Learning from Rose-Shaped Ice Cream in Paris: How to Sell with a Sense of Exclusivity
This summer, I visited Paris, France, for the first time in 20 years.
Every time I experience the streets and culture of Europe, I realize, 'I really do love France.'
My company's name is even derived from the palace where Marie Antoinette, who lived during the French Revolution, spent her time.
For me, the trip to Paris was not just sightseeing, but a 'treasure trove of learning.'
What left a particularly deep impression on me this time was an ice cream shop with a never-ending line.
The reason for this was not just the 'taste'.
An encounter with rose-shaped ice cream
Whether in the center of Paris or in regional cities, every shop had a line. Why are they so popular?
The secret lay in the sense of exclusivity created by arranging the gelato into the shape of a rose petal when you place an order.
The performance of layering them one by one like petals
You are free to combine flavors
The beauty that makes you want to take a picture the moment you receive it
It was impressive to see everyone who held one—families, couples, and groups of men—smiling and enjoying themselves.
Lesson 1: Taste is the 'prerequisite,' differentiation is the 'experience'
Of course, it is a prerequisite that the ice cream itself is delicious.
But if that were all, other shops could easily achieve the same.
This brand added a special experience to their product on top of being 'delicious'.
As a result, they made customers feel, 'You can only taste this here!', becoming a popular shop with lines out the door.
Lesson 2: The same applies to handmade brands
The world of handmade goods is the same.
Technical skill and quality are important, but rival brands are working just as hard.
That is precisely why what sets you apart is the 'sense of exclusivity unique to your brand'.
Giving uniqueness to your wrapping and packaging
Thoroughly expressing the brand's worldview
Making them feel a special experience from the moment they buy it
By delivering it not as 'just a product' but as an 'experience wrapped in a story and worldview,' it will remain in the customer's heart.
Lesson 3: Find the 'sense of exclusivity' for your own brand
✔ Within the same genre, what is something only you can do?
✔ What elements make customers think, 'I want to give this to someone!'?
✔ How can you make people 'fall in love at first sight' with your product through your worldview and presentation?
Self-analyzing this is the first step toward becoming a brand that gets chosen.
The Formula for Brand Success
From high-end brands to familiar ones, 'product strength' alone is not enough. By multiplying it with 'a sense of exclusivity—experience and worldview,' brands create queues and build a fan base, leading to long-term success.
I have listed three concrete examples that embody the formula: 'Product Strength × Sense of Exclusivity = Queues and Fan Base → Brand Success'.
1. CHANEL (CHANEL / French high-end brand)
Product Strength: High-quality materials and sewing by skilled artisans. The Matelassé bag, in particular, allows one to feel its quality and prestige at a glance.
Sense of Exclusivity: Building a brand image that symbolizes women's independence and elegance, with Coco Chanel's life and story as the backdrop.
Queues and Fan Base: Queues at stores around the world when new items are released. Limited editions and collaborations also sell out immediately.
Brand Success: The reason it remains an aspirational brand worldwide even after over 100 years is that it has fans who resonate with its 'lifestyle and values' more than just the 'objects' themselves.
2. pionunnal (Fabric bag brand from South Korea)
Product Strength: High-quality sewing, excellent materials, and a practical range of sizes.
Sense of Exclusivity: Using traditional Korean fabrics and unifying the brand with consistent colors and textures to convey 'softness' and 'naturalness.'
Queues and Fan Base: Constant queues and sold-out items at their pop-up store in Shinjuku Isetan. Strong diffusion on Instagram helped expand their fan base through word-of-mouth.
Brand Success: It has become a brand that is not just a 'fabric bag,' but one that combines a sense of trend and cultural background to express the worldview of the person carrying it, despite its simplicity.
3. Starbucks (Starbucks | Cafe brand from the USA)
Product Strength: Coffee with a consistent taste, a wide variety of flavors, and seasonal limited-time products.
Sense of Exclusivity: Store design, customer service, and seasonal 'experiential promotions' (such as Sakura lattes and holiday-limited tumblers).
Queues and Fan Base: When new drinks are released, they spread on social media, making queues inevitable. Limited-edition goods fetch high prices on the resale market.
Brand Success: By providing an experience beyond just 'drinking coffee' (comfort, seasonality, and a sense of community), they have gained fans on a global scale.
Summary
What I learned from the "rose ice cream" I encountered in Paris is that a sense of exclusivity strengthens a brand. Taste (product quality) is a prerequisite. However, by adding
experience, worldview, and originality to it, fans are born and the brand's value increases.
What is the unique sense of exclusivity that only your brand has?
The answer to that might just create the next line of customers.
Next time, I will summarize the "5 ways to create a sense of exclusivity" that I keep in mind when building a handmade brand!