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Copper Quality

Table of Contents..1

I. Introduction

a. Idea Generation.2

II. Market Analysis

a. Product Description and Positioning..3

b. Market Size and Trends...5

c. Competition..8

d. Strengths.10

e. Barriers to Entry....11

f. Consumer Profile......12

III. Business Proposition

a. Consumer Aspects.....17

b. Retailer Aspects..19

c. Business Objective...20

d. Communication Objective....21

e. Message to consumer and retailers...22

f. Market strategy and pricing.....23

g. Packaging...25

h. Test marketing....26

i. Market research....29

IV. Promotion

a. Consumer advertising....31

b. Trade support..33

c. In store advertisement.....34

d. Internet, web, social media...36

V. Conclusion...37

I. INTRODUCTION

a. Idea Generation

The idea for this product line was generated because of a global need for quality, long lasting, cookware. The Traditional Copper Pans and Skillet Line offered by the All-Clad company will feature high-end technology driven kitchenware to maximize cooking efficiency and skill. The line will include various pans and skillets made out of copper material with each pan or skillet having a varying design based on its intentions. The All-Clad company saw a need to create quality restaurant grade products to be used by the everyday chef in their kitchen. The copper used in the cookware will be machine hammered but will be a higher quality product than other companies because of the ingenuity and material of the cookware. Most cooking products are made out of aluminum and are coated with a non-stick surface to prevent residue from being left behind. The most complaints of cookware for these products are that the non-stick surface peels off and gets into the food and then the skillets become useless. The Copper Quality Line will feature copper products with aluminum handles because copper heats up easier than aluminum allows for a more controlled temperature regulated cooking experience with the natural hammering of the copper acting as a built in non-stick surface.

The parent company for this product line, All-Clad, was chosen because of its reputation for creating quality products at a price affordable by all. When looking at cookware companies with high customer service and quality ratings All-Clad is notorious for its quality long-lasting products.

II. MARKET ANALYSIS

a. Product Description and Positioning GCNP General Characteristic of New Products

The new product is a modern take on classic Turkish cookware by taking old-style metal working methods and combining it with modern cooking innovations. After much research the All-Clad company found that the cheapest option to bring quality cookware to the consumer was by using pure copper to make its products. Because of coppers low specific heat capacity it takes less energy to raise and lower the temperature of the copper allowing for a more controlled cooking experience. The product will be machine hammered to fit the form of the desired pan mold and will be riveted with copper rivets and an aluminum handle. The handle should remain aluminum because it does take longer to heat up and will allow for a higher handling of the product. Various products in the line will have minor modifications to match the desired use of the product such as pouring spouts, griddle marks, or a square designed interior for a larger more even cooking surface. The product will be hammered on both sides of the middle to ensure an even leveling of the surface and because the hammering will be used as a natural non-stick surface for cooking. Most modern products that offer Non-stick surfaces will have aluminum that peels away but because of the internal tin layer and natural groove of the hammering an additional non-stick surface is unnecessary. The product will have a polished finish to represent the high quality of the company and the standards that their past products have created and the standard that the companies products have set.

This product will be completely differentiated from other products in the market because of the material used in the cookware and the intended use of the cookware. These pots and pans will be sold with the intention of not just cooking food but cooking with a quality product to provide higher kitchen satisfaction. Copper is seen to be a amore expensive material to work with compared to cheap aluminum or stainless steel products but by using a larger company like All-Clad to introduce the product the resources and processes used to create the product will be easier, quicker, and cheaper.

The only problem with this product having strong market penetration is the cost of the product to the consumer. All-Clad products because of the quality product and longtime warranty of the products All-Clad already has a premium on their products but the introduction of the copper line will increase the cost of the product and will have a negative affect on the companys market share. The growing trend towards cooking a higher quality food with kitchenware that gives you more control over the temperature and what you cook will allow for All-Clad to offer these higher-end products and still be a successful company.

b. Market Size and Trends

Because of the versatility of the product line the product should be accessible to the restaurant industry and also responsible home chefs that desire to use high-quality cooking products. The All-Clad companys products are more expensive and does put their products into higher-end niche market but The Copper Quality Line should still be accessible to the markets original patrons and other various consumers. The cookware market is very large valued at about $4.5 Billion in retail sales 2013 according from 78 million units. Because of the growing love of the cooking industry one of the trends in the markets is purchasing higher-quality products to match the growing kitchen cookware and foodie trend. The cookware market has had an annual steady growth of 2.7%. With Fry Plans/Saut Pane/Skillets being the largest product segment by volume, cookware sets have the largest segment of the market in retail dollar sales. This goes to show that more per unit sales will be made on All-Clads products but about 66% of the retail dollar will come from cookware sets. 45% of homes in the U.S. said to have purchased at least one piece of cookware in the last year with about 34% of the one piece being bought was a pan.

