case study | Egg soldiers
Lakeside Food Group:
Accelerating Retail Innovation Through Food Safari Immersions
Accelerating Retail Innovation Through Food Safari Immersions
Egg Soldiers partnered with Lakeside Food Group to design and facilitate two curated London food safaris, created to inspire and influence NPD across both the retail party food and core poultry categories for a key retail relationship.
Lakeside Food Group
Our Client
Our Client
Lakeside Food Group is a leading chilled and frozen food supplier, working in close partnership with major UK retailers to develop commercially successful, trend-led ranges.
Operating within highly competitive categories, Lakeside sought fresh stimulus to strengthen innovation pipelines, aligning emerging food trends with scalable retail execution.
Operating within highly competitive categories, Lakeside sought fresh stimulus to strengthen innovation pipelines, aligning emerging food trends with scalable retail execution.
Lakeside Food Group
The Brief
The Brief
Lakeside commissioned Egg Soldiers to deliver two separate, strategically focused immersion tours in London.
Each safari was designed with a distinct innovation objective:
Tour One:
Exploring globally inspired, handheld and sharing formats to influence NPD within the retail party food category.
Tour Two:
Immersing in core QSR operators within the fried chicken and wings space to inspire development in the retail poultry category.
Both tours needed to go beyond inspiration alone, provoking commercially grounded discussion aligned to retailer expectations, consumer behaviour and scalable product design.
Each safari was designed with a distinct innovation objective:
Tour One:
Exploring globally inspired, handheld and sharing formats to influence NPD within the retail party food category.
Tour Two:
Immersing in core QSR operators within the fried chicken and wings space to inspire development in the retail poultry category.
Both tours needed to go beyond inspiration alone, provoking commercially grounded discussion aligned to retailer expectations, consumer behaviour and scalable product design.
Lakeside Food Group x Egg Soldiers
Key Project Elements
- Category-Focused Immersion StrategyEach tour was built around a clear innovation lens.
The first explored bold Asian flavours and modern handheld formats to unlock fresh thinking within retail party food.
The second immersed in leading fried chicken and wings operators, analysing coatings, seasoning systems, heat levels and brand positioning within QSR.
Separating the categories allowed for sharper focus and more commercially relevant insight for each retail challenge. - Retail Translation with Commercial RigourEvery venue, product and tasting moment was framed through a retail feasibility filter.
We continually asked:- Why does this resonate with consumers?
- How could this format work in chilled or frozen?
- Where is the premium opportunity?
- What would differentiate this on a supermarket shelf?
By grounding inspiration in margin, accessibility and operational reality, Lakeside could confidently convert ideas into viable NPD pathways. - Facilitated Ideation & Actionable OutputsBoth tours were led by two Egg Soldiers facilitators, structuring live discussion and capturing opportunity areas throughout the day.
Conversations were shaped around occasion, flavour intensity, premiumisation, menu architecture and scalability, culminating in synthesis sessions that distilled observations into tangible development direction.
Post-tour, Lakeside received curated insight decks capturing:- Key flavour and format opportunities
- White space within party food and poultry
- Links to broader QSR and consumer trends
- Immediate next-step innovation considerations
Lakeside Food Group
The Result
The Result
Through the two focused immersion programmes, Lakeside gained sharper, category-specific clarity on where retail opportunity exists.
The party food safari unlocked globally inspired, handheld innovation rooted in bold flavour and modern sharing occasions.
The poultry-focused safari deepened understanding of how QSR fried chicken culture can evolve into differentiated retail propositions, from coatings to seasoning systems.
By combining immersive exploration with commercial discipline, the programme delivered both creative stimulus and clear strategic direction, strengthening Lakeside’s innovation conversations with their retail partner.
The party food safari unlocked globally inspired, handheld innovation rooted in bold flavour and modern sharing occasions.
The poultry-focused safari deepened understanding of how QSR fried chicken culture can evolve into differentiated retail propositions, from coatings to seasoning systems.
By combining immersive exploration with commercial discipline, the programme delivered both creative stimulus and clear strategic direction, strengthening Lakeside’s innovation conversations with their retail partner.
Client Feedback
- “Egg Soldiers struck the perfect balance between inspiration and practicality. Both tours have been exciting, focused and genuinely inspiring, but crucially practical too.
“They opened our eyes to new food ideas while keeping supermarket realities front of mind, helping us translate experiences into frozen and fresh NPD ideas that make sense commercially.
“We’re already developing and pitching new SKUs directly inspired by the tours!”
Camilla ShepherdNPD Manager, Lakeside Food Group
IMMERSIVE
FOOD SAFARIS
FOOD SAFARIS
Curated food safaris and culinary tours for teams, your clients or your customers. Explore standout food concepts, taste emerging trends and turn inspiration into insight.
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