The world really is getting more and more connected. Introducing Juicero, the little countertop, the internet-capable juicer that just might change the way juices are created at home forever. There's just one equally little catch, however, since the price of the device stands at a pretty hefty $699.
Yes, that's right. Juicero, the juicer that is aiming to be the one juicer to rule them all, is priced higher than full-fledged PCs and notebooks. Indeed, the price of the device is very high, especially since all it really does is make a humble juice. For the makers of Juicero, though, the question, rather, is why not?
The company was founded by Organic Avenue co-founder Doug Evans, who managed to secure a pretty impressive amount of investment from interested parties. Interested parties in the device included tech giants like Google and food companies such as Campbell Soup, which helped push the company to raise a staggering $120 million.
From start to finish, Juicero really stays in character. Apart from the steep price of the actual device, the Juicero works a lot like Keurig's coffee pods. Instead of pods, however, Juicero uses packets of juice that the machine is designed to squeeze. These packets are, just like the machine, quite pricey, starting at $4 and going as high as $10 for each 8-oz. glass.
Considering its price, a product such is Juicero is not for everyone. Popular actress Gwyneth Paltrow is rumored to love the device, but she definitely is one of the world's health buffs that wouldn't flinch at a $699 juicer and a $10 8-oz. juice packet. For conventional middle-class consumers, however, a juicer that is priced like a flagship smartphone might be a pretty tough sell.
According to Evans, however, the market for Juicero is solid. Apart from homes, Evans stated that a number of enterprises have already shown significant interest in the product. The founder further describes Le Pain Quotidien, a restaurant chain, which was so impressed with the device that it ordered machines for its 220 stores.
"We showed it to them, and it blew their minds," Evans said.
Though the machine is unashamedly pricey and a little bit of a tough sell, Evans believes that it provides the best tasting, most nutritious juices in the market. If the demographic for the product really is there, Juicero just might prove all its critics wrong.
