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Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

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Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#361

Post by zloof »

brusch64 wrote: post #323
elxavit0 wrote: post #308

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not a fan of this model (yet) either. It's a big reason why I haven't cycle-"automated" other services I use. But if there's an on-demand sales model available, I'd love to try it out as well. I enjoy good coffee, but I also drink lots of bad coffee - I'd go broke on coffee alone otherwise.

I am the same.. as soon as something is a subscription model I am asking myself if I really want it. But a cup of great instant coffee could be awesome. Especially when you are camping or on music festivals. These were the only times I was using instant coffee. If their price point stays the same you won't save much on their model. From a price standpoint I don't know if there is something much cheaper than buying co…

Can you elaborate on the earlier point above - what don't you like about the market positioning? (We aren't exactly going for Nespresso to Keurig, but really curious what rubs you the wrong way about that.)

Definitely won't save money compared to buying your own beans. It's the same as cooking - it's cheaper to grill a nice steak than buy one.

As a music festival goer - Sudden at festivals is about taste and speed. It tastes amazing. I usually pour it in a cold water bottle and shake it up (while in the middle of a performance) - really awesome. Definitely tastes better than festival coffee. Furthermore the coffee line at festivals is usually 30 minutes and they charge $5! This is obviously a personal pain point for me :-)

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#362

Post by startupdiscuss »

giarc wrote: post #25
startupdiscuss wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sometimes the market speaks REALLY clearly! (1) I, too, would love to try it out. This does mean that if it is not much better than my Keurig (wasteful) single use, I may not re-up. Would be interested to see. (2) Also, would be great if the trial packets were available someplace that already had my credit card (like Amazon). (3) Do you have half-cafs?

Regarding your Keurig comment. I really hated the amount of plastic waste going into landfills so I bought one of those plastic reusable cups. I wasn't impressed with the output or the work needed. I recently found Presidents Choice (large Canadian brand) has K cups for $0.50 a piece. They are compostable and made of spent coffee beans and other plant based material. If you are in Canada, go to your nearest superstor…

Thanks for the tip. I am not in a large city so if I can get it on Amazon in half-caf, I will definitely buy that.

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#363

Post by losteverything »

First. Good luck

I'm all for trying new coffee. So far nothing has been worth the difference in the price which is why I still but store brand. (Bounty towels ARE worth the difference in price, e.g.)

Will you sell creamers and sugar and stirrers and cups?

I'm not sure what your product does - do I still have to heat up the water? I would love your product to be alka-selzer like in that I drop it into my cold cup of water and I get a hot cup of good tasting coffee. No need to heat up the water

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#364

Post by vit05 »

So, I drank instant coffee in morning and immediately recalled the headline I read last night here in HN "Instant coffee that doesn't suck". Unfortunately, I'm not in the US to order, but when I opened your website, I did not find your package beautiful. It did not seduce me, it did not seem to be a premium product.

It seems to me that one of the biggest potential marketing strategies you could have is when someone takes one from the bag in a public space, like an office, and another will ask: What is it?

But, at least for me, the only thing I would think would be that this is some kind of medication or a cigar, and I would remember the Seifield episode about Pez.

Have you thought about changing the package to something that gives a better experience and seems more premium?

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#366

Post by truthexposer »

zloof wrote: post #205
truthexposer wrote: post #133

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Who is your target? If people want good tasting coffee, like a connoisseur, one would like the option of selecting the type of bean, where it is sourced from, how it's roasted, how it's ground, how it's brewed etc. People even vehemently oppose and stand by brewing methods, which to an ordinary person who doesn't care about coffee, wouldn't care about. And if someone is buying instant coffee anyways, I doubt they car…

+1 for RussianCow's comment. Our target customer is the average person who goes to Philz, Blue Bottle, Stumptown as well as Starbucks. These people aren't really buying instant coffee - they spend $2-10 on coffee per day. Some of them buy 2 x $5 latte drinks at a cafe. 100% of these people drink their coffee for the taste (although they have different taste preferences). The average person who goes to Blue Bottle dai…

Is it really a HUGE market?

Here's some trends noted from the 2016 NCDT, which they do admit have only appeared within the past few years: "Behaviors that are slowly growing include lighter coffee consumption (slightly fewer drinkers and slightly lighter cups per drinker per day), drinking espresso-based coffee and drinking coffee out-of-home. Behaviors that are slowly declining include drinking traditional coffee and drinking coffee at home. Note that most of these shifts are occurring over the last few years."

Some other figures based on satisfaction of brewing methods found later in the report include:

86% very satisfied/satisfied with their drip coffee maker in 2016

94% with espresso

90% with single-cup

89% with instant

88% with coffee vending

It seems to me like there is a growing trend of more conspicuous consumption, as well as already high satisfaction across the board with people's status quo brewing methods.

