Product Planning Cuisinart Hand Mixer

Douglas Radecki // Cuisinart Power Advantage Plud 9 Speed Hand Mixer // Product Planning Spring 2012

Cuisinart Power Advantage Plus 9-Speed Hand Mixer


1971 Founded

1973America is introduced to Cuisinart Food Processor at the National Housewares Expo in Chicago.

1973-74Initial sales are poor do consumers unsure of the benefits plague Cuisinart

1975Sales pick up steam as Cui-sinart picks up endorsements from culinary figures such as Julia Child.

1977Cuisinart sales total $50 mil-lion dollars and the new part-nership with a Japanese firm as the manu-facturer

1977-early 80sCuisinart dominates the market the corporation created. They become syn-onomious with the gourmet kitchen chef

1985Cuisinart loses considerable market share to Sunbeam and their smaller and cheaper food processor

1988,’89Cuisinart continues to lose market share do to not understanding their custom-ers shifting desires. Sold

off twice until Conair buys the company. Cuisinart now only has 12% of market share.

Cuisinart was founded by Carl and Shirley Sontheimer in 1971 after a trip to France. While in France, the couple went to a housewares show where they saw resturant grade food preperation machines. Confident they could make a home version of the food processor, Sontheimer obtained U.S. distribution rights from Robot-Coupe and utilizing his enginering background, Mr. Sontheimer was able to redesign the restaurant food processor for home use. From a $20,000 investment, Mr. and Mrs. Sontheimer created Cuisinart, a company that combined their passions for food and appliance elecrtonics.

Until Cuisinart was sold in 1989, the brand image that Mr. Sontheimer wanted for his company was one of excellence without cutting corners. However, the steep price caused many customers to seek other options, causing Cuisinart to finally rush out products to meet the customers changing needs. This though was not soon enough and Cuisinart continued to lose market share to new innovative products that recognized the changing needs of the potential customer.

Bought in 1989 by Conair, Cuisinart has been able to turn around the company. The Cuisinart Division has been able to regain it’s leadership in small kitchen appliances through top quality and innovative new products. Conair has been able to target the high-end appliance customers, both at home and in commercial spaces through the ownership of both the Cuisinart brand and the Waring brand.

“With marketing savvy and a credible product.. able to dominate the upper end of the food processor business...did it by making the Cuisinart name synonymous with top quality and price.” EVA POMICE, Forbes

Cuisinart goes from 20% to losing market share to competitors who are offering a variety of form factors those cost less.

Cuisinart begins the strategy to align with cooking eduction by producing cook books, cooking shows, and a culinary institute.

BIRTH OF A NEW MARKET

Conair purchases Cuisinart for an estimated $27 million.

Through expanding product offerings and winning endorsements from the restaurant industry, Conair’s new strategy helps push Cuisinart’s sells up

Carl Sontheimer


STENGTHSCuisinart is the best known for being among the highest quality kitchen appliance available

Known for pursuing excellence in cooking education through both video and formal education programs

Partners with market leaders in desired markets

Design + Eco-friendly conscious which wins various awards and recognition for their efforts

Reputation built on endorsements from well known chefs

WEAKNESSESHistory plagued with corporate scandal

Often a market follower, entering existing product categories

According to Macy’s + The Knot Cuisinart is number 1 in the small applaince for the kitchen brand for wedding registeries

1995The introduction of hand mixers and toasters gives breadth to an assortment considered among the best in the highendappliance arena.

2000 >Cuisinart continues to enter new product categories. They expand their registry presense beyond bridal showers to include expecting mothers and parents.

1989 Conair focuses the company’s energy to become the number one requested brand in bridal registries

Product Leadership

Operational ExcellenceCustomer Intimacy


CURRENT PORTFOLIO$80

$75

$70

$65

$60

$55

$50

$45

$40

$35

$30

Power Select 7-Speed Hand Mixer$59.95USP: Pink line series, with a portion of proceeds going to breast cancer research

PRICE POWER ADVANTAGE PLUSPOWER ADVANTAGEPOWER SELECT

Power Select 3-Speed Hand Mixer$29.95USP: Unique Style and price point of a Cuisinart Product

Power Advantage 7-Speed Hand Mixer$59.95USP: Smooth-start for non-splatter

Power Advantage5-Speed Hand Mixer$49.95USP: Multiple colors

Power Advantage PLUS 9-Speed Hand Mixer with Storage Case$79.95USP:storage case to store mixer and accessories

Cuisinart’s hand mixer portfolio is made up of 3 lines, the Power Select, Power Advantage, and Power Advantage Plus.

