From September 11 to 13 2016 the “Trüffeljagd” (truffle hunt), an innovation event for butchers, will be taking place in Berlin for the second time. The event is the result of a student project at the HPI School of Design Thinking in cooperation with the Adalbert Raps Foundation. A student team of the D-School developed the idea for the “butcher of the future,” and to counteract the negative image that has developed around the butcher’s trade.
In times when vegetarian and vegan restaurants are springing up, butchers don’t have it easy. Besides an image loss, long-established butcher shops are forced to fight against a shortage of young professionals and displacement by discount stores. As a result, in the past years over 4,000 family businesses have closed their doors. To analyze the reasons for this occurrence in the sector and to develop future-oriented sales strategies, the Adalbert Raps Foundation approached the HPI School of Design Thinking in summer 2015.
During a three-month period, a student team worked on ideas of how to combine tradition and quality with trends and innovation. And they were successful, as Frank Kühne, CEO of the Adalbert Raps Foundation confirms: “The experts convinced us by coming up with a variety of creative solutions for the sector. Some of them were implemented, in particular the “Trüffeljagd”— an innovation event for butchers.” During the first ever such event, participants meet pioneers of the innovative butchery scene in Berlin and, in workshops, learn what promising approaches for their own company could look like. The focus is on food trends and creative exchange.
Even after graduating from the HPI School of Design Thinking, the alumni accompany the project in terms of content, while working closely with the foundation. “Collaboration with the HPI D-School gives us a change in perspective, which has led to fresh ideas and innovation events to support the future of the butcher’s trade,” says Frank Kühne.
