At Dunkin’ Partnerships are Fun

Developing lasting customer relationships is simply the ‘joy’ in food marketing.  Developing relationships with customer relevance that garner incremental customers visits while expanding your brands value with new electricity can be a ‘home run’ according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru®, at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

So, when Dunkin’ and social media megastar Charli D’Amelio first made their long-brewing relationship official last year when Charli’s go-to Dunkin’ Cold Brew order was officially named “The Charli”, edified a new electricity for the Dunkin brand. That partnership and their mutual love was taken to yet another level a few weeks ago with the remixed Charli Cold Foam. Now, Dunkin’ and Charli are taking things one step further for fans with limited-edition Charli x Dunkin’ merch, dropped exclusively on ShopDunkin.com.

So, the first-ever Charli x Dunkin’ merch collection makes it easy to sip the new Charli Cold Foam in style, with fun and fashionable items for fans to show the world their Dunkin’ love runs as deep as Charli’s, including:

The Dunkin’ Onesie is back and as comfy as ever. This highly-coveted Dunkin’ merch item and one of Charli’s go-to lounge outfits is a famous fan favorite that’s sure to sell out fast.

·         The Charli x Dunkin’ Sparkle Tumbler is blinged-out to add some extra sparkle to your sip and give your daily Dunkin’ drink a serious glow-up.

·         The Charli x Dunkin’ Puffer iPhone Case dials up the fun by bringing Sweet Cold Foam inspired fashion to your phone.

·         The Charli x Dunkin’ Oversized Scrunchie Set lets anyone rock a Dunkin’-ized low ponytail just like Charli.

·         Charli x Dunkin’ Shoelaces bring a pop of color to any Dunkin’ run or TikTok dance.

·         The Charli x Dunkin’ Pom Pom Keychain will show everyone that Dunkin’ is the key to your heart.

·         The Limited-Edition Charli x Dunkin’ Cold Brew Tap is the perfect collector’s item for Charli fans who love Dunkin’ Cold Brew as much as she does.

Johnson continued, “in my minds-eye the new electricity must be very efficient for the supply chain and includes such things as; corporate partnerships, fresh foods, perfume, cosmetics, online ordering, delivery, self-driving cars, plant-based foods, music, streaming, food sampling, toy’s, podcast, movies, cereal, developing brands, grocerant positioning, fresh food messaging, autonomous delivery, cashier-less retail, plates, glasses, cash-less payments, digital hand-held marketing.

All food and beverage retailers to survive the next generation of retail must embrace the artificial intelligence revolution while simultaneously embracing fresh food and beverages that are portable, fresh, with differentiation that is familiar not different and this fits that bill according to Johnson.

At Dunkin the new limited-edition Charli x Dunkin’ merch collection will be available while supplies last.

Kemma Kefalas, Brand Engagement Manager at Dunkin’, stated, “Our fans can’t get enough of the genuine love between Charli and Dunkin’, so creating the Charli x Dunkin’ merch collection felt like the perfect next step in our relationship. This collection is our way of sprinkling more Charli and Dunkin’ love onto our fans,” … “We worked hand in hand with Charli to bring her signature look into each accessory so our fans can sip their Charli Cold Foam in style this spring.”

Are you driving new electricity? Consider that Dunkin’ ,is  TikTok’s most followed quick service restaurant brand, teamed up with Charli, TikTok’s most followed star, to introduce the Charli Cold Foam in February. This exciting remix of her famous Dunkin’ order – a Dunkin’ Cold Brew with three pumps of caramel – now adds Sweet Cold Foam and cinnamon sugar on top. Dunkin’s creamy new Sweet Cold Foam features vanilla-forward flavor to perfectly complement the chocolate notes of Dunkin’s rich Cold Brew. The Sweet Cold Foam gradually blends into the beverage as it’s sipped, delivering a delicious coffee beverage with a silky, smooth texture. Are your brand marketers having fun?

