IRI 2020 New Product Pacesetters
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NEW PRODUCT PACESETTERS™ Innovation as an Antidote for a Trying Year JUNE 2021 SPECIAL REPORT Executive Summary: Hunkering Down, Yet Still Hankering for New Making an indelible mark on CPG and retail across The observations here are derived from 2020 New Product Pacesetters has never been more the globe, the COVID-19 pandemic both isolated performance, in a mostly COVID-19 world. Some widely anticipated than in this, our 26th year, given shoppers at home and mobilized them to spend products stepped into the spotlight just before the unexpected influences on the market and across more on groceries, catching most retailers off the pandemic, but the vast majority launched the supply chain. These top 10 food and beverage guard and forcing CPG manufacturers, retailers into a retail atmosphere unmatched in history. and nonfood New Product Pacesetters carry a and consumers to rethink just about everything. Some 51 Pacesetter products, including 27 food unique badge in that they won in circumstances While new product plans for 2020 were well and beverage entries, launched in fourth-quarter never before seen in Pacesetter history. underway long before the pandemic turned 2019 or January 2020, indicating that more everything upside down, many new products than a quarter of New Product Pacesetters had managed to overcome substantial hurdles, making disproportionate time in COVID-19 and did really their way into consumers’ baskets — whether those well, regardless. consumers were masked and in-store shopping at the speed of light or scrolling, clicking and making purchases online. New Product Pacesetters Overall demand was up as most consumers hunkered down for the vast majority of 2020, and Top 10 Food & Beverage Top 10 Nonfood many turned to new products when their go-to 1. Bud Light® Seltzer 1. Downy® Infusions™ Scents brand was unavailable. But many also looked for innovative products for a change of pace, 2. Truly® Lemonade 2. Brawny® Tear-A-Square® ultimately driving quite a few new products to big 3. ® 3. ™ performances. Mtn Dew Zero Sugar Greenies 4. Starbucks® Creamers 4. JUUL® Innovation is defined not only by the dollars achieved, but also by the success rate at which 5. Rebel™ Ice Cream 5. Native™ products reach their intended audience. 6. Reign™ 6. Duracell® Optimum Understanding who buys what and why, and which products succeed and why, is imperative for brands 7. Cheetos® Popcorn 7. Viva® Multi-Surface Cloth™ big and small. IRI’s 2020 New Product Pacesetters™ 8. Kinder Bueno® 8. Olay® Retinol24™ and consumer attitudes survey about new products tell a story of people cocooning at home but still 9. REESE’S® THiNS™ 9. Mucinex® Nightshift™ very much desiring products and brands that made 10. Beyond Sausage® 10. Primatene® MIST them feel comfortable and indulged while they rode out the chaos of COVID-19. NEW PRODUCT PACESETTERS: Innovation for a Trying Year IRIworldwide.com 2 SPECIAL REPORT Earning No. 1 in food and beverage, Bud Light However, it’s important to note the hurdles faced Seltzer launched in January 2020 and likely by CPGs and retailers. They were forced to pivot experienced its substantial success thanks to promotional schedules because of COVID-19; faced Chart Toppers at-home and backyard consumption. The leader significant supply chain demands to ensure that in nonfood Pacesetters, Downy Infusions Scents, manufacturers delivered high-demand products; also likely captured consumers who were home recovered from dramatic out-of-stocks resulting from a lot, working and playing in casual clothing that the stock-up frenzy of mid-March 2020; and yet still needed to be washed. The laundry product’s gave new products the attention necessary to attract value-added features of longer-lasting scent and consumers who were not treasure hunting in stores fabric protection created a luxury-like, premium like they have historically. experience. Both top products represent a major theme of 2020: balancing indulgence with self-care, which is important to note as product innovation strategists work to identify trends and respond, all while the pandemic undoubtedly continues to force change. When CPGs and retailers put the Bud Light Seltzer READ CASE STUDY ON PAGE 12 At the onset and during the pandemic, consumers’ right products in the right place behaviors radically changed, but their commitment to new products prevailed. When CPGs and at the right time for the right retailers put the right products in the right place at consumer, new products won. the right time for the right consumer, new products won, even in unprecedented turbulence in retail and across the supply chain. This theme seems unflappable, given the consistent success of many $100-million launches. Downy Infusions Scents NEW PRODUCT PACESETTERS: Innovation for a Trying Year IRIworldwide.com 3 SPECIAL REPORT Categories That Deliver on Consumer Values Raise a Glass… at