Allan Parker was asked to provide a recommendation on whether Danone should launch a new dairy drink product in the US market that claims to aid with and prevent hair loss in men. Parker analyzes the situation from multiple angles. He finds that the target market of older men is small, flavors would be limited, and medical claims would likely face legal issues. Market trends show declining yogurt and dairy sales, as well as growth in plant-based alternatives. Given these factors, Parker recommends denying production of the new product, as the size of the opportunity appears small and unlikely to achieve net revenue goals.

1. Allan Parker
Danone Presentation
4/14/2020

2. About me
• My name is Allan Parker, I’m 30 years old, and I was raised in Bridgewater,
NJ. I grew up with a “hunger” for learning the consumer product goods
(CPG) world. It all started as a child…
• NYC Toastmasters
• Favorite place: Miami
• Played D3 College Lacrosse
• Favorite show: Entourage
• Huge foodie & Exploring NYC

3. Background
• School:
– Kean University
• BS: Marketing
• Work Experience:
– Selerant: Software company (CPG & Cosmetics)
– Kraft Heinz: Category manager for Weis markets- $115M P&L
• Sales & Marketing Analyst: (Bozzutos, NYC, & Club)
• Wakefern: Sales analyst (Kings, Gristedes, & Morton Williams)
• Wakefern: LIT Program (Procurement/Supply Chain Track)

4. Danone Presentation:
Overview: Dannon US has just learned (from the R&D Facility in
Paris, France) about the feasibility of launching a Dairy Drink that
aids with and Prevents hair loss in men.
Objective: The Marketing and Sales VPs come to your desk and
ask you to write up a recommendation on whether we should
launch in the US or not and ask you to assess the situation
carefully and from all angles.
NPD Screening
• Company’s strength
• Company’s weakness
• Customer needs
• Ongoing trend
• Expected ROI
• Affordability, etc.

5. S.W.O.T Analysis
S
Strengths
(Internal &
external)
W
Weaknesses
(Internal &
external)
O
opportunities
T
threats
Strong Presence
with R&D &
Innovation
Solid financial
resources due to
well branded name
Manufacturing
expertise
Internationally
avilable
Product is only Geared
towards the Male
population
Uncorroborated
medical claims
Limited access to
marketplace data
Limited patent
protection
No real ability to
identify market
insights
Become first mover in the
market
Product line extension
Increase market share in
developing countries
Changes in consumer patterns
Become overly price competitive
Competitors making yogurt
products geared toward
millennials /non-dairy alternatives
Weakening brand equity
Negative attitudes towards dairy
Brand name damage due to
media/viral videos
Breakthrough Products: The type of product
that most people immediately think about
when they think about innovation. The product
may be new to the company or the world and
may offer a huge improvement in performance,
a great reduction in cost, or a leap in
technology.
Incremental Products: Also known as
sustaining products, they often reduce costs,
improve existing product lines, reposition
existing products in new markets, or are an
addition to an existing platform. They generally
improve the current product with new
generations.
Disruptive Products: These products have a
longer initial gestation period upon release, but
then have enormous growth. Disruptive
innovations are those that offer simple, low-
cost solutions to your customers’ problems.

6. Case Presentation

7. Men & Hair loss Vs. Total Market
Hair loss Statistics:
By the time you turn 30, you have a 25% chance of displaying some balding. By age 50, 50% of men have at least some noticeable hair loss.
By age 60, about two-thirds are either bald or have a balding pattern. ~ 35 million men in the United States suffer some type of hair loss, and
while ~ 21 million women are affected by hair loss.
Yogurt Consumption Statistics in the United States: Men are under-developed in yogurt consumption
There were 41.4% of men and 64.2% women consuming yogurt.
The average energy contributions of yogurt among men and women
were 1.38% and 2.75%, respectively.
Market consumption of yogurt in the United States:
Most of the yogurt consumption market Is driven by Millennials. Which is ~ 80 million people.
If we are looking at who the market is made up of, men and hair loss would be mainly
older men between the ages of 30-55. Majority of this group is not millennials. Therefore,
gearing a product toward this sector in hair loss would be a small population and disadvantage

8. Yogurt consumption decline in the U.S.
• Yogurt drinks decreasing in revenue/interests drastically: double digit decline in the last 3 years
• Recent data indicates yogurt sales are declining due to the innumerable options on grocery store shelves.
• Yogurt sales are beginning to level out and fall – with the exception of Icelandic skyr yogurt, non-dairy options, and
yogurt smoothies (USA Today & Wall Street Journal)
• Yogurt and dairy sector are both facing falling sales as consumers
decamp for alternative non-dairy “milk” products.

