Italian pasta maker Barilla has turned the window of its new restaurant in New York into an interactive screen showing real-time reviews from Tripadvisor and other posts from customers, in an original move to reach out to increasingly connected consumers. The interactive window was unveiled this week at the third restaurant opened by the renowned pasta and condiment maker in New York, in Herald Square, in the heart of Manhattan. Customers who stop at the window of the restaurant can interact with simple gestures, browsing through the posts as if they were reading their smartphone. On the window, visitors can also read recipes and ingredients.
THE AIM, TO BE CLOSER TO THE CONSUMER – “The new window of the restaurant in New York helps us to be closer to the consumer, allowing us to listen to and dialogue with people who try our products,” said Guido Barilla, president of the Barilla Group. The window uses a sensor, Microsoft Kinect, which collects people’s movements and sends them to a PC connected to a projector. The Microsoft Azure cloud collects data from social networks and other content and analyzes the level of interaction. “I am particularly proud that an Italian brand recognized all over the world has started this process, creating a unique project at an international level and defining a new relationship with consumers through the most innovative Microsoft technologies, such as cloud computing and the natural interface with Kinect,” said Carlo Purassanta, chief executive of Microsoft Italia.