FEELING INNOVATIVE
{ La Colombe's Unique Approach to Product Development } JAKE LEONTI | EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, COFFEETALK
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TD cold brew coffee has grown at an exponential rate over the past ten years. According to mintel. com, RTD cold brew sales exploded between 2010 and 2015 by 339%. No wonder every coffee company in the country is trying to figure out how they can get in on the action. La Colombe has been there from the beginning as a very early adopter of cold brew RTD single serve. They started out brewing small batches, bottling themselves, and crown-capping their bottles by hand. Today they have their well-known draft latte cans that enjoy nationwide distribution. Innovation has defined La Colombe's path and success in RTD. I took a moment to catch up with Partner and VP of Wholesale Nicolas O'Connell and Co-Founder and CEO Todd Carmichael to discuss their approach to innovation and how it has served them in their business.
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2021 | WINTER ISSUE
One of the key insights I picked up was that La Colombe is unique in its intuitive approach to decision making rather than relying on over-wrought data. For example, when I asked Todd, 'What are the key variables LCT (La Colombe Torrefaction) considers when developing a new product? Demographics? Market reports? consumer data?' Todd answers, "Ultimately, I'm looking for a 'missing something.' Something that I love and others might love too. Part of the magic of innovation is understanding that empty space and trying to fill it." "What is your process for developing new products, Todd? Take me through the cold brew shandy, for example," I ask. "All innovation is a single spark and then a long grind, or a flash of inspiration followed by endless ditch digging. The spark for the lemon shandy came
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