The UK's grocery retail sector wastes an estimated £30.4 million on failed product launches each year, according to new research from E Fundamentals.
Commenting on this figure, category management specialist Bridgethorne says that food and drink suppliers need to work harder on the basics of demonstrating how new products will drive sales for retailers, online and in-store.
“The market is becoming increasingly competitive and suppliers need to prove the role that a new product can play in delivering category growth,” said Nick Kirby, Bridgethorne’s shopper, e-commerce and analytics director.
“First and foremost suppliers have to demonstrate how new products will drive sales and increase a retailer’s overall market share.”
Kirby added that developing detailed shopper insights can better enable suppliers to understand consumer demand and assess whether a products meets these needs.
“Shoppers spend little time browsing whole categories so suppliers need to focus on products that standout at key stages of the shopper journey, catch the attention of the shopper, and lead to sales," he said.
"These will be the products that meet the needs of the shopper, increase category sales and work best for retailers.”
E-Commerce
Focusing on online retail, Bridgethorne says that ratings and reviews left by shoppers on retailers' websites can provide valuable guidance for companies, seeing the response to new products, and establishing the needs of consumers.
“A key consequence of shoppers and consumers sharing more information and views about products and trends is that the lifecycles of some products could become shorter,” said Kirby.
“This will mean that food innovation pipelines will need to become faster and more agile to respond to quicker to an immediate shopper and consumer need.”
Additionally, Kirby says that once listed, ensuring products are implemented online effective is critical for success.
"If a supplier went into a physical store and found a gap on the shelf where their product should be located or a shelf label with errors, they would rectify the mistake immediately," he added.
"So, why would this be any different in a digital environment?”
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
