TCMBA #24 - Best Innovation at HOST Milano
Best Innovation at HOST Milano!
HOST is the big show where, bi-annually, companies reveal their hottest new innovations.
So, for something to blow my mind?
It’s gotta be good.
But before I tell you all about it, I want to share with you some exciting news!
There are BIG things happening at The Coffee MBA!!!
I’m working on a BIG REVEAL that’s coming at you in less than two weeks. You’re not gonna want to miss it. Keep your eyes here and on LinkedIn.
Also, are you a fan of the Daily Coffee Pro podcast by MAP IT FORWARD???
Me too! Well, your girl right here is the next guest! Lee and I just recorded yesterday and it was an incredible conversation. You won’t want to miss it.
During the recording breaks she kept saying, “oh man, people aren’t gonna like this!”
Looking forward to hearing what YOU think!
Okay, back to HOST.
Well, actually, back to SCA Expo.
Most of you weren’t there (and the recording is sadly extremely delayed) but in my Re:co Symposium talk in April I talked a lot about the consumer experience.
My entire talk was about “mass customization” and how that could be relevant for coffee.
(Though if you looked at my slides you might think my talk was about George Clooney— you’ll know what I mean when the recording is available)
Anyway, I’m going to share with you an excerpt of my Re:co script. This is describing an innovative use of the Collaborative type of Mass Customization and how it could be applied to a coffee roasting company…
Miranda speaking on stage at Re:co Symposium in April of 2023.
“Let’s dive into Collaborative Customization - what dials could your consumers turn to get coffee that felt like it was just for them? Could a coffee roaster’s ecommerce page have an option for a personalized blend?
Maybe a quiz is a first step to learn more about the consumers’ taste. Then, once preferences are established, a “just right” blend could be suggested with the option to tweak it as they see fit.
Want to turn up the strawberry notes? Do it! Maybe floral isn’t your thing so you turn down the jasmine and you’re middle of the road on chocolate.
To take this to the next level and deepen the collaboration, could you offer to save this setting so that, if they love it, they can keep their blend ratios the same and set up a subscription? Has anyone here tried Misfits Market or some other kind of subscription box? I’m welcome to change the contents of my Misfits Market box each week, but if I slide past that date, I just get the same box I got last week.
We could do the same here. We could send the consumer a reminder each week to say, “hey, how’d you like that blend? Want it again or want to make some tweaks?” They could log into their account, turn down the strawberry notes, and test the results. Suddenly, we’re allowing the consumer to become a creator, but we’re giving them guardrails so they still feel safe. We choose the coffee in these blends, we choose how many there are and the level of complexity these blends can have.”
Here’s the actual slide I showed while saying this…
Visual representation on a slideshow of what I was proposing in my Re:co talk. Dials to turn flavor profiles up and down.
Alright, shall we cut to the chase of what my favorite innovation was?
If you read the above, I think you’ll understand why…
This, my friends, is the Mikafi! (mee-kah-fee)
It’s a roaster (not a windmill!). It’s meant for café owners or anyone who wants to have a small-scale e-commerce business.
Who cares, right?
WRONG!
This is what makes it special…
What’s an iPhone got to do with it, you might ask?
That’s a consumer app.
So the consumer can hop on and purchase the green coffee they want to have roasted, and then tweak..
The roast profile
The flavor profile
The brewing method they’ll use
Ummmmmm… Mikafi took what was in my head and made it BETTER, more impressive! (This is why my jaw dropped when I saw it. Someone was already working on the exact idea—though totally better— that I was dreaming up and shared in my Re:co talk!)
This is an incredible innovation.
It’s totally customizable to the consumers’ needs and desires and makes the experience simple, fun, and low-stress.
AND THE APP NOTIFIES YOU WHEN THE COFFEE IS ROASTED AND READY!
I’m sorry, I had to hesitate putting this entire section in all caps. I can hardly express how exciting this is to me.
This industry is changing, my friends (something Lee Safar and I talked a lot about in our interview yesterday). We’re at a tipping point.
So I ask you…
Where are you going to be in three, five, ten years?
Will you be willing to adopt new technologies and business models? Will you be innovating?
Or will you be dying on the vine?
I’m here to cheer you on! Please remember I’m here! The Coffee MBA is meant to be a safe space to be challenged into new action.
What do you think about this technology? Hit reply and tell me all about it. I can also try to answer any questions you might have about it. Let’s keep the conversation about innovation going!
Peace, Love, and Peanut Butter (as Lee says),
Miranda
