Market research has killed many a promising new concept idea, and dispirited many an enthusiastic innovator, by suggesting that not enough people would adopt the concept quickly enough. “It’s a niche market, we won’t touch that.” Move on. But niches are not what they used to be. Neither is the mainstream. But most of all, reaching niches has become so much easier.

It’s easier because of the coincidence of three key forces:

1.  Dissemination: Propel’s readership will (I am pretty confident) be more technically savvy than me, but I can at least observe that social media enables new products to move up the adoption curve a lot faster – because everyone can be an early adopter. Not only has the speed of knowledge changed, but the barrier of geography has been weakened. Niche consumers are by definition dispersed, but they belong to and are connected with communities of enthusiastic interest, irrespective of distance. Imagine an old-school concept-test of the idea of a restaurant just serving burger and lobster? Or one dedicated to champagne and hot dogs? But now, in our big cities at least, just tweet it and they will come – from far and wide, and on day one.

2.  Individualisation: after decades of mass media and mass marketing conformity, individuality is the prize. You don’t make an impression in your social media life from blending in. You need to cultivate a distinct self-image – the brand of me, and only me.

How are you going to cut through the Facebook crowd if you are hidden within it? For stand-out, be different. To borrow a musical reference: “If everybody looked the same, we’d get tired looking at each other.” In that context, where’s the social kudos and news value in ‘supporting’ the obvious brands? That goes further for some consumers, where their cultivated self-image is partly about what they are explicitly not identified with. One modest example: Manchester’s Marble Arch pub this year celebrated its 125th birthday with publicity material tagged with the line “not serving Fosters for 125 years.”

It is unfair to single out Fosters, because all major mainstream brands now face a market share fight with a myriad of small brands – many of which would have been tarred with that niche brush in the past. The obvious example is the US beer market, where craft beers grew volume by 12% in 2012 in a market up only 1% overall, according to the Brewers Association – but all the signs are present in the major UK cities too.

3.  Education: The proportion of the UK’s 16-74 population with a degree or equivalent qualification doubled in the 15 years from 1996, because of a major increase in participation levels in higher education among young adults: rising to 49% in 2011/12, from nearer 10% in the early 70s. The 2011 Census showed that 27% of England’s over 16-year-olds are now educated to at least bachelor’s degree or equivalent level. In Inner London, the figure is now close to 40%, and if we were to consider the pre-family market only, these figures would of course be much higher.

This is no temporary change. According to Universities UK, 75% of employment growth between 2000 and 2010 came in the managerial, professional, and technical occupations, and non-graduate jobs are projected to shrink further by 2020 as a percentage of the overall workforce, as the occupations with the greatest growth potential are graduate-based.

It’s one of the most profound changes in post-war society. The effects on consumer markets are still emerging, but it is leading to a significant shift in the balance of consumer influence, even without the additional amplification of social media. These three forces are combining to drive market fragmentation, and accelerating the profusion of consumer choice.

Some social commentators have held a belief that consumers are overwhelmed by ‘choice overload’ – but it’s a view that appears increasingly misplaced. Arguably, today’s consumers – especially the educated metropolitan ones – can’t get enough choice, because it provides them with that valuable social currency. And better educated consumers can presumably cope with more choice and category complexity anyway. There’s evidence everywhere. CGA Strategy recently stated that in the on trade, compared to five years ago, on average they find five more fonts on the front bar, and over 25% more brands stocked on the back bar.

And it’s not just about beer. Recent analysis by Booz & Company in the USA of the top 25 food and beverage categories found that small players (those with sales of less than US$1 billion) are outperforming the competition in 18 of the top 25 categories. The Grocer has recently reported similar trends in the UK off trade where the biggest brands are not growing at the same rate as the total market, despite the benefits of brand extensions.

