Juicero, a startup that sells a pricey juice press, found that out firsthand. The company's Wi-Fi-enabled machine produces cold-pressed juice out of packets sold exclusively to owners via subscription.
Received as both Silicon Valley cautionary tale and commentary on conspicuous consumption, Juicero's story was chronicled this week in a Bloomberg News piece.
[...] In all, the company raised some $120 million.
But Bloomberg says investors' confidence waned once it emerged that people didn't actually need the press to get juice from the packets but could simply squeeze it out by hand.
A Silicon Valley startup slain before it could blossom into a unicorn.
[Ed. Note: Also at ExtremeTech with a bonus link to Juicero's very silly marketing video.]
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Saturday April 22 2017, @09:31PM (1 child)
Really, there's nothing wrong with this. They're selling a subscription to fresh fruit and vegetable juice, with some bit of extra marketing and selling a one-time doodad which may have been better thought out. Yet everyone seems to be obsessed with the damn pressing unit. I wouldn't be suprised if there were some advantages to the press, like it's easier to ship half-pressed fruit than fully pressed juice, and having the QR code to automatically check expiration date or contamination. The main sell is the fresh juice without preservatives, and that's not a bad idea if you're willing to pay for convenience.
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(Score: 2) by VLM on Sunday April 23 2017, @12:58PM
Its engineered improperly. Its kinda the systemd of the juice world.