Corrections or additions?
This article by Bart Jackson was prepared for the April 17, 2002
edition of U.S. 1 Newspaper. All rights reserved.
The Birth of an Idea
Bringing a new product to term in this market can prove
the most teeth-clenching experience of your life. The gestation period
— from initial conception until that happy day when the consumer
slaps you product on the counter and declares it profitable —
can rival that of an elephant. Every decision of the expectant
entrepreneur
during this time seems fraught with anxiety as to its successful
outcome.
For those seeking to shorten this 24-month gestation and ease all
the introductory labor of birthing a new product, Linda
Coppolino
stands as a ready and expert midwife. Her seminar, “Bringing Your
New Product Idea to Reality,” will be part of the annual New
Jersey
Association of Women Business Owners (NJAWBO) conference Thursday
through Saturday, April 18 through 20, at the Ocean Place Conference
Resort Center in Long Branch. Cost is $450. To register call
609-581-2121.
Coppolino’s program, set for Thursday at 1:45 p.m., is designed for
both the lone inventor and the established firm. She will punctuate
her product realization strategy with a series of hints on how to
cut time and cost on each step.
NJAWBO offers an ideal network for finding everything from your next
supplier, banker, or golf partner. In addition to its statewide
seminars,
each of the 13 chapters each holds monthly meetings with informative
speakers. For information visit www.NJAWBO.org.
If you were a sharp young business lady from Brooklyn, with an equally
sharp sense of fashion, you might quite naturally move toward a
marketing
career with Playtex, Revlon, Charles of the Ritz, Caswell-Massey,
and Krebs personal care products. But what you probably would not
do is forsake the smooth, quiet executive offices and during your
off hours get down into the factory. And almost definitely, you would
not think to work on the assembly line, study the manufacture and
shipping process, take notes and store all this information for future
use. But Linda Coppolino did exactly that.
Thus today, when a client needs to know how long it will take to
retool
for his new lipstick, Coppolino can tell him. Her Howell-based
Marketing
& Design Depot, which she founded in l998, and its more
marketing-oriented
spin off company, Coppolino-Kenter Creative Partners, have eased the
way onto the sales floor for scores of products from skin lotions
to tractor parts.
Coppolino sees product development much like a chess game in which
you mentally follow the consequences of each move down the line before
you make it. Ticking the caveats off on her fingers she lists,
“Where
are the bottlenecks? What’s the cost in time and cash? What are your
tradeoffs?” She recommends the entrepreneur feel his way through
the process with agility. With so many variables, the startup firm
must be ready to decide and change at any stage of development.
Overseas vs. Domestic Production. Typically this is acost factor. The general 18 to 24-month timetable for getting aproductto market is seldom affected by this choice. On labor intensive items,such as children’s products and graphics, overseas manufacturers canbring in great per-piece savings. Also, for lighter articles, overseasmakers frequently have similar equipment more readily available, thuscutting down on retooling costs.However, quality control becomes a major issue the further your specsget shipped from your supervision. Having your company one floor abovethe factory where managers can run down and check on things is, ofcourse, ideal. When abroad, it will at least become necessary to hirea special quality control agent to check all the work on site duringeach shift. Seems expensive? Bitter experience has forced many firmsto have each piece submitted to a domestic inspector at each stage.”Never underestimate the enormity of the language barrier,”advises Coppolino. “You would not believe some of the errors ingraphics that I have seen come out China — both in design specsand on packaging instructions.”Upfront Modeling Investment. Of course, it is thriftiestto present your backers with a flat board picture of your new shoeline. More and more funders want to can the glitz and see their fundsinvested in the nuts and bolts of production. However, setting atangiblepair of shoes on the table before each potential funder for herpersonalinspection beats a disc full of graphics. It also teaches theentrepreneurmany things. By special-ordering samples from a potential supplier,you get to see how he works, his quality, and his ability to meetdeadlines.Insource vs. Outrsourcing. Outsourcing’s flexibility,thrift, access to experts and general convenience has beenexhaustivelytouted. And truly for the startup business, each of these factorsbecomes especially poignant. Most of all, a deft blending ofoutsourcedpersonnel, Coppolino points out, saves time. You can set severalprojectsof your launch all swiftly overlapping and thus bring your productto market often months earlier. On the manufacturing end, outsourcingproduction remains popular due to huge factory and equipment costs.However, when seeking an outside manufacturer, few contractors makefull inventory of what materials the plant owner uses on other jobsthat can be cheaply purchased and require minimal changeover.Yet, ever wary of trends, Coppolino warns outsourcing’s veryflexibilitycan lead to a loss of control when you need it most. Project teams,if not well orchestrated, can get ahead of each other and force youto backtrack and undo work. Further, the contract worker holds nogreat loyalty to your shop and he may be working elsewhere duringthose vital hours. Also, his intellectual property may very well notfall under your control.Sales and Distribution. “This continues to be oneof business’ greatest bottlenecks,” says Coppolino. It is veryhard to cut a retailer’s time schedule. The mass merchandiser wantsto see your item in January for July. Between that time, while itpasses through the hands of the buyer and the sales force, you waitwithout a penny. The only hope here is to search for an appointmentand make your contacts early, so your delivery demands and yourproductiondates mesh.Gut vs. Consumer Research. The final decision, Coppolinosays, looms over every step of the product development process, andwhether you should trust your instinct or objective research issometimesa tough call. No one can deny that business would not stand remotelywhere it does were it not for continuing advances in science. Andas the scientific methods of consumer research make for increasingpredictability, it seems foolish not to rely on them. But you, Mr.Inventor, are bringing forth a product you are in love with. Probablythis affords you a better, not more biased, view of its marketability.In the end, exactly how your product reaches the almighty store shelfmust be your choice. Just remember, consumer research absolutelyprovedthat the coffee drinking public would never shell out the extra cashfor a cup of Starbucks.— Bart JacksonPrevious StoryNext StoryCorrections or additions?This page is published by PrincetonInfo.com— the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.
