Blog

Review: Tim Hortons Innovation Café

We tried Tim Hortons Innovation Café – here’s what we. thought Pearl visited the new Tim Hortons Innovation Café in Toronto this week with a group of 5 taste testers to try some of their new and innovative offerings. Store Environment & Experience Our overall restaurant experience was pleasant. While it was busy non-stop throughout the afternoon, the Tim Hortons staff kept the lines moving [...]

Cannabis 2.0 Product Innovation Opportunities

Deloitte estimates the Canadian market for edibles and alternative cannabis products to be worth C$2.7 billion annually. With the coming legalization of alternative cannabis products in Canada, it’s important for licensed producers and retailers to understand what consumers are interested in and their motivations. In this blog, we’ll explore the findings from Deloitte’s report Nurturing new gro [...]

2019-08-29T10:10:25+00:00 Innovation, Strategy|

Fun and Innovative Food Trends

Pearl went to the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) in Toronto and tried some of the fun and innovative food trends. Here’s what our group of 4 taste testers thought: Pickles The use of pickles was an unexpected trend we could get on board with! We tried the two most unique menu items featuring pickles: pickled pizza and pickle lemonade. The pickled pizza was a homerun for 3 out of 4 of our ta [...]

Pearl’s Top Picks from Mintel’s Consumer Trends study

We reviewed Mintel’s 2019 Global Consumer Trends and here are the most interesting and relevant key takeaways: Total Wellbeing Consumers around the globe are looking for personalized products that are able to adapt to their body’s changing needs and can help them focus on their wellness in a holistic manner. Mintel shared that 38% of US skincare buyers would be interested in trying probiotics a [...]

2019-08-27T09:12:42+00:00 Innovation, Strategy|

Why You Shouldn’t Invite Consumers to a Focus Group

If you want to know your target consumers, don’t invite them to a focus group. If you want to feel empathy for your target consumers, don’t invite them to a focus group. If you want to tell a story about your target consumers, don’t invite them to a focus group. Why not? They are going to an unfamiliar place to hang out with people they don’t know. They might get to speak for 15 minutes each … [...]

2019-08-19T23:32:12+00:00 Innovation, Strategy|

Health & Wellness Packaged Foods Trends

We reviewed Euromonitor’s Top 3 Health & Wellness Packaged Food Trends and deep dived into three key areas: Free from growth driven by healthy appetites Free from has moved beyond intolerances to a broader health-conscious consumer. Free from foods have a growing perception of being healthier and more natural. These perceptions paired with the increased demand in meat-alternatives due to en [...]

2019-08-15T20:58:48+00:00 Innovation, Strategy|

Innovation in Cannabis

There is some much innovation happening in the cannabis space right now. Here are a few of Pearl’s favourite picks. Coffee Cannabis infused coffees are popping up in a wide variety of formats – from your traditional grounds, to K-cups, to ready to drink. One brand in particular, Therapy Tonics & Provisions, caught our attention. They sell Cannabis Infused coffee drinks, or what they call “D [...]

2019-08-06T11:44:06+00:00 Innovation, Strategy|