Nestle Professional Launches Its Customer Innovation Campus In Solon, Ohio
Solon, OH - With an eye toward serving growing numbers of consumers who eat out rather than at home, Nestle Professional, the foodservice division of the world's leading nutrition, health and wellness company, recently opened a state-of-the-art Customer Innovation Campus aimed at providing foodservice operators with creative and insightful solutions on how to develop appetizing menus that cater to local tastes, increase customer traffic and make their operations more competitive.
The establishment of the Customer Innovation Campus underlines the importance that Nestle attributes both to R&D and to the out-of-home business, one of its four strategic growth areas. "This will be no ordinary culinary center, but rather a think tank for driving the future of foodservice nutrition and consumer trends," said Marc Caira, Global Business Executive, Nestle Professional. "Together with our customers we will create synergies to foster the development of new food and beverage solutions."
With the Customer Innovation Campus - and with others planned for Europe and Asia- Nestle Professional is charting a course that is unique among global food leaders. The Solon campus, the first of its kind, puts Nestlé ahead of the curve in catering to largely unmet needs in the foodservice industry - the needs of tens of thousands of operators who could profit from astute culinary advice and keen insights of food leaders. It will reach across a broad spectrum of the industry throughout the Americas - leading chains and restaurants, hotels, schools, business and industry.
"Even in this economic climate, long-term growth prospects are promising for Nestle Professional," noted Caira. "Our main challenge is to compete effectively in a complex, highly fragmented market where local tastes are key. Nestle operates on a global scale, while tailoring its products to local taste. We are close to our consumers, and this is one of our competitive advantages."
Out-of-home eating is growing in part because of longer working hours, lengthy commuting times, skipped meals at home, shifting social patterns, and other factors. This year, a larger portion of every dollar consumers spend for food and drink will be spent out-of-home, a trend which is set to continue. Already, almost half of all funds allocated for food in the US (48%) is spent in restaurants, nearly double the amount spent in 1955 (25%). The out-of-home market has a potential of CHF 500 billion (US $421 billion) and Nestlé aims to double its market share within the next ten years.
"The campus will enable Nestle Professional to implement local customer and flavor trends as well as sharing synergies across markets in the Americas. Our culture of collaboration is focused on customers' growth and success- whether it's local, regional or global. NPCIC is a place where operators can tap into and prepare for what's next in terms of menu, nutrition and consumer trends," said Jorge Sadurni, President of Nestle Professional, Americas.
The 67,000-square-foot, three-story facility is designed from the ground up to serve as an interactive, sensory-enlivening experience and culinary hub for chefs, product development technologists, and foodservice executives. Reminiscent of a major university research facility situated on a sprawling suburban landscape, the ultramodern campus includes gleaming kitchens that can be fully reconfigured to mirror cooking environments familiar to any chef, presentation kitchens, conference rooms and an ideation room for analyzing menus, brainstorming new recipes and product concepts, relaying customer insights and discussing key challenges.
The Nestle Professional team in Solon consists of 100 people, including world-class chefs. They work side by side with customers to understand their operations, staff requirements, resources, and customer preferences. Besides menu development, customers receive value-added services such as information on customer trends/insights, marketing and point-of-sale materials, customized beverage station layout, and dispensing machine service. The campus features seminars on nutrition, health and wellness, business performance, satisfying consumer demand, renovation and innovation.
SOURCE: Nestle Professional