restaurants in the heart of the city.
Art, music and debates on the theme of food accompany a huge variety of tastings. This festival devoted to quality foods and wines counts more than 200 events and activities also involving some public organizations. Visit the event website for more information about this “tasty” event! www.milanofoodweek.com
Much has changed since Google earned a reputation for fattening its staffers with food on demand. These days, the company is focused on advancing its healthy eating initiatives. Explains Jennifer Kurkoski, who has a PhD in organizational behavior and runs a division of Google’s HR department called People Analytics, “When employees are healthy, they’re happy. When they’re happy, they’re innovative.”
In pursuit of that healthiness, happiness, and innovation, Google has turned to “nudges”: simple, subtle cues that prompt people to make better decisions. Behavioral economists have shown the idea works, but Google has taken it out of the lab and into the lunchroom. This is a sampling of the encouragement you’d get during trips through the company’s eateries–and naturally, Google is measuring the results.
HARD CANDY
No longer are M&Ms in clear hanging dispensers. If you’re in Google’s New York office, you now have to reach into opaque bins. The grab takes effort; the obscuring vessel quells enticement. The switch led to a 9% drop in caloric intake from candy in just one week.
SALAD GAZE
Waiting for you as you enter the cafeteria is the salad bar. According to Jessica Wisdom, a member of the People Analytics team, studies show that people tend to fill their plates with whatever they see first. Thus, leafy greens get the most visible real estate. Desserts, meanwhile, are down another line of sight.
SIZING DOWN
While grabbing a plate to load up on grub, you see a sign informing you that people with bigger dishes are inclined to eat more. It doesn’t tell you what to do, but it affects your behavior. This simple “meta nudge” caused small plate usage to increase by half, to 32% of all plate traffic.
COLORING OPINIONS
Harvard recently revamped its food pyramid, and those lessons in metered portions have translated into a colored tag system in the cafeterias. you see green labels paired with veggies, giving you liberty to dig in. Most desserts have red ones, warning potential gluttons to proceed in moderation.
DESERTING DESSERTS
So you’ve had a bad day, and even a glaring red tag isn’t enough to discourage you from indulging in a treat. Fortunately, desserts are designed to be downed in just three bites. By making people think about having to take a second dessert plate, Google is nixing potential binges.
WATERWORKS
You’re back at your desk and thirst is setting in. You head to the kitchen. In the past, water was on tap and soda was in the fridge. Now bottled water is at eye level in the cooler, while soda has been moved to the bottom. That shift in placement increased water intake by 47%, while calories from drinks fell by 7%. Taking a sip of agua, you feel better already.
normancescut.com 