Is Food Innovation one of the Keys to Post-Covid Recovery? | FFT
Covid has changed the food industry for the foreseeable future and possibly, in some areas, forever. Many of us were badly affected by what happened this year but we are now approaching the time to figure out how to best recover from the past few months and those to come.
While we are not yet fully out of the doghouse when it comes to ways in which Covid is affecting our food and hospitality businesses, there is one solution that I believe can help shape a faster and more sustainable recovery for us all and that is by focusing on innovation.
Food innovation can come across as somewhat of a buzzword and generic solution at first glance but I believe that it has real depth in helping us get our businesses back on the right track. Here’s why:
Innovation increases our ability to react to changes and discover new opportunities. It can also help foster competitive advantage which is a necessity in order to stand out and attract new customers. This is paramount to our Irish hospitality and food industry recovery and the onus is on us as business owners to analyse the new situation and be creative with the opportunities we find within it.
Don’t be afraid to be creative!
Some examples of this creativity can be seen in our pubs and bars which have arguably been some of the worst affected. Due to restrictions they have been forced to redefine their services with some beginning to offer food and even haircuts in some cases.
Innovation is not something that we are always ready for and as we have seen this year, it is usually when we least “have time” for innovation that is when we would benefit from it the most.
If the thought of implementing innovation in your business is scary, start small. Look to other industries and see what they have to offer, what has worked well for them, and what ideas come to mind as you search. Then, consider how you can translate those ideas into your own business.
Thinking of your current situation, where projects may have slowed down or been completely put on hold, that doesn’t mean you should sit back and wait to be told you can reopen again. It means that you should spend your time brainstorming, researching and analysing so that you are ready to pivot if necessary and jump back in when the time is right. This is known as “innovation-readiness”.
To gauge how innovation-ready you are, here are a few questions to ask yourself and your team:
If the majority of your responses to the questions above are “no”, you may need to sit down and reevaluate your business plans so that you can be more agile and ready-to-move on new opportunities, before you need to be.
Once you are happy that you are open to innovating and ready to formulate a plan for your business, then you can start to work through the exact steps that will get you there. There are many different methods you can base your plan of action on, but one in particular that I like is the concept of design-thinking. This is all about mindset and vertical leadership which brings a different perspective to the work you and your people do and how it gets done. Design thinking is inclusive and it facilitates change around complex challenges such as Covid.
It is important that as we aim to recover from Covid, Irish food and hospitality professionals show empathy by looking at the situation through the lens of the consumer while demonstrating an understanding for the short, medium and long-term impact on their lives.
As a brand, it is also important to be present, actively listening and engaging during difficult times like this so as to increase trust, credibility and build strong relationships with your key customers so that they will return to you once you reopen.
Some food for thought to leave you with: what are you doing to be innovative in your business? Could you be doing more? What services do you currently offer and what could you add to your scope to attract a new or different customer in the new normal that we find ourselves in?