All-clad has over 16 physical and online distributors of its products including some of the largest distribution channels in the industry such a Macys, Amazon, Cooking.com. Williams-Sonoma, and Bed Bath & Beyond. The combination of these channels goes to show how large and receptive the All-Clad company name is to the everyday and restaurant consumer. Because of the various sizes of the products the Copper Quality Line may not be attractive to all commercial users but the quality will remain unsurpassed by all because of the All-Clad warranty and customer patronage.

Cookware products do seem to do better around various shopping seasons and trends in the market. There are various trends and seasonal trends that can be seen in the cookware market especially around holidays and peak wedding times. Cookware sets, because of their prices are better for gifts during the holiday seasons. The current trend in the market is the search for high-quality cooking products ranging from designs created from innovations to relying on traditional cookware designs like Turkish copper metalworking. The copper-cooking trend is growing because of the realization that cooking is a science. With a 5.5% decrease in the amount of aluminum cookware purchased in the last year, the largest segment of the market, the market is opening up to a wider variety of cooking material options. With an increase demand in luxury cooking products and varieties this is the perfect time for a high-quality producer to launch a product onto the market. Because of the price of the usual All-Clad product being more expensive than most companies it is a niche market to attack. Internationally, this trend can be tracked the high-end cooking sector in Europe growing 2.8% annually. This trend is not only for high-end cookware but cookware of all kinds is becoming more and more popular as the at-home cooking trend grows.

The All-Clad Company hopes that the growing market for at-home cooking and the trend towards buying high-quality cookware will allow the companys new Copper Quality Line to be successful in the free market. Because of the trend, more companies are investing in high-end lines regardless of public opinion. All-Clad has a trusted name not only because of the quality of the product but also the lifetime guarantee on every single registered product bought from them. Companies like Kitchen Aid and Calphalon, low rated companies according to Consumer Affairs (A consumer self-reported website), added high-end looking products to their product lines but will not receive a majority market share like All-Clad when it comes to distributing high-end cookware. Because of the All-Clad reputation, quality product line, and lifetime warranty, the Copper Quality Line will be a big hit in the market for high-end cookware.

Size of cookware market in 2014 (In millions)

- High-end market is more niche

c. Competition Present and Potential

The idea for the Copper Quality Line comes from traditional Turkish cookware. Hand crafted copper/metalworking is an ancient Turkish art that is has yet to be fully adopted into western cooking styles. Current other larger cookware companies have come up with copper sets but they are far more expensive, dont have All-Clads warranty, and are not marketed to the average consumer. Most quality copper skillets that can be purchased on the market today are from international retailers and can run upwards of $700 for one skillet. Other current competitors are companies that sell other high-end products. The market that our company targets is not one for copper cookware but high-end cookware. Companies that distribute high end products will also be competitors because of the products they offer. Whether the products are made out of copper or another exotic material, the main competitors of All-Clad are: Le Creuset, Cuisinart, T-fal, and KitchenAid. All of these companies produce like products with minor changes to each one. These companies rely on price and patronage. The All-Clad name sticks out because of its lifetime warranty that other companies are unable to offer because of sheer quality of the product. The biggest potential competitors come from the lower-end cookware companies like Farberware and Calphalon. These companies have the ability to produce cheaper versions of the Copper Quality Line products. Because this product line is being sold under the All-Clad name there is a premium on the expected quality, brand name, and guarantee. Potential competitors have the ability to produce copper pots, lower quality pots, but still the same concept for cheaper. The idea of the pots needing to be a lower quality is important because that is the biggest differentiator in the market. There is little difference in innovation between the products though the All-Clad products are the most innovative, So, for some of the market, companies that can sell strictly copper pans will be able to sell their pans because some of the market may not care about brand-name goods but purchasing the concept of copper pans itself.

