Edible Innovation
by Miki SaxonLast Friday I shared the story of politically incorrect innovation that feeds you and today I have another innovative food story.
It involves innovation driven first by the loss of a job and juiced by government bureaucracy and the nonavailability of ever getting a food cart permit. And before you start wondering which municipality in what State is causing someone grief, this story takes place in Germany—a country that makes US bureaucracy look like a bunch of amateurs.
The story involves Bertram Rohloff, who lost his job in 1997; he wanted to open a sandwich stand, but the required permits were impossible to obtain.
Rohloff started thinking; he knew that Germans love sausages and that permits made selling sidewalk food impossible, so he set out to invent a way to cook brats where neither the grill nor the sausages touched the ground.
Enter the Grillwalker.
“He designed it with an automatic cut-off mechanism for the gas, to ensure that it was safe in the event of an accident.
“Mr. Rohloff was the first person to don his invention and sell bratwurst on the street. He now has 15 employees selling sausages around the city in teams of two; they take turns wearing the grill and reloading the sausages, rolls and condiments. … He has subcontractors renting them in cities around the country, from Hanover to Karlsruhe.”
But Rohloff has bigger plans than a crew selling brats.
“And Mr. Rohloff has sold the equipment, at $7,100 a piece, to customers in Bulgaria, Colombia, South Korea and elsewhere, including one to a man in Nebraska. Just this week he sold one to a client in South Africa, which next year will host the World Cup soccer tournament.”
Rohloff’s situation necessitated his finding another way to earn a living; once he found it he needed to circumvent the bureaucracy that prevented his doing it; the result is far beyond the simple sandwich stand he originally envisioned. And those who work for him are earning more than their old jobs provided.
One guy, one idea, many people benefiting.
Anything is possible!
Watch the video and let it inspire you.
Image credit: Paul Keller on flickr