DIFFERIENTATIONThe designs of the Power Select and other two differ greatly. Each category has a selection of speeds available according to price point. The Power Advatange Plus stands out due to the storage case and being the only product available at 9-speed. Speeds available differntate products according to price

SIMILARITIESThe technology behind the motors are quite similiar, using a 220 watt motor along with automatic feedback that senses when more power needs to be delivered to mix ingredients.

OVERALLLittle differentiates these products besides the number of speeds the motor can spin the attachments. The number of color selections for the PA 5-speed suggests this price point is most attractive for customers.

CORE COMPETENCIES-Technology delivering power and versitility-High quality

PORTFOLIO THEMES + CHARACTERISTICS -Power delivered through 220 watt motors with automatic feedback-Exclusive swivl cord allow for right or left handed use-Chef grade compnents-Wide range of colors available-Wide range of speed optionswith smooth transitions between speeds-Style and designed to match other appliances-Easy clean up


STAND MIXERS HAND MIXER HAND BLENDERstrengths

weaknesses

becoming the new too large to pull out tool.

great at mixing for baters, mashed potatoes etc.

quick to grab and usegreat at mixing large batches

large and heavy requiring a dedicated spot in the ktichen

MIXING AND MIXERSConsumers will continue to want quick access and quick clean

POWERFUL INCONVENIENT

GOOD ENOUGH CONVENIENT

can only occomplish jobs of certain sizes: eg. not the best at mixing medium size amounts of ingredients


MARKET ANALYSIS

Introduction Growth Maturity Decline

Cuisinart’s first hand mixer was introduced in 1995, adding to Cuisinart’s increasing presence across multiple products in the small kitchen appliance category.

When Cuisinart entered the hand mixer market, other brands had established themselves as the market leader. After hav-ing lost considerable marketshare to other challengers, Cuisinart was playing catch up in multiple categories during the 1990s. Needing a new strategy, Conair’s strategy focused on targeting the bridal industry.1 This allowed Cuisinart to gain market share and become the #1 hand mixer sold through Amazon.com, Macy’s, and recommended as a great gift by theknot.com. While a mature industry, Cuisinart has become synonymous with hand mixers.

Consumers are continueing to cook more at home. Just about half (53%) of meal prepar-ers now make dinner, including an entrée, four or more nights a week; 90% do so at least once a week. In addition, 61% prepare a frozen entrée, and 36% pick up a prepared entree at least once a week (TARNOWSKI, 2011). With cooking at home, consumers are going to purchase appliances that offer the right amount of convenience and most num-ber of uses (BRANDL 2008).

Foodies, people who identify themselves as interested and knowledgeable about a wide range of foods and ingreidents will con-tinue to grow. Over half of adults watch, on average, 4.2 hours per week (FMI, 2011) of cooking shows. Interest in preparing food at home and entertaining at home will continue to grow.

With food safety concerns continueing to grow, consumers will become more aware of where and what they are putting in their body. Again this will result in more home

For small kitchen appliances, more and more manufactures are offering a wide range of colors across their product offerings. “Thomas Perez, president of Bodum USA, said, “The insurgence of color at the turn of the economy was an uplifting notion. Color is particularly important in small electrics due to their countertop placement. You want them to ‘pop’ on your countertop and not tucked away in your cupboards.””

Along with color, offering classic white and stainless steel shows both a heritage and sophistication, matching many of the larger appliances in the kitchen such as the stainless steel fridge or range oven. Cuisinart offers both a wide range of colors, along with the classic white and stainless steel.

Eco-friendly design choices and effective use of technology will continue to become important to customers as they also look for an authority to reassure them of the eco-friendly claims. Cuisinart has made eco-friendly manufacturing and marketing a core strategy, launching their green-ware line in 2008 called “Cuisinart Green Gourmet”.2

Retro design to stand out is continuing to attract customers. Cuisinart’s Power Select is reminisent of a large jet engine, connecting to both the image of power, but also bringing images of “when flight was sexy and cool”.