It also seems to me like you're trying to make an instant coffee that carries with it the sort of branding that Philz, Blue Bottle, Stumptown, Starbucks, etc. have with physical locations which have the ability to foster certain groups of people, as well as convey aesthetic or ethical sensibilities through branding within the stores. It seems to me that this kind of branding is somewhat reliant on physical locations. I just don't buy into the assumption you make that you can target the same consumer that these places can.

Like, come on, the title of the NYT review on your coffee is: "Instant Coffee You’ll Actually Want to Drink", if that is any indication as to the mismatched conceptions people already have about instant coffee. It seems like you're climbing an uphill battle, considering the fact a cup of any other regular coffee costs about 7 cents, you're trying to sell instant coffee, but 36 times more expensive, based on branding and convincing people

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#367

Post by odonnellryan »

freese wrote: post #286
odonnellryan wrote: post #230

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I like good coffee: I don't care where it comes from. I like how I'm making coffee right now and where I get my coffee from, but this seems interesting for stuff like camping, hiking, and so on. You can like good coffee and be interested in good instant coffee.

+1

Bought 40, by the way, to give out. Will buy more if people love them.

Won't replace my whole-bean subscriptions, but will be a great way to get a good cup of coffee away from my home, and a great gift for my dad who likes instant coffee.

One suggestion: let us buy without a subscription, even if it costs 10-20 percent more. I don't want to subscribe to this service for the above reasons. :)

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#368

Post by zloof »

truthexposer wrote: post #366
zloof wrote: post #205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

+1 for RussianCow's comment. Our target customer is the average person who goes to Philz, Blue Bottle, Stumptown as well as Starbucks. These people aren't really buying instant coffee - they spend $2-10 on coffee per day. Some of them buy 2 x $5 latte drinks at a cafe. 100% of these people drink their coffee for the taste (although they have different taste preferences). The average person who goes to Blue Bottle dai…

Is it really a HUGE market? Here's some trends noted from the 2016 NCDT, which they do admit have only appeared within the past few years: "Behaviors that are slowly growing include lighter coffee consumption (slightly fewer drinkers and slightly lighter cups per drinker per day), drinking espresso-based coffee and drinking coffee out-of-home. Behaviors that are slowly declining include drinking traditional coffee an…

You hit the nail on the head and this is what excites me the most about what we're doing! We are trying to carry a brand - and more importantly a set of values, intentions, feelings of positivity - without physical locations. We believe that we can use technology as a platform to do that. This is something that a coffee shop would never do. (Except maybe Starbucks since they have a strong tech focused team.) This (to me) will be our innovation in 2-3 years time.

Cafes, restaurants, and bars all make you FEEL something. If they do it well, you feel included, you feel part of a community, you feel like you belong. The average e-commerce experience doesn't do that at all - and yet we have so much information and data at our disposal to make the experience so much better.

However, we are a startup - that means (a) we aren't there yet, (b) we may not succeed - it's a risk - that's why we do what we do. We need support from the community to help us get there. But your comment captures exactly what we are trying to go out and do.

Regarding the market size - just some rule of thumb numbers - specialty coffee in the US is a $21B market. Instant coffee world-wide is a $30B market. Keurig got bought for $14B. I'm not a "we're taking over the world!" startup guy, but these are big numbers. A lot of people drink coffee in the US and the world. I've looked at a lot of different food segments and this one is big.

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#369

Post by miraj »

Kind of curious why you guys chosen 49th Parallel, when there are myriad other roasters in USA itself. I mean its great you picked 49th; I lived in Vancouver for many years and am a fan of them(+Lucky's Doughnuts!).

But wondering if you are based in SF, & assuming your initial target market is USA, why go with a cross border hassle?

Re: Launch HN: Sudden Coffee (YC W17) – Instant coffee that doesn't suck

#370

Post by zloof »

BrailleHunting wrote: post #275
zloof wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Happy to answer whatever questions we can disclose! Thanks for starting the thread. It's somewhere in the middle to be honest. We did not invent freeze dried coffee - it's been around for over a century. However, it is quite difficult to make it work at-scale in a way that's profitable/sustainable, and that still tastes good. I have a pretty extensive background in operations, manufacturing, & tech and I had to pull…

Is Sudden a California CFO? Are there food safety and facility standards, licensure, insurance and documentation requirements to setting up a food processing operation? http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/Documents/fdbCFOfaqs.pdf

We've pushed over that limit. The regulations really vary depending on what type of food, how big your operation is, etc. We brought in an expert to verify that everything we are doing is up to code. We are pretty rigorous about quality control, cleanliness, and organization behind the scenes. The things that you need to do as a business to be efficient (bring down cost) and maintain high quality are also the same things that lead to a clean and safe working environment - so it all lines up. That's my area of expertise.
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