But these quantitative trends are the symptoms of qualitative and attitudinal changes. Here’s a pertinent recent blog commentary from Technomic’s Donna Hood Crecca – “today’s consumers, especially Millennials, are very interested in the ‘story’ behind beverage brands – the origins, production processes, ingredients and colourful characters involved. It seems that’s the cost of entry in today’s adult beverage market.” And here’s the rub: brands have to be “something to someone, not everything to everyone”.

To cut it in social media you have to be interesting, memorable and distinctive (and how I try). That’s the rising challenge for any mainstream mass market brand, whether it’s a standard lager, or a pizza place: how to be as interesting as the latest underground craft beer or the new street food on the block, when scarcity value has gone social.

So, in this increasingly educated and connected market, we shouldn’t be so afraid of the niches. The historic dominant influence of the ‘mass market’ is eroding, as categories become more and more fragmented. Those old mass market lenses need changing. Niches are within reach - and Small is Beautiful again.

Martin Morales from Ceviche (http://cevicheuk.com/) has been taking his pop-up restaurant around the country over the last few weeks and running Ceviche masterclasses for real foodies – teaching them how to cook Peruvian food. This seems a bit strange as he only has one site and that’s in Frith Street in Soho. The tour was sponsored by SSP which again would seem a bit odd as they are operate brands in travel hubs and are specialists in understanding ‘food on the go’, as it were. Moving a ‘pop up restaurant’ up and down the country hardly constitutes food for the hungry traveller so why get involved?

The partnership begins to make sense when it’s clear how brilliant Martin is at cooking, writing and being an outstanding showman – so good he is now on TV. SSP, too, are keen to link with food entrepreneurs to really demonstrate their food credentials. Patently, they both have a lot of respect for one another.

I know this because on Sunday I went to the last of these pop up masterclasses in Frith Street itself and the whole evening was excellent from beginning to end. Martin runs regular masterclasses and says: “Our masterclasses at Ceviche in Soho are fun. They are for groups of 12 and are great for team-building or for individual people. We take the time to share our love of our amazing cuisine and also our secrets of how to make our food and cocktails.”  If my experience is anything to go by, they are so worth joining.

Those that have been to Ceviche will know it has a bar at the front for customers to sit, eat and drink at. When I walked in all the guests were sitting excitedly around the bar, clad in their plastic aprons, with the ingredients of the Ceviche dish laid out in front of them. Not only was I late (I had just nipped in to Dean Street townhouse for a grapefruit julep no less) but I now had to cook – nightmare. Martin, himself, strode, danced and ran around the bar showing us all how to ‘cook’ sea bass Ceviche. His enthusiasm for Peruvian food, fresh ingredients and provenance was infectious and even I produced something I could eat. After this session we were all taken to the back of the restaurant where we were served a brilliant four-course meal (and a load of pisco sours) introduced by Martin himself.

The whole evening was amazing with Martin orchestrating proceedings from the centre. All eyes were on him. His team looked to him for inspiration as well as direction – they were with him every step of the way. He was a true leader. Having trekked (and eaten dreadful meals) in Peru I wasn’t really expecting to be wowed by the food, but I was. Most of all, though, it was his enthusiasm that really made me think about those that are passionate about food in this sector.

I would include Fiona Gale in there from Whyte and Brown (which I tried last week and simply loved) – the food was terrific and Fiona is besotted with delivering the best possible flavour profile with each dish. Paschalis at Carluccio’s has a similar dedication to fresh food, beautifully cooked and simply, but wonderfully, presented. Russell Norman, of course, has that passion as do the team behind Dehesa and Opera Tavern where the food is divine. I have loved all of Alan Yau’s concepts because he starts with his heart and creates brilliant concepts. I also admire Harald Samuelson for consistently delivering really great, value for money and tasty food at Cote.

Martin, though, really stands out for me in terms of that passion, love and dedication – worth visiting if he arrives with a pop up near you.

