Why $10M for Grilled Cheese Isn’t Totally Crazy
filed under: Entrepreneurship, Internet Culture, Food, and Technology Industry
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As a regular reader of technology and start-up blogs, it’s not unusual for me to read a headline about a new-fangled business idea that received an 8-figure injection of investment capital. But when I read earlier this week that Jonathan Kaplan, famously responsible for Flip camcorders, was rumored to receive $10M for a grilled cheese sandwich restaurant chain, I simply wrote it off as evidence of the tech bubble. Upon seeing the same news story show up in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, CNN, and dozens of other reputable news sources, I decided to take a second look. How could grilled cheese be the big technology story of the week? In addition to the story having great shock value and click-appeal, it turns out that Kaplan really has an amazing idea.
The Emotional Appeal
Connecting with a customer’s emotions and sub-conscience, reptilian mind is the greatest possible achievement of a brand. Apple is the master of this art and science. When you walk out of the Apple Store $2000 poorer and with a shiny new device that is destined to be obsolete by the time you get home, you never feel burnt. Rather, you feel completely elated. The feeling of excitement, satisfaction, and anticipation is absolutely priceless and is the closest thing you can get to being a kid again. That is good branding. Apple isn’t selling electronic devices; Apple is selling the service of personal transformation. With any one of it’s “magical” devices in hand, a customer gets transformed from ordinary to cool, from has-been to cutting edge, and from power-user to “genius.”
Connecting with a customer’s emotions and sub-conscience, reptilian mind is the greatest possible achievement of a brand. Apple is the master of this art and science. When you walk out of the Apple Store $2000 poorer and with a shiny new device that is destined to be obsolete by the time you get home, you never feel burnt. Rather, you feel completely elated. The feeling of excitement, satisfaction, and anticipation is absolutely priceless and is the closest thing you can get to being a kid again. That is good branding. Apple isn’t selling electronic devices; Apple is selling the service of personal transformation. With any one of it’s “magical” devices in hand, a customer gets transformed from ordinary to cool, from has-been to cutting edge, and from power-user to “genius.”
While commonplace in Italy and other European countries, many US brands forget how incredibly potent it can be to put a brand’s emotional focus on nostalgia, fun, and playfulness. Succeeding in a competitive business environment is all about doing something better than your competition. If you can say, “I’m more fun than you,” that is an unstoppable secret weapon. Grilled cheese sandwiches, especially tasty, gourmet ones, are extremely fun and nostalgic. And perhaps with a high-tech way of ordering, the grilled cheese experience can have a touch of Apple’s transformative powers, as well.
Reinventing Eating Out
The gist of The Melt’s dining out experience is as follows: go to themelt.com and order food; head to the nearest The Melt location and scan a bar code receipt on your phone; in under one minute, leave with your food in hand.

The gist of The Melt’s dining out experience is as follows: go to themelt.com and order food; head to the nearest The Melt location and scan a bar code receipt on your phone; in under one minute, leave with your food in hand.

We’re all familiar with ordering take-out and most of us have ordered food online for home delivery. What The Melt does that is so innovative is blend together both of these familiar processes: the process of ordering and paying is done online, and then customers pick up their hot food in person. Near identical to the buy-online-pick-up-in-the-store model used by retailers like Target, this takes the best parts of the online experience (convenience, speed, ease) and eliminates the worst parts of take-out and delivery experience (waiting, waiting, waiting). Additionally, it solves the problems that plague traditional fast food restaurants, specifically terrible food and long lines at peak times when ordering and paying. If The Melt delivers quality food at affordable prices with record-breaking speed, it could be the next big thing in eating out.
The Secret is Speed
The key to The Melt’s speedy service model is a simple menu and the elimination of money. With only two types of sandwiches and two types of soups, it makes decision making simple for customers and makes filling those orders lightning fast for the cooks in the kitchen. Even when stores sell products that don’t require any preparation, often the delay is at checkout, as money changes hands. Being able to scan a barcode is WAY faster than having to exchange money and make change, or swipe a card and sign for it. If the entire process of picking up food is really under 1 minute, it will be nothing short of revolutionary. Add the option to pay with NFC technology in a year, and it could get even faster.
The key to The Melt’s speedy service model is a simple menu and the elimination of money. With only two types of sandwiches and two types of soups, it makes decision making simple for customers and makes filling those orders lightning fast for the cooks in the kitchen. Even when stores sell products that don’t require any preparation, often the delay is at checkout, as money changes hands. Being able to scan a barcode is WAY faster than having to exchange money and make change, or swipe a card and sign for it. If the entire process of picking up food is really under 1 minute, it will be nothing short of revolutionary. Add the option to pay with NFC technology in a year, and it could get even faster.
It’s shocking to imagine anyone getting $10M for any idea, not to mention an idea to sell grilled cheese sandwiches. But when the idea is to revolutionize the food service industry by making eating out faster, easier, and more fun, it’s hard not to get excited about it.
