The Retail Jungle?where vision become real (Part 1)

So you’ve got a great Idea …

…and believe that it’s the next ideal thing since sliced bread!

One question…

What do we do now?

Welcome to the retail Jungle!

We need a compass and an intent of which direction to go first. How do you get your Vision to become real?

Let’s find out how much about our product we really know?

We need to fully comprehend our product, as well how it stacks up to the competition. We need to gather the right knowledge that will superior equip us to prepare a commerce plan for the life of our product or product line.

A systematic approach is very important;

You need to maintain a degree of separation from your idea/product.

I have worked with clients that have become so attached with a concept of where they think their product lives, that they become “pregnant” with that intent to the exclusion of all else and lose the huge picture. They are literally so singularly focused that they have tunnel vision. “I see my product as such and such…” but after exploring the market you might find that your product might fit superior in another completely different market! We must remember to remain flexible.

You have to retain an neutral point of view.

It’s time to educate ourselves about products and how they degree up in the Retail Jungle. You will be surprised at what you’ll learn.

When we’re looking at the huge picture, we first need to think about is a viability report, this will help decide the direction to take, when to place the breaks on and when to go full steam ahead! This will help us get a birds eye view of the landscape, see what’s already out there, who are our competitors, is the market saturated with similar products or are we the only one. What are the market price points? How will we fit in? How is our product similar, or dissimilar, in what ways does it stand out? Can we compete, or are we out of their league! What makes our product so different that people will want to buy? What magical calibre does our concept have?

Now I am not speaking about just visiting a store, we need to compile as much information as doable so that when we read it we have a great snapshot of our product and the market which we are about to play in.

Whichever firm you selected to work with, your report needs to be concise and as thorough as possible, and then we can start the process of moving (you) the stakeholder from the Idea stage through to building a image right through to manufacturing. We need to have the strategic suppliers in position that can be on board from the moment pencil hits paper.

Otherwise more often than not we will have a design concept that looks great, but will be unmarketable because manufacturing can't produce at a fair cost, whether they can produce at all. Now we’re back at the beginning asking ourselves what do we do now!

There is nothing worse than have a great looking concept, but no one who can produce it at a profit making price point.

This is worse than having no design at all.

You need answers about your target market, your promotional plan, as well as timeline to shelf.

We need to develop a working image for presentation, feasibility, and manufacturing sourcing.

We need to assemble a comprehensive commerce plan to target our retail outlets.

Don’t forget about packaging we also need to develop a plan for packaging. This also needs to meet all the preceding criteria, and should be developed in parallel. The look and style of our packaging needs to fit in the target market to communicate our message effectively. Size in ratio to competition needs to be factored in so as to offer a higher than perceived market value!

Create, innovate; products and packaging that sells!

Next time …. What the Retail Jungle eats for breakfast!