{"id":43764,"date":"2015-02-28T22:31:15","date_gmt":"2015-02-28T14:31:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=43764"},"modified":"2015-02-28T22:18:41","modified_gmt":"2015-02-28T14:18:41","slug":"as-tastes-change-food-companies-try-donning-hipster-guises","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2015\/02\/28\/as-tastes-change-food-companies-try-donning-hipster-guises\/","title":{"rendered":"As tastes change, food companies try donning hipster guises"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"mugs-642113_1280\"<\/a><\/p>\n

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif.\u2014At a taco shop in Southern California, milkshakes are served in mason jars and a chalkboard menu lists \u201cThe 1%er\u201d made with lobster meat.<\/p>\n

The logo is a pink skull and instead of buzzers, customers are given license plates so servers can identify them when bringing out orders.<\/p>\n

Nowhere is it evident that the U.S. Taco Co. is an outpost of a chain better known for cheesy gut bombs: Taco Bell.<\/p>\n

Major companies are testing whether it would pay to tuck away their world famous logos in favour of more hipster guises: PepsiCo, for instance, introduced a craft soda called Caleb\u2019s last year and McDonald\u2019s opened a cafe that lists lentils and eggplant on its menu. The stealth efforts reflect the pressures on the country\u2019s biggest food makers, which are contending with the surging popularity of smaller brands that position themselves as decidedly less corporate.<\/p>\n

For big food companies, the low-key efforts are a way feel out changing tastes and cozy up to new customers, particularly those in their 20s and 30s. Among that age group, marketing experts say there\u2019s a growing preference for qualities like \u201creal\u201d and \u201cauthentic.\u201d Additionally, millennials aren\u2019t as impressed by big brands when it comes to food, and instead take pride in discovering and sharing new places and products with friends on social media networks.<\/p>\n

As such, Allen Adamson of Landor Associates, a brand consulting firm, said companies should keep the images for their latest efforts smaller and more niche: \u201cYou don\u2019t want to scream from the mountain top that you\u2019re Pepsi.\u201d<\/p>\n

Unlike Pepsi cola\u2014which has suffered sales declines since 1998, according to Beverage Digest\u2014PepsiCo\u2019s Caleb\u2019s Kola comes in a glass bottle and is sweetened with cane sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup.<\/p>\n

There are no signs the drink is from the maker of Mountain Dew and Gatorade, and the bottles bear the words \u201cHonor In Craft.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nick Hammit, who heads Caleb\u2019s Kola at PepsiCo, said Caleb\u2019s was the creation of a group of \u201cKola Nuts\u201d at the company who were passionate about making a cola that \u201ctakes pride in every little aspect.\u201d<\/p>\n

McDonald\u2019s also decided not to use its name recognition when it opened The Corner late last year.<\/p>\n

The restaurant in Australia has a minimalist white exterior and serves dishes like Moroccan roast chicken, chipotle pulled pork and lentil and eggplant salad. The only sign it\u2019s owned by McDonald\u2019s is the \u201cMcCafe\u201d in small print at the bottom of the restaurant logo.<\/p>\n

McDonald\u2019s spokeswoman Becca Hary said in an email the location is a \u201clearning lab\u201d for testing \u201cnew and different food and beverages never before seen in our restaurants.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Corner comes as McDonald\u2019s suffers ongoing sales struggles, with global sales down 1 per cent last year at established locations as customer visits declined in regions around the world.<\/p>\n

For its part, Taco Bell said in an emailed statement that U.S. Taco\u2019s opening was the result of a \u201csegmentation study\u201d that found some people just don\u2019t want to eat at traditional fast-food chains.<\/p>\n

So instead of trying to win them over with Taco Bell, a team known as \u201cintrapreneurs\u201d at the company came up with an entirely separate concept, which charges about $3 to $4 per taco.<\/p>\n

The shop in Huntington Beach, California caught the attention of Christina Kaoh, a 30-year-old research co-ordinator who was in the area paddle boarding with friends.<\/p>\n

\u201cI figured it\u2019s going to be a hip version of tacos,\u201d Kaoh said.<\/p>\n

She only learned it was owned by Taco Bell after reading an article that mentioned the link in Mother Jones. Kaoh said she wouldn\u2019t go back since she tries to support independent establishments, and didn\u2019t particularly enjoy the food.<\/p>\n

The ownership of smaller brands by major corporations isn\u2019t a deal breaker, of course. In the beer industry, Anheuser-Busch InBev in 2006 created Shock Top. Harry Schuhmacher, editor of Beer Business Daily, said most people probably don\u2019t realize it\u2019s owned by the maker of Bud Light. Even if they did, he said it wouldn\u2019t matter now that Shock Top is established enough to have its own following.<\/p>\n

In other cases, companies acquire smaller, fast-growing rivals to tap into trends. But acquisitions can be costly and come with risks, particularly at a time when food trends seem to be changing at an accelerating pace. By developing a brand in house, companies can test the waters without making as much of a financial commitment. If they\u2019re lucky, it takes off and becomes a hit.<\/p>\n

Still, the manufacturing of authenticity can get clumsy.<\/p>\n

Yum Brands, the parent company of Taco Bell, as well as KFC and Pizza Hut, last year opened a Vietnamese sandwich shop in Dallas, Texas. The shop\u2019s red star logo\u2014a common symbol of communism\u2014immediately upset the local Vietnamese community.<\/p>\n

A food blogger for the Orange County Register called the goof by Yum \u201cunbelievable,\u201d noting that most the Vietnamese living overseas are refugees from the Vietnam War and hate the country\u2019s communist government.<\/p>\n

Yum quickly apologized and removed the logo.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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