If you’ve ever been to Amsterdam, you’ve probably visited, or at least heard about the famous cookie store that sells only one cookie. I mean, not a piece, but a single flavor.

I’m talking about Van Stapele Koekmakerij of course—where you can get one of the world's most delicious chocolate chip cookies. If not arriving at opening hour, it's likely to find a long queue extending from the store's doorstep through the street it resides. When I visited the city a few years ago, I watched the sensation myself: a nervous crowd awaited as the rumor of ‘out of stock’ cookies spreaded across the line.

The store, despite becoming a landmark for tourists, stands for an idea that seems to be forgotten in our culture: crafting for a single purpose.

In the tech scene where [...]

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Outline:

(02:35) Going back to basics as a way to find purpose

(06:34) The bloated culture

(12:33) In more recent times

(13:58) Drinking beers and building businesses in Japan

(17:20) What might come next?

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First published:

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Linkpost URL:
https://productidentity.co/p/designing-for-a-single-purpose

Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.