HAND MIXER MARKET LIFECYCLE FOOD MARKET TRENDS DESIGN TRENDS

1. Cuisinart History About Us, http://www.cuisinart.com/about.html

2. Rodgers Discusses Cuisinart’s Green Strategy http://www.hfnmag.com/housewares/rodgers-discusses-cuisinart%E2%80%99s-green-strategy


Kitchen Aid’s, whose parent company is Whirlpool, hand mixers continue the company tradition of high quality appliances. Kitchen Aid Artichtect rank 1 in Consumer Report Price range: $59.99 - $109.99.

Under NACCO, both Hamilton Beach and Proctor Silex offer a wide range of kitchen appliances. Hamilton Beach price range: $19.99 - $49.99 Proctor Silex price range: $10.99 - $15.99This price range allows NACCO to hit multiple price points and keeps the brands from competing with each other.

Offering a wide range of home products, Sunbeam’s hand mixer offers style and conveniencePrice range: $18.99-39.99

Manufactures both small appliances and hair cair products for a low price. $24.99 -$29.99

COMPETITORSKEY COMPETITORS

Followers

ChallengerHigh Price

Low Price

StyleFunctional


BUYERSModerate. Customers want to cook more meals at home. This is due to many becoming more price sensitive. Companies with the best reputation built through high quality build and helping customers get the most out of their purchase.

RIVARLYModerate. High density of low end prodcuts may begin to impact Cuisinart’s hand mixer BU as rivals offer more competitive prices along with quality build and design.

SUPPLIERSLow. Components do not require a high degree of sophistication. Little supplier power as a result, allowing Cuisinart to find a new supplier if put into a pricing situation.

SUBSTITUTESHigh. Customers are look-ing for more convenience and the hand blender may take over most mixing jobs, only taking out the hand mixer for specific tasks.

NEW ENTRANCESModerate. Customers show a considerable amount of brand loyalty to Cuisinart hand mixers. However, Cuisinart will need to move more agres-sively into developing countries to build relation-ships with customers.

COMPETITORS

According to Amazon.com of 5 most requested hand mixer 4 of them are Cuisinart Hand Mixers

Cuisinart is a market leader in many kitchen appliance categories.

TOP 20 HAND MIXERS ACCORDING TO SALE NUMBERSCuisinart - 40%Hamilton Beach - 15%Kitchen Aid 10%Proctor Silex 10%Sunbeam 5%Oster 5%

However, while Cuisinart enjoys a lead in the hand mixer category, challenger rival Kitchen Aid has been awarded Consumer Reports best of hand mixers in November 2010. Cuisinart did make the top 10 two times, at 4th and 5th place, Kitchen Aid however went on to be awarded 1st, 3rd and 6th place. According to the Consumer Report, Kitchen Aid and Cusinart were virtually identical in all categories except for noise. Cuisinart will need to recognize this and re-examine the quality of motors and build to improve the noise reduction of the hand mixer.


Hand Blender

Table TopMixer

Combo Mixer

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

GENERICKitchen tools

BUDGETLess then $100food

Sunbeam

Spoon

Spatula

Hands

Single-Serve Coffee Maker

Indoor Grill

Kitchen Aid

Hamilton Beach

OsterProctor

Silex

FORMHand Mixers

CONVENIENT + QUICK TO CLEAN UP

FROMSCRACTCH

CATEGORYKitchen appliances that can mix

Toaster

Douglas Radecki // Cuisinart Power Advantage Plud 9 Speed Hand Mixer // Product Planning Spring 2012 - Photos from http://healthfoodxdrinks.com/ http://planetgreen.discovery.com/ http://o5.com/ http://www.aycinena.com/

SEGMENTATION

SEGMENT HEALTHY EATERS GRAB AND GO MOMS FAMILY MOM KITCHEN GOURMET

DEMOGRAPHIC Adult Males + Females25-35 years old

Adult females with children34-44

Adult females with children34-44

Adult Males + Females18-35

PSYCHOGRAPHIC Healthy eaters are individuals who place high value on being able to eat healthy. This also means that they are interested in a healthy environment, connecting where and how their food is produced. They shop based on their values when considering a purchase. These individuals are highly skeptical of companies advertising eco-friedly products due to “green washing”. Healthy eaters will also cook a majority of their meals at home, looking to maximize how they use their ingredients in order not to waste.

