The sparks for innovation can be sitting in plain sight

We collect photos of brilliant advertising, quirky product ideas, and innovations. It helps to have them up our sleeves for examples in meetings.

The innovations that catch our attention span the blindingly obvious ideas that make so much sense (cue Half-Caff coffee) to genuinely ground-breaking ideas that look to reshape categories.

All of these are brilliant, and while we love the brief that asks the team to land in market, conduct some insight, visit the marketplace and run creative brain stretching innovation workshops, we also love the humble, down-to-earth gap finders like the one below, which are a clever marriage of understanding consumer needs and overcoming consumption barriers by rethinking the rules of the category.

Call this an innovation or a re-imagination of coffee drinking throughout the day, it ticks the 'repertoire JTBD' box very nicely. By listening to consumers’ needs and revisiting the operational toolbox of what's possible, innovation doesn't always have to be groundbreaking to gain traction, although some may argue that this is.

It ticks so many boxes
☕ The afternoon caffeine hit for those that want to sleep well
🏃 The gentle energy boost
👏 The perfect excuse for caffeine reducers

Aside from joining the emerging trend of half-caff coffees. What we love about this particular coffee is its community vibe. Bought in a coffee shop in Oxfordshire, this Missing Bean product supports Oxford's only independent local cinema.