[FULLLIFE Co., Ltd.] No Melt for 1 Hour: Golden State-of-the-Art Strawberry Polyphenol Reforming the Ice Cream Sector

Born from a Whipping Cream Complaint: The Miracle Discovery of Melt-Resistant Ice Cream

Hello, everyone. My name is Takeshi Toyota, Representative Director of FULLLIFE Co., Ltd. It is a pleasure to be here today.

FULLLIFE is an innovative ice cream manufacturer founded in 2019. Our defining product is our \"melt-resistant ice cream,\" which holds its shape and structure for approximately one hour, even when exposed to direct summer heat.

This breakthrough was actually a stroke of luck. We started as an academic spin-off from Kanazawa University in Ishikawa Prefecture, researching the functional health properties of strawberries. We initially extracted and supplied natural \"strawberry polyphenols\" as raw food ingredients to major confectioners, such as Toraya (for their strawberry sweet bean jelly) and UHA Mikakuto.

The discovery occurred when a pastry chef requested a sample of our strawberry polyphenol to make a specialized cake. Shortly after, the chef filed a complaint, saying: \"The whipping cream became too stiff to whip! You must have mixed in some synthetic chemical additives.\"

Intrigued by this reaction, we analyzed the physical properties of the polyphenol at the university. We discovered that strawberry polyphenol contains both hydrophilic (water-binding) and lipophilic (fat-binding) components. While standard ice cream melts when the emulsion of water and oil breaks down, adding a trace amount of strawberry polyphenol bridges the water and fat molecules, providing extreme structural resilience. This discovery led to the development of our melt-resistant ice cream.

Joint research with the University of Tokyo confirmed that our ice cream holds its shape for over three times longer than standard ice cream, remaining completely intact for 30 to 40 minutes under direct sunlight.

Cutting Cold Chain Costs and Enabling Intricate 3D Designs

Traditional ice cream logistics are bound by severe constraints. Because ice cream melts quickly, designs are limited to basic bars or cups, making it hard to capture casual street-food demand. Furthermore, shipping requires heavy styrofoam packaging and dry ice, driving cold chain logistics costs extremely high.

Our melt-resistant ice cream overcomes these challenges:

1. Intricate 3D Sculpting: Because it does not melt, we can craft highly detailed ice creams, such as dolphins and penguins for aquariums, or panda designs that have become bestsellers in Kobe's Chinatown.

2. Reduced Shipping Cost: The structural resilience allows us to ship without dry ice, dramatically lowering logistics overhead.

3. High Clinical Safety: Unlike traditional gelatin or konjac products that carry choking risks, our ice cream has zero stickiness (non-adhesion). It melts smoothly at body temperature, making it a safe snack for children and an ideal \"dysphagia/care food\" for hospitals and nursing homes.

Regarding production, we delegate manufacturing to social enterprises employing individuals with disabilities. Crafting detailed, colorful 3D ice cream requires careful manual labor. Partnering with these facilities allows us to accept low-minimum-order runs (starting at just 100 units), making custom branding accessible.

Major IP (Intellectual Property) holders like Nintendo (Pokémon) and the Yomiuri Giants place high importance on social impact. Our production model of employing individuals with disabilities serves as a primary asset in securing licensing agreements with these corporate giants.

Expanding from Tourist Spot Inbound to B2B Ingredient Supply: Our IPO Roadmap

Our business model involves placing branded display freezers at theme parks and aquarium gift shops.

At the Kyoto and Toba Aquariums, a single gift shop kiosk generates sales of 50,000 units annually (equivalent to 10 million JPY in wholesale revenue and nearly 30 million JPY in retail sales). While our production capacity was previously bottlenecked by seasonal summer demand, our dedicated manufacturing lines are now fully operational, enabling unlimited scaling.

Following our appearance on entrepreneur Horie's pitch program \"Perfect Deal,\" we secured immediate funding from leading fund managers, including Yasuhito Fujino of Rheos Capital Works.

Our growth strategy focuses on scaling tourist-location IP sales, launching test sales at convenience store chains (such as Seven-Eleven), and supply agreements where we provide our polyphenol as a functional ingredient to dysphagia-food manufacturers. This hybrid approach—combining 2C custom branding with 2B functional ingredient supply—diversifies our cash flow.

We are targeting an IPO in 5 years, projecting 2.7 billion JPY in revenue and 1.2 billion JPY in net profit. We look forward to connecting with event partners, care-food syndicates, and investors for our next stage of growth. Thank you.

Q&A and Feedback

Mr. Toyama (Commentator): Thank you, Toyota-san. Leveraging strawberry polyphenols to create melt-resistant ice cream is a brilliant approach. I see excellent synergy with tourist destinations, sports events, and dysphagia care.

Does adding strawberry polyphenol restrict your flavor options? Are you limited to strawberry-flavored products?

Mr. Toyota: Thank you. The polyphenol itself has almost no taste or bitterness and is used in trace amounts (less than a few percent). It does not affect the base flavor. We can replicate any flavor, including vanilla, matcha, and chocolate.

Mr. Toyama: That is a massive advantage. How do you handle the seasonal winter dip in ice cream sales?

Mr. Toyota: While 3D tourist popsicles drive summer sales, for the winter season we supply slow-melting luxury ice cubes for hotel bars and partner with chocolate brands for winter-themed ice creams.

Mr. Toyama: The dysphagia/care-food market has a strong need for slow-melting desserts. How do you plan to scale in this clinical segment?

Mr. Toyota: Instead of direct sales to hospitals, we partnered with a major care-food manufacturer. We act as an ingredient supplier (B2B), leveraging their established distribution channels to quickly capture market share.

Mr. Toyama: Combining social impact production with IP collaborations and B2B ingredient supply is highly strategic. I look forward to your IPO.

Mr. Toyota: Thank you. We will continue to expand our melt-resistant technology globally.