Grab and go moms are busy women with families. They are looking for convenience at a good price. Being able to relay on their small kitchen appliances is important because they have little time to repurchase, modify, or fix. These women wish they could provide healthier options for their family, but price and time keeps them from being able to fullfil this desire. They also believe in eating as many meals at home as possible, and strive to cook at least one meal a week from scratch, but often rely on ready made meals more often.

Family mom are women who place a high priority on their family and the family’s health/well being. These are women who are aware of the latest health consernes, as well as natural remedies for tasks ranging from cleaning to maintaining a healthy body. These women place importance on their home, wanting to make the home feeling welcoming. Family moms also try to cook from scratch every meal at the home, relying on ready made meals infrequently. They believe the from scratch equals whole healthy foods that shows they are caring for their family in a special way.

These indviduals enjoy food and the culture of food. Many self-identify as foodies and love exploring new food choices and options. They are willing to try new recipes. They look for kitchen appliances that will have a number of uses and capability. The appliances they choose represent them, identifying with brands that represent quality and the gourmet home chef. Kitchen gourmets will cook a majority of their meals at home, but also go out more often during the week to try new restaurants and find new ideas to bring home to their own kitchen.


CUSTOMER ANALYSIS

BRAND FUNCTION PRICE SENSITIVE

STYLE EASY OF USE/CLEAN UP

CONVENIENCE

HIGH

LOW

Kitchen GourmetWants the best tool

possible and willing to

pay a premium

Healthy EatersWants to support a

company who shares

their values.

Family MomWants products that

fit her style and

represents a woman

who loves her family

Grab and Go MomsWants a product that

helps in the process


$80

$75

$70

$65

$60

$55

$50

$45

$40

$35

$30

PRICE

CUSTOMER ANALYSIS

Healthy Eaters Grab and Go Moms Family Mom Kitchen Gourmet

Power Select 7-Speed Hand Mixer$59.95

Power Select 3-Speed Hand Mixer$29.95

Power Advantage 7-Speed Hand Mixer$59.95

Power Advantage5-Speed Hand Mixer$49.95

Power Advantage5-Speed Hand Mixer$49.95

Power Advantage PLUS 9-Speed Hand Mixer with Storage Case$79.95

Power Advantage PLUS 9-Speed Hand Mixer with Storage Case$79.95

Opportunity to move into the higher price point with a eco-friendly product.

Opportunity to include a storage case at the same price point.

Opportunity to include more colors at the premium price point.

Opportunity to introduce the Power Select @ 9-speed with more colors.


ANSOFF 2 x 2

Cuisinart will maintain leaders in the small kitchen appliance market by developing new products that help customers get the most out of their cooking experience.

EXTENDA Soup Appetit New product l ine for developing countr ies that helps in recipes beyond just baking. Eg. China is the number one consumer of soups.

B From Zero to Gourmet Help the novice cook learn more about cooking. PENETRATEC Color my world crazy Offer the Power Select in more colors and at the 9-speed to attract design conscious customers.

INNOVATIVED My virtual chef Develop the Cuis inart Digi ta l Cookbook that goes from coaching for the novice to helpful reminder for the gourmet chef .

E Second hands Ingredient mixer wi l l help pour in new ingredients as needed.

F Talk to me Select the recipe from dig i ta l cookbook and upload the direct ions to the hand mixer. Helps keep track of t ime, step(s) , and next ingredient .

EXPANDG Skinniefied Mixer Create a new forum factor that embraces a smal ler footpr int to descrease the persept ion of the product being too large.

H Mini-Hand Mixer Cuisinart for Kids wi l l create a product safe for chi ldren to use.

I Greenest Ever Develop evo-fr iendly product out of heavy duty ceramics, using zero p last ics and recycled metal for the various tools.

J Battery GO! Charging stat ion for battery “pucks” for a wireless hand mixer. Capture the energy created from the momentium of mixing ingredients together.

