A sales rep-turned-actor, on-screen graphics, and a video-within-a-video highlight a commercial kitchen supplier’s new approach to customer service

Client: Culinary Depot

Objective: Create a feature video showcasing their store and client base

Film locations: Culinary Depot in Spring Valley, New York

Project Deadline: March 2021

The Proposal

Pinny Frieder, director of e-commerce at Culinary Depot, reached out to our office for a quote. In a brief intake call with our office manager, he explained that they had been selling commercial kitchen products for several years, so their business model was to simply take phone or website orders and then ship the equipment from their warehouses. But recently, Culinary Depot had opened a supercenter in Monsey to allow for a more interactive experience, and they wanted a marketing video. Their idea was to show footage of the store as well as narration about what they offer to play on the company website.

When senior production manager Moshe Niehaus called Pinny back, it wasn’t simply to provide a quote and arrange logistics.

“Why do you want to make a video?” he asked bluntly.

The question took Pinny by surprise.

“You know, to help promote the supercenter, like I told your office?” Pinny replied.

“Can you be a little more specific?” Moshe probed.

After some back and forth, Moshe understood that Culinary Depot wanted the video to highlight their new model of giving their customers an immersive experience in which they could try out products in the store’s test kitchen.

With the objective clarified, Moshe suggested a more strategic route.

“If you want prospective customers to sense that warmth, the superior customer experience, don’t tell them about it — show them! Instead of a detached narrator, have actors going through the actual process. This will get your point across visually, which will be much more impactful.”

Pinny agreed, and we sent Culinary Depot a proposal for the updated approach.