Looking for success clues of your own? Foodservice Solutions® specializes in outsourced food marketing and business development ideations. We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities, technology, or a new menu product segment.  Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma WA is the global leader in the Grocerant niche visit us on our social media sites by clicking one of the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter 

Dunkin Expanding the ‘halo’ of Better-for-You

 

Consumer like fresh fast food, they like drive thru’s, and they like Inspire Brands restaurant retail outlets for all of the right reasons including craveability, creativity, consistency according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

Back in the day the Grocerant Guru® introduced regular readers of this blog about a new avenue of fresh food distribution that was about to take off.  That company was, Farmer’s Fridge.  Now that fresh food vending company, is testing some of its salads, bowls and breakfast items at select Dunkin’ locations elevating choice for Dunkin’s retail customers while extending the ‘halo’ of better-for you according to Johnson.

Farmer’s Fridge in its first test pilot restaurant program is taking place at six Dunkin’ stores at which a limited selection of items are on offer behind the counter. Eventually, they will be available in grab-and-go cases rather than the traditional Farmer’s Fridge stand-alone vending fridges.

Meghan Hurley, head of marketing for Farmer’s Fridge stated, “Dunkin’ was exploring new, healthy food options focused on plant-forward ingredients,”... “Our CEO was introduced to the Dunkin’ folks in 2020 and the idea was launched.”

Regular readers of this blog know that, Farmer’s Fridge has traditionally set up its vending operations in airports, college campuses, office buildings, hospitals and similar venues. There are now about 350 installations, but this is the first venture with a QSR.

So, Dunkin’ is offering two Farmer’s Fridge salads and two bowls, including a harvest salad, Greek salad, pesto pasta and a burrito bowl—the last a combo of black beans, a brown rice-quinoa blend, fire-roasted corn, roasted fajita veggies and guacamole. Also on the menu are chia pudding, apple-cinnamon oats and a yogurt parfait. None of these were developed specifically for Dunkin; these items were already in the fridges, said Hurley.

Fresh and sustainable in its vending operations, all the food is packed into recyclable glass jars. Dunkin’ customers can either recycle these at home or bring the jars back to the store where the purchase was made.

In a press release an Inspire Brands spokesperson stated “Dunkin’ is committed to delivering a wide variety of delicious, convenient menu choices to help keep our guests running all day long, including options that make it easier to eat on-the-go," "We are currently testing Farmer’s Fridge prepackaged salads, grain bowls and breakfast items inside a total of six restaurants in the Chicago and New Jersey markets. The test is designed to gather valuable feedback from consumers, franchisees and their employees to help inform future decisions.” Farmers Fridge in the minds-eye of our grocerant guru® has developed top-of-mind awareness for better for you fresh food within the vending sector and sees no reason they can’t be a perfect fit at Dunkin outlets.

Like all of us, with many of its fridges in locations that immediately shut down at the start of the pandemic, Farmer’s Fridge had to quickly transform its business model. “We lost 70% to 80% of our business that first week, but by the end of March, we built an e-commerce site on Shopify and launched self-delivery in some markets,” said Hurley. “People still wanted healthy food fast, so we were serving the same occasion as we did at the office.”

The company also relocated some of its fridges in hospitals and universities to make them more accessible to frontline workers and quarantining students. Farmer’s Fridge also debuted a Chef Collab series, using well-known restaurant chefs to create recipes for the fridges and home delivery. “When restaurants shut down, we asked the chefs what they would make at home, and they developed dishes for us,” said Hurley.

The lineup includes Andrew Kim, Paul Kahan, Missy Robbins and Stephanie Izard. Girl and the Goat’s Izard created a tofu bowl. It worked.  Almost a year later, Farmer’s Fridge business is back to pre-pandemic levels, said Hurley, but sales are going through different channels. With about half the fridges currently inactive, the company is currently doing more wholesale, e-commerce and delivery.

Hurley continued, “In 2021, “we want to take a step back and build out these channels,” ... “The menu team also wants to focus on product development and develop recipes based on trends and customers’ needs. The Dunkin’ fridges are just in test right now, but we hope to partner with other restaurants in the future.” How are you expanding the increasingly valued customer touchpoint of ‘better-for-you?

Are you looking for a new partnership to drive sales? Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing tactics look more like yesterday that tomorrow?  Visit GrocerantGuru.com for more information or contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us Remember success does leave clues and we just may have the clue you need to propel your continued success.