Mauviel Copper 12-Piece - $2,800

All-Clad 12-Piece

- $1,400

d. Strengths Uniqueness

This product is unique because there are not a lot of copper cookware products on the market that are marketed towards families and other at-home chefs. Just recently have the introduction of fully copper products been brought to the western market strictly because of the boom in high-end cookware and the sheer uniqueness of the product. Until just recently a majority of cookware products on the market have been marketed towards being functional not innovative. The products already on the market are made with non well-conducting materials such as aluminum, Teflon, stainless steel. A majority of these products are known for cooking unevenly or just turning out a poor quality product without expert experience. The copper skillet is an innovation to westernized cooking that will be able to bring professional style cooking to the comfort of the home chef. Yet has a trusted U.S. brand marketed such a product to the everyday consumer. All-Clad, because of its national distribution and reputation has the ability to bring quality copper cookware to the consumer as part of the Copper Quality Line.

e. Barriers to Entry

With every product there should be some barriers to entry. Regardless of the size, idea, or cost, barriers to entry are in societies to limit market penetration and ensure businesses with innovative ideas earn enough money to further promote innovation. In the cookware industry it is very hard to create a company because of the patronage or trust to the current brands. A very popular idea would be to sell an idea to a larger company or put the product under the name of a parent company to have access to the companys distribution channels. Because there are so many already reputable companies in the industry, along with selling products under a parents company multiple product lines are sponsored by celebrity chefs or TV personalities. Not only do people have brand loyalty but they also have loyalty to a favorite chef or personality understanding that if they purchase a product from their line they will be able to personally cook like them and be able to support them.

f. Consumer Profile

With such an interesting product the Copper Quality Line is meant to cater to such a wide variety of the potential demographic but the cost of these products puts the All-Clad Company into a niche market of consumers. With the average price of one pan/skillet ranging anywhere from $150-$250 the market for these products needs to be broad as to not eliminate any potential consumers for the product. A majority of the All-Clad Companys products are around the same price range as the copper products and the company still manages a large portion of the cookware market share and is a very fierce competitor in the industry. With a variety of products sent to the market under the All-Clad name and some under the name of various celebrity chefs the All-Clad name has attracted a diverse customer base to extend its products to.

Because Copper Quality Line is such a quality focused line the target consumer needs to be a person/family that not only enjoys the art of cooking but has the ability to admire the fine craftsmanship and work put into recreating and reinventing old-style Turkish cookware. The product is not just a rework on an old design but ties in modern technology to create a product that will last through the lifetime warranty while also providing a 5-star cooking experience. The ideal primary customer would be a family with one parent at home or just a single parent who has a passion for cooking. In their spare time, the family member will watch The Food Network or The Cooking Channel to indulge themselves in the intricacies of the kitchen. A majority of people believe that cooking is a very feminine task because of historical stigmas but currently the restaurant sector is dominated. The All-Clad company does not target any products towards a specific gender because of how diverse the cookware sector and cooking industry is. Certain products on the market may be focused towards a certain gender by boasting a certain color, cooking style, weight of the pan, but Copper Quality Line is a product line but on the ideals of quality and innovation not targeted towards a specific gender but a passion for cooking and quality cookware. All this being said, to create a consumer profile for our Copper Quality Line would be easy based on the consumers likes, wants, and intentions in the kitchen. The beauty behind the Copper Quality Line is that it is no more focused towards cooking with quantity than cooking with quality. The lines expansive measures can be used in the everyday kitchen setting and can also be used in the commercial restaurant industry. A majority of the products are focused towards the former being families and at-home chefs but that is because of how the All-Clad name is perceived by families and a majority of its patrons. The consumer profile for this product will consist of adults in the mid forties range. Now, this age demographic is very broad because a consumer profile needs to encapsulate a specific personality and their lifestyle and personality embodies the target market of the Copper Quality Line. The consumer will be a stay-at-home parent and loves to cook and enjoys the cooking channel. She/he is a health conscious individual and would much rather enjoy cooking a meal for the family then going out. With the ability to afford to spend a few hundred dollars on a cookware set or to be gifted one in a wedding would be an ideal obtaining method for this individual. As a person that enjoys cooking their favorite TV shows and channels would be The Food Network and The Cooking Channel. Medialifemagazine.com published The Food Networks planned target audience and the actual audience of these shows and that is the data used to surmise whom the consumer profile is aimed towards and their TV shows of choice. When the consumer likes to go out their favorite restaurants and cuisines feature exotic multileveled platters including curries, noodle-dishes, and the occasional vegetarian option.

