Ice cream typically needs to be eaten off a stick, out of a cone or scooped with a spoon but Lawson convenience stores in Japan are introducing unique ice cream beverages that can be consumed straight out of a cup. The Nomu Soft Cream offers a drinkable version of soft serve ice cream made with condensed milk from Japan's popular Machimura Farm.
The front and top of the packaging for the product are designed to look like swirls of ice cream on a cone, yet the cup boasts just a peel-off component that allows for the ice cream to be consumed in a different way than usual without utensils. While the concept may seem unconventional, it has similar qualities to other products like grab-and-go tubes of yogurt.
Soft Serve Drinks
Lawson's Nomu Soft Cream is a Ready-to-Enjoy Ice Cream Beverage
Trend Themes
1. Drinkable Soft Serve - The trend towards soft serve ice cream in drinkable form presents opportunities for innovative packaging and new consumption experiences.
2. Convenient Snacking - The convenience of grab-and-go soft serve drinks and yogurt tubes presents opportunities to disrupt traditional snack packaging and delivery systems.
3. Condensed Milk Quality - With the popularity of Machimura Farms' condensed milk as an ingredient, there is an opportunity to innovate in the production and sourcing of high-quality dairy products for consumption and baking.
Industry Implications
1. Convenience Stores - As the primary retailer of grab-and-go snacks, convenience stores can innovate in packaging and display to cater to the trend for drinkable soft serve products.
2. Food and Beverage Packaging - As more soft serve ice cream products move towards drinkable formats, there is an opportunity to innovate in packaging design, materials and production processes to improve portability and convenience.
3. Dairy and Condensed Milk Production - With the popularity of Machimura Farms' condensed milk used in the Nomu Soft Cream, there is an opportunity to innovate in the production and sourcing of high-quality dairy products for consumption and baking.