Magazine: Few of the many innovations have the power to break through

New products from Ariel, Garnier, Nivea, Lay’s, L’Oréal, Scholl, Vanish and other selected brands are featured in Nielsen’s 2015 Breakthrough Innovation Report. The market performance of 24,500 SKUs of 8,650 new products were analysed for the report. Only 18 of them met all three criteria for being a breakthrough innovation in retail: 1. offering something truly new, 2. realising EUR or GBP 10 million in retail sales in the first year, 3. retaining at least 90 percent of sales in the second year.

Marcin Penconek, vice president of Nielsen’s innovation practice and co-author of the report told that three out of four new products appearing on store shelves realise sales below EUR 100,000 in the first year and retailers often delist them. He explained that those companies that prove to be successful with their innovations are able to put themselves in consumers’ position.

An innovation becomes a breakthrough if it satisfies consumer needs in a special way, offering them something they can’t resist. Mark Schulzig, the head of innovation management at Beiersdorf stressed that new products must give consumers a real advantage and not just a ‘story’. In his opinion less is more: manufacturers need to focus on fewer innovations but work on them longer. He is convinced that the fate of an innovation depends on the people behind them; everything starts and ends with the consumer.