Viral Food Pop-ups

A business model for creating viral food sensations through temporary pop-up shops that rotate concepts every few months. The strategy uses formulaic approaches to create viral food items, generates buzz through artificial scarcity, and maintains freshness by constantly switching concepts.

Core Formula for Viral Food Items:

• Make a side dish the main attraction
  • Example: Cookie dough as ice cream
  • Example: Fondue-only restaurant
• Change the shape to something ridiculous
• Play with sizing (make things extremely big or small)
• Use unexpected colors
  • Example: Rainbow bagels
  • Example: Green ketchup
• Create mashups
  • Example: Cronuts
  • Example: Doritos Locos Tacos

Business Operation:

• Set up small shops in trendy areas (Brooklyn/Manhattan)
• Create artificial scarcity through limited runs
• Generate viral distribution through:
  • Initial phase: Thrillist, Buzzfeed
  • Later phase: Own social media handles
• Run each concept for ~3 months then switch
• Keep successful concepts as permanent franchises
  • Example: Cronuts became their own category

Marketing Strategy:

• Create lines/crowds to generate buzz
• Use limited availability to drive demand
• Let press cover the lines/scarcity
• Build hype in hipster neighborhoods
• Use simple "insider" marketing tricks
  • Example: Highlight common practices as unique features
  • Example: Create special descriptions for basic items