Insect-eating contests, kisses as promotions, and coffee served in edible cups… are bold business ideas recently introduced by service-sector owners in Ho Chi Minh City.
A bold insect-eating challenge
To save costs and attract customers’ attention, many young service-business owners have organized rather unusual promotions and competitions.
Mr. Phạm Quang Minh (born in 1982), owner of an insect eatery in Gò Vấp District, came up with the recently held insect-eating contest. Participants had to finish 20 deep-fried scorpions and 4 live coconut larvae. Successful contestants won VND 1 million; those who lost paid VND 250,000.
The effectiveness of this idea remains unclear, but its creator says customers are enthusiastic. After 15 days, the program had attracted more than 200 challengers.
Mr. Minh shared that before opening his eatery, he spent years researching insects' life cycles and breeding methods. When it first opened, the unfamiliar dishes made many customers hesitant. He therefore came up with the idea of a fun challenge event that would also introduce the dishes.
“To prepare for the program, my team and I personally fried and tasted many scorpions. So the quantity in the customer challenge is quite reasonable,” Minh added.
In year 2 at Ho Chi Minh City Banking University, Đinh Tuấn Ân (born in 1989 in Quảng Ngãi) changed direction to sell tofu pudding. He now owns a well-known chain in Saigon. To mark the brand's renaming, Ân organized a kissing promotion. Many customers participated, and the shop was often packed.
Speaking about the unusual idea, Ân said: ‘Traditional discounts are no longer suitable. Customers prefer interactive programs instead. The entire communications budget is used to serve customers. After 10 days, more than 6,000 people had participated.’ Beyond novel ways of organizing promotions, many business owners are also creating unique products appearing on the market for the first time.
Trần Thanh Tùng (born in 1988, living in District 1) is also the owner of the café with a one-of-a-kind cup made from pastry. After finishing their drinks, customers can eat the cups. When he began, Tùng spent more than 2 weeks researching and successfully making a cup-shaped pastry shell. Only then did he dare put the product on sale. The owner himself was surprised by the enthusiastic customer response.
Unique coffee with an edible cup
Coffee served in edible cups, with spoons and plates made from biscuits and chocolate, is a business idea adopted recently by some shops in Ho Chi Minh City. Today, in addition to cups, spoons, plates, and other accessories can also be eaten.
Tùng has also introduced flavor-changing ice cubes—a new product at the café. The ice comes with special fruit flavors that change when added to a glass of water. According to the owner, customers are quite excited about this ‘unconventional’ product.
Sharing the idea of edible cups, Tường Vy, born in 1988 and living in District 10, designed smoothie cups made of coconut jelly. She said the smoothies, priced at VND 29,000, keep the shop busy. At times, demand is so high that the store cannot make cups fast enough.
According to Cafebiz
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