“Nothing could be finer than to emulate the diner…” Okay, granted, you do not want to be trapped in a sub-compact car with me while I belt out that oldie but goodie. However, if you can get past the fact I will never be singing show tunes on Broadway, there is a lot of wisdom in that catchy little number.

Whilst I realise many folks in the US who hear me speak at events want insights regarding cutting edge restaurants, that doesn’t mean those are the only types of concepts I visit. I also passionately protect the opportunity to squeeze in trips to little hole-in-the-wall places you’d be likely to find along the infamous Route 66. Funny thing is, I’m not alone. The customers I observe in these restaurants and current consumer research I’m reading also suggest a whole lot of people yearn for some combination of traditional and contemporary diner elements regardless of where they are enjoying a meal occasion.

Now I’m not suggesting everyone turn his or her foodservice operation into a roadside greasy spoon. However, I do believe some of what is making the emerging concepts I’m visiting successful is what has always made the classic diner endearing. It’s the ability to create menu items that take people back, if even for just a few short moments, to simple, happy moments in their lives.

People love comfort foods, both in the classic and contemporary sense. Why? It speaks to their soul. Want to positively impact your foodservice operations? Seek out the most popular diner in your area and grab a menu. Allow your mind to expand outside the proverbial black box. What items can be translated in such a manner they form a perfect Dean Martin/Jerry Lewis relationship with your concept? Here are a couple of specific strategies to consider:

Re-Interpreting Diner Delights: This strategy screams “creativity” and “culinary capabilities”. It’s a restaurant’s ability to take a traditional dish and re-imagine it in a slightly different form, perhaps locating it in a different part of the menu.

I recently visited a place called 5 Napkin Burger in Boston, Massachusetts. Very cool place with a strong contemporary vibe. Yet for all its hipness, when I looked at the appetisers what immediately caught my eye was a re-interpreted classic diner dish that hugged my homespun culinary soul. Deep Fried Pickles and Pastrami served with sauerkraut and mustard vinaigrette. It’s basically a small, cylindrical, fried version of the entrée sandwich any respectable New York deli stakes its reputation on. As I sat eating it, my first thought centered on the dish’s uniqueness. While there are a lot of better burger concepts in Boston, 5 Napkin is the only one offering this small bite tribute to the past. 

Preparation Prowess Meets Diner Favourites: One of the great things about the vast array of food-related shows on television is it has given consumers the opportunity to witness and appreciate the amazing skill sets of today’s chefs. Recently, I was moderating a discussion involving a number of chefs. At one point I commented that the other individuals on stage were truly rock stars. While this created a bit of embarrassment for my culinary co-presenters, the crowd went nuts, reinforcing the notion they also supported this label.

Because of this expanded culinary appreciation, concepts have the opportunity to create additional value by incorporating preparation techniques beyond most consumers’ cooking capabilities. At a minimum this creates concept differentiation and that all-important word of mouth. At a maximum it also leads to premium pricing justification.

Last weekend I went to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and visited a breakfast and lunch spot called Kitchen No. 324. The concept’s motto, “where old meets new”, hinted at the “Preparation Prowess Meets Diner Classics” format I was about to experience. One of the dishes on the menu was Pot Roast. Does it get any more small town diner than that? The preparation prowess came into play when I discovered this centre of plate protein was braised. Classic dish meets innovative chef with a flair for low, slow – and absolutely delicious!

Another choice was fried chicken pot pie. While the core dish was the expected flaky pastry crust hiding an interior of creamy vegetables and tender chunked chicken meat, the fried chicken was actually a drumstick stuck down into the top of the Pot Pie much like Excalibur’s sword (email me if you’d like to see a picture of this little beauty). Visually the dish offered a definite three-dimensional wow factor dreamed up in the Preparation Prowess mind of one very creative chef.

So why not look for opportunities to incorporate nostalgic influences on your menu? Based on the consumer response I’ve seen here in the States, it could lead to some pretty serious Happy Days (sorry, I couldn’t resist one 1970’s prime time television pun).