FROM THE PUBLISHER
Do We Focus Too Much on New Products?
C
onsumers, retailers and the press are obsessed with new products. All you have to
do is walk any aisle at a trade show to hear one
visitor after another asking, "What's new?" This
isn't intended as a salutation such as, "What's
new in your life?" but, rather, "What new product do you have that is going to wow me?" The
underlying assumption is that "new" matters
more than anything else.
It is true that innovating is a hallmark of our industry.
Thousands of specialty food products were introduced in
2012. While in some markets first-time-exhibitor status is
a huge liability, in ours, the serious buyers seek them out.
It is this openness that makes our trade uniquely welcoming to young, upstart companies and acts as a springboard to
growth and legitimacy. It's how once-tiny brands such as Perrier or Ben & Jerry's got their first shot at the mainstream.
I'm proud that we are a trade that welcomes the young
and has an extraordinary capacity to nurture and support
small companies into maturity. I'm also proud that prominent Fancy Food Show exhibitors continue to innovate—
some bringing as many as 30 new products to San Francisco
or New York.
But sometimes the hype surrounding the latest trend
can have a tendency to overshadow the substance that is the
backbone of the business of specialty foods. Maybe we
give too much attention to the newcomers at the expense
of the established products that consumers are deeply
loyal to?
I recently read at forbes.com the following quote
from "The Game Changer" by A.G. Lafley and Ram
Charan: "Until people are willing to buy your product,
pay for it and then buy it again, there is no innovation. A
gee-whiz product that does not deliver value to the customer and provide financial benefit to the company is not
an innovation. Innovation is not complete until it shows
up in the financial results."
This is a good reminder that while we all have a
natural attraction to bright, shiny new things, we need to
remember that the stalwarts of the trade should get the
attention they deserve. By keeping standards high, these
veterans deliver the solid, steady performance that keeps
the lights on in our industry.
With specialty foods accounting for more than $86
billion in sales in 2012—and sold through every imaginable channel—it would be hard for anyone to dismiss
what we do as a fad. But we can do our part by making
sure that the staples get as much attention as the upstarts. As Churchill once said, "Without tradition, art
is a flock of sheep without a shepherd. Without innovation, it is a corpse."
Matt Thomas
Publisher, Specialty Food Magazine
mthomas@specialtyfood.com
facebook.com/craftcarejoy
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OCTOBER 2013
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