J

NEW

CURRENT PRODUCTS

CUSTOMERS

EXTEND INNOVATIVE

EXPANDPENETRATE

A

B

C

E

D

G

H

I

F


EVALUATION

Strateg

ic Im

porta

nce

Compe

titive

Adv

antag

e

Marke

t Attr

activ

enes

s

Core C

ompe

tencie

s

Tech

nical

Feas

ibility

Finan

cial R

ewar

d

Total

Rank O

rder

Soup Appetit 7 4 7 5 7 7 37 1

From Zero to Gourmet 6 7 5 7 5 5 35 3

Color my world crazy 2 4 4 5 7 3 25 8

My virtual chef 6 5 6 7 7 3 34 4

Second hands 3 5 3 3 3 4 21 10

Talk to me 6 7 5 5 4 6 33 5

Skinniefied Mixer 7 7 4 6 7 4 36 2

Mini-Hand Mixer 6 5 6 5 4 5 31 6

Greenest Ever 7 4 4 5 3 4 27 7

Battery GO! 3 4 3 4 5 5 24 9

J

NEW

CURRENT PRODUCTS

CUSTOMERS

EXTEND INNOVATIVE

EXPANDPENETRATE

A

B

C

E

D

G

H

I

F

Cuisinart should look towards developing countries + re-think the forum factor of the hand mixer.


RECOMMENDATION 1

Cuisinart should develop hand mixers that fit the culinary needs of each individual countries they expand into.

With rapidly expanding markets around the world, Cuisinart should begin to form partnerships with market leaders in each developing country they wish to enter. Much like Cuisinart did in the United States, developing partnerships with key figures in each country will help make their brand name a household name in these new markets. Finding the Rachael Ray of Brazil or the Martha Stewart of China will help give their products credibility as being American made and loved by those key culinary figures.

Along with getting the endorcements of these culinary celebrities, Cuisinart will need to understand the types of food these markets make. Currently the hand mixer in America is used primarily for baking and recipes requiring whipping (fresh whip cream or mashed potatoes). However, each country will have unique needs that Cuisinart will need to understand in order to develop the best attachments to meet the expectations of these new customers.


RECOMMENDATION 2

The hand mixer should be re-designed to fit the grab-and-go society that desires convenience and good enough over perfect.

The hand mixer currently is becoming too big for many users since the rising popularity of the hand blender. While Cuisinart brand is also one of the most popular hand blender manufacturers, these tools are not the best at mixing many types of dishes.

Recognizing the changing expecations of the users, but still wanting to be the brand of culinary excellence, Cuisinart should adopt the convenience motto and raise the bar from good enough back to perfect. Cuisinart can only do this by using the convenience motto

as a design + user criteria principle when prototyping a new re-design that embraces light weight materials, quick clean up, quick tool selection, and smaller foot print.

A re-design of the hand mixer to better suit the expectations of the customer, from the grab-and-go mom to the kitchen gourmet, Cuisinart could re-invent this product category by bucking the statis0-quo design and look to slim and compact the design to the ready-to-go tool.


BIBLIOGRAPHY

“Cuisinarts’ moniker due to appear on more items in new catego-ries.” HFN The Weekly Newspaper for the Home Furnishing Net-work, http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Cuisinarts%E2%80%99+moniker+due+to+appear+on+more+items+in+new+categories.-a016050593

New housewares products: appeal to the senses (and the sensible)., HFN Home Furnishings News, 2011, http://www.thefreelibrary.com/New+housewares+products%3a+appeal+to+the+senses+(and+the+sensible).-a0253447888

Cuisinart Market Share, http://www.answers.com/topic/conair-corporation-1

Cuisinart History About Us, http://www.cuisinart.com/about.html

Kitchen Design Trends. http://www.nyc-appliances.com/top-trends-in-kitchen-appliances.htm

Top 10 Food Trends, April 2011, http://www.ift.org/food-technology/past-issues/2011/april/features/food-trends.aspx?page=viewall

Rodgers Discusses Cuisinart’s Green Strategy, http://www.hfnmag.com/housewares/rodgers-discusses-cuisinart%E2%80%99s-green-strategy

Small Appliance Market Will Stay Strong , International House-wares Association Editorial, January 2008, Phil Brandl

BUSINESS PEOPLE; Conair Head Planning Strategy for Cuisinarts, ANTHONY RAMIREZ, January 9 1990

Consumer Report, November 2010, page 40.

Product Planning Cuisinart Hand Mixer

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