Tag: condiments

Video Tip: Heinz’s Mass Customization of Sauces

For more than 125 years, Heinz bottles have touted “57 varieties,” a number completely made up by its founder with little to no real-life application. Now, Kraft Heinz wants to offer customers more than three times that number of condiment options through a new customizable sauce dispenser, created for food-service clients.

The machine, called the Heinz Remix, is the latest example of Kraft Heinz leaning into its away-from-home segment to grow sales. The company has expanded distribution in airports, launched a deluxe version of its mayonnaise for chefs and reformulated its Lunchables so they can be served in schools.
The company is still working through the specific business model for the Heinz Remix. It’s also looking at how the dispenser could be used for drive-thru orders. The machine requires more time and effort than throwing a handful of ketchup packets in a takeout bag, which will likely pose a challenge for speed-focused drive-thru lanes.

To make a customized sauce, consumers will use the touchscreen to select a base of either ketchup, ranch, 57 Sauce or BBQ sauce; add in “enhancers” that include jalapeno, smoky chipotle, buffalo and mango; and set one of three intensity levels. The mass customization dispenser can make more than 200 condiment condos. (Click here for a 3 minute video on the Remix).

The company created the Heinz Remix in just 6 months, with helping hands from Microsoft, device engineers and internet-of-things developers.

While the Heinz Remix is new, its design feels familiar, thanks to its resemblance to the Coca-Cola Freestyle machine, which was launched nearly 15 years ago. Today, Coke’s touchscreen drink dispensers can be found in more than 50,000 locations, including McDonald’s restaurants, AMC movie theaters and Target stores. Customers’ favorite custom orders from Freestyle machines have inspired the beverage giant to introduce new bottled drinks, such as Sprite Cherry and Coke with Cherry and Vanilla.

Classroom discussion questions:

  1. What does mass customization mean?
  2. Provide other examples of mass customization in service businesses. (Hint: see Chapter 7 in your Heizer/Render/Munson text).