Meet Linda, Linda is a 45 year old stay at home mother of two who enjoys cooking and providing the best for her children. At a young age Linda learned to cook with her mother and instantly became obsessed with the culinary world. After getting married, Linda received her first quality cookware set, an All-Clad 12 piece set from her parents as a wedding gift. After traveling with her husband and learning more about the culinary world with first hand experience Linda began to personally explore the culinary world and all it has to offer. Lindas favorite TV show is The Kitchen and it features multiple chefs in a conversational cooking setting meant to make the viewer feel like a comfortable part of the conversation. Linda lives in a small suburb outside Manhattan and her husband works in the city but makes it home almost every night to enjoy Lindas cooking. After years of experience and learning about the various cooking styles, techniques, and offerings of various cookware and companies Lindas loyalty to the quality All-Clad products she received and still uses for almost 20 years has led her to become a loyal patron of the All-Clad name. Lindas hobbies include hosting quaint dinner parties for her and her friends and going to the city to enjoy an afternoon of shopping and wine with her friends. Because her husbands high income is able to support her desired lifestyle Linda has become accustomed to a more high-end lifestyle and enjoys indulging when it comes to providing the best for her family when it comes to cooking with quality ingredients and using quality cookware. Copper Quality Line caught Lindas sight while at a wine and cheese tasting at her local Chef Central. The All-Clad Company is a favorite in the cookware industry when it comes to customers looking to purchase quality cookware products. To sum up the consumer profile we have Linda, a mother of two kids who lives in a suburb outside of Manhattan with a passion for cooking quality healthy food for her family. She enjoys all aspects of cooking and the culinary industry including TV shows, trying various cuisines, and investing in long-lasting cookware products. Her favorite restaurants include Junoon and Morimoto, high-end New York eateries that push the culinary boundaries she is accustomed to. Linda drives a 2014 Acura MDX that caters to her family oriented lifestyle while also offering the elegance that she desires in life.

The consumer profile built by All-Clad not only embodies the ideal consumer but allows the company to attract and find ways to attract other potential consumers. The consumer profile was built based on All-Clads present target market built from the companys warranty service. After purchasing a product one must register the product online to ensure that the customer has access to the lifetime warranty of this product. This service allows the company to track its products from owner to owner while also providing the company with data to base its clientele and future products on. There are various ways that the company can use this information to help spread awareness of its products and future promotions. Food Network, which has thousands of daily commercials and daily celebrity chef appearances, is a great way to market products especially for the All-Clad market because of the networks target market of 30-56.

Pioneer Woman a Food Network personality who perfectly reflects the new

All-Clad brand

III. BUSINESS PROPOSITION

a. Consumer Aspects Concept Testing

Old-style Turkish cooking methods have been preserved for thousands of years and the modern cooking trend has revitalized the art to involve not only Turkish copper art but also involve innovation into the modern cookware industry. Consumers take very well to these products not only because of how efficient these products cook but also because of the sheer beauty of the unstained copper and inside tin finish. These products have a wonderful shine and reflect the copper work methods that are thousands of years old. Because of the current trend of the cooking industry consumers are more willing to spend more money on reliable products introduced by reputable companies but products that also reflect the test of time with Turkish methods.

The copper cookware concept has been picked up wonderfully by consumers attracting more and more consumers from the US market. Current products have very little copper material in them but the modern resurgence of quality cookware has led consumers to become more knowledgeable of the concept and what it has to offer. Avid users of copper cookware enjoy the copper finish and patina available from the use. The copper color wonderfully brings together any kitchen home and allows users to experience another level of cooking. To test the concept All-Clad has done research testing to pinpoint what consumers enjoy most about their products. Another consumer testing method was to reach out to consumers and figure out what bothers them the most about cooking and various cookware products. The biggest complaints that All-Clad received were complaints on required maintenance of products and products also boasting being non-stick and not pulling through with a quality product. Various consumers complained that cast iron products require too much maintenance and certain poor quality aluminum pans that boast false claims on products. Because of the lifetime warranty offered by All-Clad, consumers that enjoy quality cookware with little-to-no maintenance choose to purchase All-Clad products. Talking to the consumers using testing groups can also help the All-Clad company talk to consumers using a safe setting where consumers can express complaints, problems, likes, and desires of the Copper Quality Line. The product testing will be done in a test kitchen and not in a conversational setting. Cookware concept testing should be a hands-on experience involving the testers using the cookware to discover problems, complaints, and desires for the current and future product lines.

