In this new feature to our Blog, Hotspots brings you the Mintel Trend team’s top observations on product and service launches from around the world.
Push for Pizza, UK
Domino’s is launching “The Easy Order” button in the UK. When pressed, it will automatically order the user’s favourite pizza from the nearest Domino’s and glow red when the pizza is out for delivery. The launch is run to coincide with the launch of their ‘one-touch’ payment system app.
“With 38% of Brits interested in an online service that remembers their usual order, according to Mintel’s Attitudes to Home-delivery and Takeaway Food UK 2015 report, brands across sectors will need to note this growing expectancy for streamlined ordering systems. As this becomes the norm, finding ways to bring people what they want with as little fuss as possible will become intrinsic for brands looking to succeed.”
Catherine Cottney – Manager of Trends, Europe
Girls R Boys, Japan
Japanese cosmetics brand Shiseido has launched a viral advertisement on YouTube which demonstrates the brand’s dramatic and surprising transforming power. The advertisement begins with a teacher entering a classroom full of attractive high school girls, while the camera pans across the girls, a tagline reads: “Have you noticed the man in this classroom?” As the scene begins to rewind, a fleet of make-up artists begin to work on the young girls’ faces to reveal that the pupils are in fact all young boy and the ad ends with the Japanese slogan “Anyone can become pretty.”
“The Shiseido ad is a great example of vividly demonstrating and proving the transforming power of cosmetics in a subtle but visible way.”
Philix Liu – Trends Analyst, Asia Pacific
Trim your subscriptions, US
Trim is a personal financial assistant in the US that tracks users’ subscription histories and cancels anything they don’t want to keep paying for. Once users sign up with their online banking information, Trim will text them with a list of all of their subscriptions. By simply replying to a text, users will have the option to cancel subscriptions instantly.
“Subscription services are now playing such an important role in consumers’ lives and as a result monthly financial statements are steadily increasing, impacting financial stability. As many as one quarter of US Millennial consumers say that paying day-to-day bills is one of their biggest financial challenges. Because people are so pressed for time, businesses that can be forward-thinking and help people save money will likely be rewarded with repeat custom.”
Jamie Barrar – Trends Analyst, North America
Taxi Fabric, India
An art initiative in India is spreading awareness of Indian Sign Language via taxi upholstery. Taxi Fabric is an art and design project aimed at showcasing designers’ work using the interiors of Mumbai’s ubiquitous black and yellow cabs. One such campaign saw one taxi’s interior adapted into a consumable guide to help passengers learn the basics of sign language, featuring artwork that showcased the letters of sign language in a bright and informative style.
“The colourful and visual medium of these messages can offer an emotional connection with people with from all walks of life, and art can be a powerful tool to spread awareness. With consumers spending so much time in transit, modes of transport offer significant opportunities to highlight issues while also making the environs a little less drab.”
Delon Wang – Manager of Trends, Asia Pacific
Bevy On Demand, UK
Bevy is the first alcohol on-demand service in the UK. The app offers a range of ‘impulse goods’ that can be offered for delivery between 8pm and 6am on Thursday, Friday and Saturday; including alcohol, tobacco and snacks.
“According to Mintel’s Attitudes to Home-delivery and Takeaway food UK 2015 report, despite the fact three-quarters of Brits own a smartphone, only 17% of takeaway/home delivery users who’ve placed orders online did so via a smartphone. However, our research shows UK consumers would be willing to allow home delivery companies they like to send them offers via their smartphone based on their location. On-demand delivery is becoming the norm in larger cities and intermediary delivery companies can partner with brands that cannot provide on-demand delivery themselves as a way to satisfy the consumer want for instant gratification.”
Alex Strang – Trends Analyst, Europe
Fairygodboss, US
Fairygodboss is a crowdsourced database of maternity leave policies which allows users to access information regarding benefits at US companies. The new start-up offers a database of reviews, penned by female employees of over 700 companies. Co-founders Georgene Huang and Romy Newman developed the service after Huang found difficulties finding information about leave policies while interviewing for jobs while she was pregnant.
“Crowdsourcing makes services like Fairygodboss possible, and as a result consumers are able to make more informed decisions; from where they work, to where they shop, travel, and dine out. Issues like women’s equality in the workplace, paternity leave, and work/life balance are becoming increasingly important for people, and products and services that help people learn about the companies they work for—as well as those they patronize—are set to do well.”
Carli Gernot – Manager of Trends, North America
Plant Lamp, Peru
Lima’s University of Engineering and Technology (UTEC) has teamed up with FCB Mayo to create a lamp which converts plant nutrients into electrical energy. The “Plant Lamp,” which can operate for two hours per day, is bringing electric light to Nuevo Saposoa, an isolated community in the Peruvian rainforest which has been without electric power for months after a flood in March destroyed the community’s generators. Thanks to “Plant Lamp,” the community’s 173 members can carry on with activities through the evening and improve their social and economic quality of life.
“Complex situations are driving innovations throughout Latin America, and brands have a significant opportunity to support isolated communities by not only helping them stay connected to the outside world, but also providing them with tools to improve their quality of life.”
Graciana Mendez – Trends Analyst, Latin America