9. • Limited flavors: top flavors nationally according to statistics in Dairy ice cream: Vanilla & Chocolate, with Strawberry being at #8.
• Comax Flavors has released new primary research on consumers’ behavior, The yogurt study was fielded in June 2017 with 500
U.S. respondents aged 18-70+; half of which were parents of children aged 1-17. In addition, the sample featured 250 female
and 250 male respondents.
• Mordor Intelligence, the global yogurt market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.5% during the period 2017-2022 to reach
$125 billion. However, according to Nielsen data, the US yogurt market was worth $7.6 billion for 2016 and declined 0.3%.
• “Flavor” is the number one driver of yogurt purchases with more than half (52%) of respondents citing it as the most important
attribute
• A quarter of adults (26%) and two-thirds of children (66%) consume "Drinkable" yogurt
• “Berry” is the number one flavor consumed by both adults and children with almost two-thirds (61%) of adults and more than
half (58%) of children citing it
• “Tropical” yogurt is the second most popular consumed by adults and children with 45% of adult respondents and 47% of
parents citing it
Flavor limitations

10. Going with the trends…
• Going with the trends:
o dairy alternatives à Oat milk, nut milk, almond, soy, cashew, hemp, flax
coconut etc.
§ Oat milk has increased in sales 80% over the last 2 years
o Powerful yogurt: Men’s line ”brogurt”
§ Larger in size for men- 8 oz to “keep men full”
§ > protein
§ > flavors
§ Market= all ages, both men/female who are active

11. • Danone is leading toward more natural and plant-based alternatives due to “more than 1/3 of consumers chose to
follow a flexitarian diet”
• Health and animal welfare concerns are driving some Americans away from dairy altogether.
• Last week, the nation’s largest milk processor, Dean Foods, filed for bankruptcy protection, citing a decades-
long decline in U.S. milk consumption
Danone’s 2018 annual report

12. Some Statistics…
Yogurt sales will continue to fall:
• U.S. consumers are eating breakfast on the go & are not making the time for spoon-able yogurt.
• They have new options, like nutrition shakes and protein bars, and many aren’t keen on dairy products.
In a Mintel survey released this month, 30% of males who purchased yogurt in the past 3 months said they were
buying high-protein foods or probiotic foods instead of yogurt.
18% said they were overwhelmed by the number of yogurts and yogurt drinks on the market. The average grocery
store has more than 300 yogurt products, a 4% increase from 2015, said (Acosta), a marketing firm.

13. • FDA & institute of medicine warns food companies against making scientific claims about food
ingredients and health benefits
• can cause potential lawsuits à Harmful to Danone ”name”.
• Medical statements regarding eating yogurts and preventing hair loss is not backed up by peer
reviewed data or FDA approval.
Example: Pom Wonderful making general claims about health benefits related to
lowering incidence of heart disease.
Legal

14. Marketing
• Marketing strategy: according to data analysis collected by Accenture, CPG companies must
figure out how to engage older generations.
• Advertising needs to be geared both digital/social media for younger generation as well as
alternative for the older population

15. Marketing Con’t…

16. • Over 55% of grocery shoppers go into a grocery store already knowing what
they want to purchase.
• According to a survey sponsored by the bureau of labor statistics, 68%-80% of
women are responsible for food shopping in the household
• American’s consume more than 300,000 tons of yogurt each year.

17. Size of the opportunity
Research noted by powerful yogurt:
“Dannon or Chobani Greek Yogurt for Men would not work, because those brands are already positioned as female products, and you
cannot talk out of both sides of your mouth,” he said.
Due to:
• the limited market taking only part of the population of men, who are a low number of consumers in the category
of yogurt
• Limited sku flavors
• Not following the market trends
• Decline in drinkable yogurts
• Potential FDA/legal issues
• Target marketing will be expensive and need to focus on different age groups
• Difficulties in merchandising- shelf positioning can disrupt brands: (Danimals/Danactive)
the size of the opportunity appears small: will not achieve net revenue

18. Final Recommendation
Assessment: Denied to go to production

19. Q&A…

20. Works cited
Among U.s. Couples, Women Do More Cooking and Grocery Shopping Than Men
Katherine Schaeffer. Sept. 2019
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/09/24/among-u-s-couples-women-do-more-cooking-and-grocery-shopping-than-men/
Chobani and Danone North America Clash Over Plant-based 'milk' and 'yogurt' Labels; Cspi Proposes Front Of Pack Disclosures
Foodnavigator-Usa. Feb 2019.
https://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Article/2019/02/13/Chobani-and-Danone-clash-over-plant-based-milk-and-yogurt-labels-CSPI-proposes-new-front-of-pack-disclosures
How 'bout Some Brogurt?
https://www.mensjournal.com/food-drink/brogurt-greek-yogurt-just-guys
Non-dairy Milk Alternatives Are Experiencing A 'holy Cow!' Moment
Brian Kateman - Aug 2019.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/briankateman/2019/08/19/non-dairy-milk-alternatives-are-experiencing-a-holy-cow-moment/#69aeaa4c44b8
Statistic Brain Research Institute
Kevin- Sarah- Mike- Michelle- Retail Investments- Online Marketing.
http://www.statisticbrain.com/hair-loss-statistics