Innovation Matters
Launch activity enhances odds of winning share
The average Top 10 brand in Europe lost 0.14% share between 2018 and 2021, mostly because of PL winning share. Over that period, three in ten Top 10 brands were inactive with respect to new products reaching the shelf.
For this group of brands the loss was twice as large than for active brands. Launching innovations, (i.e. new products that justify the creation of a new sub-brand, are therefore more likely to be more innovative) was an even more effective way to defend share than launching renovations which often are somewhat limited in terms of their newness.
Launching pays off irrespective of category type
Whether a brand competes in Food, Beverage, Household care or Personal care, the same pattern persists: brands that launch outpace their non-launching peers. The difference is most pronounced in Household care and least pronounced in Food categories. Note that the change in shares shown hides a lot of variation – and that many other factors contribute to this outcome.
If you want to learn more about drivers of brand growth, the differential impact of innovations in your category and how your brands benchmark, please get in touch.
Winning brands are more active and get more from their launches
We compare launch activity and success of these launches between the 25% of brands winning most market share with the 25% of brands losing most. The differences with respect to launch activity and success is striking.
The top quartile not only launches more new SKUs but also gets more of its sales from these new products. We have shown before that successful brands are also more likely to keep their existing assortment on retailer shelves. Hence winners‘ launches do not only replace existing SKUs but add to the overall assortment and therefore the availability and presence of these brands on shelves.