I am a great believer in the convergence and divergence theory and the food industry is really showing this in action.
At one level with have 3D Food printers now moving into the restaurant scene. Food Ink are doing a world tour where guests can dine on food that has come out of a 3D printer. You get the perfect dish based on a food puree produced by the ink. This means they can combine different ingredients in new ways to create a dish. The experts believe this could help us feed the world.
The reverse to this is the “nostalgia “ food trend I have mentioned this before in articles and presentations. If you are looking for old-fashioned British Steak and Kidney Pudding you will need to book well ahead at Rules at Covent Garden. This is London’s oldest restaurant (opened in 1798), where they specialise in nostalgia eating.
British Airways have also picked up on the nostalgia trend with their new promotion based on nostalgia eating. “It’s time to fly home with British Airways” with promotions such as “When only a proper sarnie will do.”
Another retail example of this is London based “Prick”, and no I am not being rude. Indoor plant sales are growing around the world as more Millennials get into indoor plants. This is a category that is expanding. The owners of Prick looked at the category and then looked at the subcategories and opened the first cacti only store in London. This has proved to be a successful move and they are already getting international recognition. By being so specialist they have now launched a book on cacti.
A great example of convergence and divergence in action.
John Stanley
john@johnstanley.com.au