Home a low-risk experiment. With bars and restaurants Among leading products in this space, branding Throughout 2020, many factors influenced shuttered for quite some time in 2020, these new is strong and their images are powerful. But when people’s behaviors as they transitioned nearly alcohol products on shelves in-store and online considering how much premium has taken hold all consumption to in-home. One notable trend became a point of entertainment — this time with a across CPG, it’s notable to recognize Bud Light present in this year’s Pacesetters is a thirst for case purchase at the grocery store. Certainly this was and Corona, for example, as brands that aren’t bubbles — consumers exhibited exceptional a higher-price-point experiment, but one to share necessarily premium but brought with them interest in sparkling waters and hard seltzers. safely with family at home or al fresco with friends. extensions (No. 1 Bud Light Seltzer and No. 20 Corona Refresca, respectively) and flavor profiles Ten of the top 25 food and beverage Among the 27 beverage New Product Pacesetters, that appeal to a broad swath of consumers who Pacesetters this year are beverages, eight of them were beverage alcohol, and typically value premium. Premium often lies in the with No. 1 Bud Light Seltzer, No. 2 generated a whopping $547 million compared with eye of the beholder, and the beer, wine and spirits Truly Lemonade and No. 3 Mtn Dew last year’s six that generated $198 million. It was winners succeeded at creating fun, celebratory Zero Sugar, each generating more the year of beer, wine and spirits, as on-premise images that fit into lifestyles and added something than $100 million in sales. wasn’t an option, days and weeks were long, and special to quarantine consumption occasions. celebrations of any type happened at home. A couple of beverages show disproportionate The powerful punch of beer, wine and spirits new growth driven by millennial shoppers as they product launches was significant, as combined coped with COVID-19 by experimenting and they generated 44% of Pacesetter beverage dollars battling boredom with new products. They compared with 17% last year. sought to bring some of their favorite on-the-go items home: Starbucks creamers grabbed the No. 4 spot in food and beverage Pacesetters, for The powerful punch of example, delivering restaurant quality to people’s beer, wine and spirits new homes when they were no longer able to visit the coffee shop. product launches was significant, as combined Backyard dining and entertaining also drove beverages significantly. Winning beverages were they generated 44% of delivered in fun flavors in both carbonated soft Pacesetter beverage drinks and seltzer waters. Also popular were alcoholic beverages like hard seltzers and innovative beer dollars compared with varieties. The younger population driving new 17% last year. products would have been very likely to try a new Corona or Bud Light variety in a bar — traditionally NEW PRODUCT PACESETTERS: Innovation for a Trying Year IRIworldwide.com 4 SPECIAL REPORT Dip the Spoon… at Home Millennials, with their penchant for new products Interestingly, there were a similar number of face Like beverages, ice cream and frozen novelties and their less urgent need to pay attention to their and skin care launches in 2020 compared to offered much of the same comfort, fun and diets, have potential to really boost indulgent new 2019, though Pacesetter sales of these offerings entertainment factors that people sought to make products, especially when accompanied by fun and were stronger in 2020. There were 29 beauty their time at home more pleasurable — and perhaps innovative varieties. Pacesetters representing $378 million and 17% of ease some day-to-day anxiety, as the future felt so total nonfood Pacesetters in 2020, nearly double Lookin’ and Feelin’ Good… at Home uncertain for so long. the share the group earned the previous year. The People indulged in the food and beverage space, average launch went from $10.6 million in 2019 to Coming in at No. 5, Rebel and at the same time stayed focused on health $13.1 million in 2020. New products in this space Ice Cream was just shy of and wellness last year. Intentional purchases of caught people’s attention and spurred purchase in $100 million at $96.7 million. good-for-you products for both inside and outside these categories. Other Pacesetters include the body were a pre-COVID-19 trend that held its Talenti Gelato Layers at course in terms of new product launches, while Do-it-yourself medical and No. 12 and My/Mochi frozen they accelerated sales in professional beauty care novelties at No. 15. some categories as people treatments intended to offset worked to prevent illness. signs of aging performed well, In food and beverage and nonfood, pure, clean Nonfood Pacesetters Neuriva helping people avoid trips products with plant-based ingredients continue and Nature’s Way Sambucus to spas and doctors’ offices.