​Eat me! geo-tagging service food library service design concept

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Loughborough Service Design Jam

Loughborough University

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2013

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This project was developed at Loughborough Service Design Jam, where ‘Eat Me!’ team proposed service design concept of a community service food library based on locally grown food, geo-tagging it, and exchanging food and experiences related to growing. The team who won the 2013 Service Design Jam, “Grow Nation” (previously known as “Eat Me!”) won the Social Enterprise Award as well as Marketest case prize at the Loughborough University’s Think Big Prize (totaling £5,500). The team has launched a company and is currently piloting the social enterprise on campus (sharing knowledge with Loughborough University Fruit Routes). Grow Nation is located and is now supported by The Studio.

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Luke Forsythe (Fjord), Sally Wood, Susana Islas Hernandez, Tom Harries, Helena Sustar, and Ken Poberezny.

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What was the secret to their success? Luke Forsythe (Fjord) puts it down to the importance of simplicity. He encouraged his team to tackle, small and specific problem early on, getting everyone to agree on the service one-liner from the outset which helped to foster a collaborative team spirit and design a great service.

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​Lo, K. P. Y. (2014). Hybrid touchpoints for relational service in social innovation: A case study of "Eat Me!". In (pp. 437-447), Aalto University Design Factory, Helsinki, Finland: Aalto University and Design Society.

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This paper: (1) proposes an analytical framework using hybrid touchpoints (interweaving of online and offline service touchpoints) to facilitate relational service in social innovation, and (2) through a case study of social innovation “Eat Me!”, examines the link between theory and practice by analysing how hybrid touchpoints are applied in service design for social innovation. Initiated by interdisciplinary collaborations and empowered by enterprising initiatives, Eat Me! is a case of social innovation that demonstrates positive impacts of connecting academic researchers, design industry professionals, users, enterprise experts and multidisciplinary team. It is an award-winning holistic service system that helps people grow fruits, share a hobby, exchange experiences, harvest homegrown vegetables and share the fruits of their labour. Features of Eat Me! include: Participatory digital maps that show locations of sharable fruits, and service platforms that cross the boundary between online interactions and real-life events to connect local communities.