Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1

Step 1:

The opportunity I would like to pursue: The restaurant industry as a whole, from fast food and mom and pop shops to up scale diners and steak houses, has an unmet need for quality, insulated, leak-proof, reusable take out bags that preserve the freshness and heat/cold of take-out/delivery items for their customers. They are losing customers and future, repeat business in the process of leaving this need unmet.

Step 2:

What: Poorly designed take-out bags

Who: Patrons of restaurants in America (or anywhere, really), including mom and pop shops, chains, fast food, sit down (With takeout), anywhere that offers takeout or delivery of food or drinks. In addition, one could include the restaurant owners since they are missing out on potential revenue/profits.

What: Leaky bags that ruin customers cars, leak juice and flavor from the food, provide little in the way of heat insulation to keep food warm on the drive home, unhappy/unsatisfied customers, less future sales, more bad reviews and less business.

Why: Restaurants may be hesitant to spend money on better bags due to immediate cost increases, an economic/feasible solution does not currently exist on the market

Step 3:

Testing the who: Other potential whos with this need include college dining halls, delivery services like catering or individual delivery, pizza delivery, restaurants in college towns or cities, professionals, families, and single persons.

Testing the what: All restaurants or institutions that offer a takeout or delivery service are included in the need. Additionally, so are the customers of such places. That’s part of what makes this such a great, universal product. However, the boundary of the need is finely drawn at the line of restaurants that do NOT offer takeout and customers who do NOT want carryout or delivery.

Testing the why: The why for this need will be much more prominent and evident for individuals who are prone to getting take-out or delivery more often (such as families, professionals, single persons, regulars at restaurants, etc.). The need is much less targeted and almost negligible for the person who gets takeout maybe once every month or two. Thus, people who are known to frequent takeout should be targeted. The why for restaurants is more or less going to be universal (at least at first) since restaurants are hesitant to raising operating costs. However, this could well be less of a concern depending on the chain and specific details of the establishment. Research would need to be done. However, with time and more knowledge of the potential business it could garner, businesses would be more open to the slight increase in cost.

Step 4:

Interview #1: Family Pizza Shop Owner (M42)

                His pizza shop is in the historic district of town, and so traffic is notoriously bad due to the two- way streets throughout. As a result, even his customers who live nearby are subject to 10-15-minute drives home (2-3 miles away). This is even more so for those who live further. This doesn’t give him much trouble because his pizza is some of the best in town and has a local name, but many of his regulars who order every week have made note of it to him from time to time. He wishes to solve the problem but has yet to find a solution. Not even the thick pizza boxes can keep the heat in enough.

                Due to his restaurant being very prosperous and family owned with low operating costs (he owns the building of the restaurant outright), he is very inclined to spend more money on a better solution. He is extremely committed to his craft, and it is his passion- it has been in his family for over 50 years and he is 100% Italian. It is a way of life for him.

                From this interview, I realized that local mom and pop shops may actually be a better target than I anticipated. Although they do have to compete with chain restaurants, they often times have far better products, ingredients, and a much more loyal customer base- making them prone to having customers that are conscious of the need for better take out bags. In addition, the owners are extremely passionate about their business and customers, and as a result they will do most anything to better the customer’s experience and drive more revenue.

Interview #2: Mom of 3, Wife of Professional (F49)

                She is a stay at home mom with three children aged 16, 12, and 12. Her husband is an executive at an engineering firm and works long hours frequently. All of her children play travel sports and have very busy travel schedules. Combining all of this together, the family has little time to cook fresh meals every day and frequently resorts to carry out from some of the healthier fast food options around like Panera Bread (one of their favorites). They never have time to sit down at a restaurant and eat, so take out is always their first choice.

                She (and her family) are very aware of and annoyed by the state of takeout bags at restaurants. Her kids and husband always complain about the food being cold when it gets home, and it annoys her as well because she doesn’t feel as if she has any way to prevent it. They can’t stop getting it, but she wishes there was a better way. Additionally, they are fairly limited as to their take out options since there isn’t much nearby, and going any further would make the situation worse.

                She and her husband have contemplated getting meals freshly made by a chef due to their frustration with this. They don’t want to spend the money, even if they can well afford it. As before, she just wishes there was a better way to do takeout.

                This interview confirmed all of my suspicions- busy families crave and need takeout. It is an almost instrumental part of their lives, and they can’t go without it. As a result, they present a very strong case for being one of the foremost “whos” in this opportunity.

Interview #3: College Student (F21)

                She is a student in the nursing program at UF and a member of one of the sororities at UF. As a result, she is frequently on the go and never has a chance to cook for herself or make a fresh meal. She either has her meals at her sorority house, or she gets takeout in between or after classes when she is hungry and in a rush. She probably gets takeout at least 5 times a week on average.

                One of her biggest complaints was that even the food at her sorority house was often cold, especially when she would get her breakfast to go before class in the mornings. This is something that really bugs her- she rarely gets a meal that is warm. When she gets take out, the traffic in Gainesville (foot or road) makes it hard for her to get home or to her study spot before she can eat, causing her food to be lukewarm or even cold.

                She is very conscious of this, and it’s actually something she was complaining to one of her sorority sisters about the other day after they got Chipotle to go from University after classes. By the time they got home, their food was not only cold, but it had leaked all on the inside of the storage compartment of her scooter. It took them a long time to clean it up, and the smell of Chipotle still hasn’t left. She wishes there was some way she could prevent these frequent spills from occurring and messing her scooter up.

                From this interview, I realized that fast food and take out truly does fit well into the lives of busy individuals, so much so to the point that it has become a staple. In addition, I saw more confirmation that the lack of waterproofing in take out bags is a serious, conscious problem that consumers have frequently. This will help me in developing the scope of my products more.

Interview #4: McDonalds Regular (M20)

                He is an electrician’s apprentice who works long hours and doesn’t like to cook for himself, ever. He generally gets McDonalds for lunch most every single weekday with his boss, so he knows the place very well. Anytime that he brings food back to the jobsite, it’s always cold and he has no way to warm it up. In addition, he notices how the grease and steam from his food is always leaking through the thin paper bags and getting everywhere. This annoys him because he has to take extra care in washing his hands off especially well before getting back to work.

                He wishes that there was a better solution, but he won’t stop getting fast food because of how convenient and cheap it is. He’s hooked on it but wishes there was something better. He knows that big chains probably will never change, but has hope.

                From this interview, I realized that families and business professionals and students aren’t the only ones who love and need fast food- it’s also the entire population of the trades industry and the rest of the working class. This helped me to broaden my perspective and gain a better view of the who. In addition, all of my past suspicions about this problem being conscious to others continues to be affirmed.

Interview #5: Infrequent Takeout User (M25)

                He is a personal trainer at a local gym, and he is very conscious of his health and physique. He very rarely gets take out but maybe once a month, and when he does it’s usually from a health conscious place like Bolay. Aside from that, he is always cooking for himself and buying groceries.

                When I asked him if he has ever been bothered by his food being cold, leaky, etc., he told me that he never once noticed it. He had to think back to the last time he got take-out, and after some reflection he noted that it was a bit cold when he brought it home but that he didn’t think much anything of it. It was never really something he was all that conscious of. He supposed that a change to the current system of take out bags would be nice, but that it wouldn’t have much of an impact on him or his choice.

                From this, I was able to deduce that targeting infrequent users with this product would not be very worthwhile. It is definitely more aimed at frequent users who have consciousness of their issue. In a way, this reminds me a lot of the 20/80 rule and how important it is to focus on the average, frequent user.

Note: Reflections/Takeaways from each interview were given in-line after each interview.