Aimee made three versions of dinner with a lot less than three times the effort.

Regular Swiss Enchiladas, vegetarian, and lo-carb gluten-free.  They all start with the same base recipe.   Then add or withhold the key ingredients to produce the three kinds.

In product design/manufacturing, this is called Late Stage Customization or Delayed Differentiation.  It’s very common for example customizing a product with different power supplies and manuals for different countries.  It’s a great way of meeting customer needs without multiplying inventory and sku volumes.

The Swiss Enchiladas—by the way they’re AWESOME—have a little added complexity in this case.  The vegetarian version has to be made first to avoid chicken-contamination.  So we might call this a hybrid mid-stage and late-stage customization model, but let’s not split hairs.

Cooking is a beautiful thing.  It brings us together.  It’s a way of expressing love.  It’s creative.  And from chemistry to production to presentation, it has a lot to teach us about life and about business.

-Chris