General Mills Masters Channel-Exclusive Innovation
How do you introduce a leading salty snacks brand to convenience store cracker aisles when you don’t already make crackers?Many companies would have balked at the challenge, but in January 2011, the General Mills Convenience innovation team set out to enter a brand new category.
Gardetto’s popular line of snack mixes already had a loyal following among consumers. At the same time, the crackers-with-filling category was a $69 million and growing segment for convenience stores.
While General Mills did not have the internal expertise or manufacturing capabilities to develop and produce a savory sandwich cracker alone, it did have a five-year history of looking outside of its own walls for big ideas and technical solutions through its open innovation program, the General Mills Worldwide Innovation Network (G-WIN).
First, the R&D team looked internally and enlisted scientist Cynthia Machado, whose extensive knowledge about cracker formulation provided a solid foundation for the project. However, her past experience had been in sweet crackers, while this new product would be savory. She turned to another outside resource and enrolled in courses at the world-renowned American Institute of Baking to get up to speed. Once the cracker dough formulation was perfected, the team turned to a third outside partner, a trusted co-manufacturer, to rapidly commercialize and manufacture the new product.
“Taking an open approach to product innovation allows you to learn things you can’t find in the books,” Machado says of the product development process.
In October 2011, just nine months after the project kicked off, Gardetto’s Sandwich Crackers were ready for production, a feat that would have been impossible to accomplish internally in that amount of time and without a huge capital investment. Launched in the convenience store channel in June 2012, Gardetto’s Sandwich Crackers are available in two bold flavor combinations, Cheddar Bacon and Garlic Cream Cheese.
Note: This article was adapted from Jeff Bellairs’ November 2012 blog entry “Helping Gardetto’s create a savory snack”.
FAST FACTS
Hot Opportunity
In consumer taste tests, 85 percent of participants said they would frequently purchase Gardetto’s Premium Sandwich Crackers, making it an exciting add on to the growing sandwich cracker category in the convenience channel.
Words of Wisdom
“Many companies would have balked at the challenge, but the General Mills Convenience team instead harnessed the power of open innovation to get the job done, resulting in a successful first-entry into the category.”
— Jeff Bellairs, Senior Director, G-WIN
It Takes Three
To develop Gardetto’s Sandwich Crackers, General Mills worked with three different external partners, who each provided unique expertise and value along the way.