'It Doesn't Mean a Thing if it Ain't Got That Swing' - An NPD Case Study with a Sting in the Tale

The title of the famous 1930s Duke Ellington jazz number provides a metaphor for this fmcg product development case study that finally went wrong, despite the best practice and despite the best of intentions.

'It Don't Mean a Thing if it Ain't Got That Swing.' An NPD Case Study with a Sting in the Tale

Michael M. RoeResearch International UK, United Kingdom

SETTING THE SCENE

Enter any Japanese supermarket and you will find a display of instant dried meals of a magnitude to rival that for breakfast cereals in the U.S. or Europe. The profusion of recipes, brands, pack sizes and materials is dazzling, although the base ingredient is generally recognised as Ramen, or Japanese noodles. There is also the frequent introduction of sea food items, including seaweed, as well as soy sauce...

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