Example test kitchen for the product testing

b. Retailer Aspects Type of Retail Outlet to be Utilized

The main retail outlet to be used by the All-Clad company will be the various retailers that offer All-Clad products both online and in-store. Some of the biggest in-store names to offer All-Clad products include Bloomingdales, Bed Bath & Beyond, Williams-Sonoma, Macys, and Crate & Barrel. These companies not only have their own customer following but will provide All-Clad with the necessary storefront to showcase the All-Clad products. With each store having its own sales and retail space customers have a wide variety of in-store options while choosing where to purchase All-Clad products. All-Clad also has various online only retailers that showcase and sell their products including Amazon.com, Cooking.com, cutleryandmore.com, and chef.com. Because All-Clad is such a large reputable company they have such a wide variety of access to the global market.

c. Business Objective

The objective of any business while introducing a product is strong market acceptance and market penetration. The goal of All-Clad and the Copper Quality Line is to create a differentiated product from other copper cookware on the market and to sell it under the trusted All-Clad name with a lifetime warranty. Because All-Clad is already an established company with some following they already have deep market penetration and avid access to consumers but they still need to offer a quality differentiated product to make sure consumers understand the difference between the expensive All-Clad product and other companies cheaper cookware sets. Another objective of the business is to market its product to the consumers. Copper products cannot be sold the same way as other pans because they come with a larger premium and require care and respect for the product and the art of cooking. Copper pots cannot be neglected or-else they with acquire a patina so the marketing campaign needs to focus on the quality and design of the product that separates it from fully copper cookware offered by other retailers.

d. Communication Objectives

To communicate the idea of elegance and innovation through a product is very complicated but All-Clad chooses to do it with a marketing campaign solely focused on the quality and innovation of the product. It is important to communicate an image of quality and innovation to the consumer because the consumer needs to understand why they are paying a premium for their products. Communication between businesses and customers is key because customers directly control business moves and decisions through market trends, followings, and direct purchases. The easiest and most effective way for All-Clad to communicate with its potential customers is through marketing and promotion using its extensive retail pipeline. As described in the retail aspects section All-Clad has dozens of online and in-store retailers at its fingertips to use for promotion and communication. All-Clad also has its email chain and its customers information under warranty that it can use to communicate ideas to.

e. Message to Consumer and Retailer

The message that All-Clad wants to give is relatively short, All-Clad believes in selling quality products at affordable prices. The All-Clad company strives on providing its customers with the best customer service possible including a lifetime warranty on all of its products to provide hassle free, quality, customer service. As a company which makes all of its products in America it is important to the All-Clad company that customer know where their products are made, the quality and care that goes in to making them, and ensuring that their products are of the highest caliber of American made cookware. As a company whose roots are deeply seeded in American coining and the American steel industry, All-Clad ensures customers that they are receiving the highest quality and innovative product. Created and founded by scientists every product released by the company undergoes years of testing and tweaking. The Copper Quality Line was created not only to match the demand of the consumer but also because All-Clad wants to expand their line from stainless steel to offer a wider variety of cookware products to match the growing needs and wants of the cookware industry.

f. Marketing Strategy and Pricing

All-Clad does not offer many promotions of its products because of the high-end nature of the brand. All-Clad relies on its retailers to provide various promotions of the products that the brand offers. As an example, one of All-Clads largest retailers, Bed Bath & Beyond, offers 20% off any in-store product promotions almost once a month for its more loyal customers and cardholders. These promotions allow customers access to quality brand names like All-Clad while also granting the customers access to exclusive deals on the product only available through Bed Bath & Beyond. One thing that the All-Clad company will do is reach out to its current customers to let them know about the addition to the All-Clad every expanding product line. Customers that have chosen to receive email updates and customers that have a warranty through the All-Clad lifetime warranty program will be notified of the Copper Quality Line. All-Clad offers very competitive pricing for its stainless cookware because its products are made in America and it uses a full pan, tri-ply structure unlike most companys, which only use the tri-ply structure for the bases. Another marketing strategy of the All-Clad company is to introduce the cookware in association with various celebrity chefs. This type of deal is not a sponsorship but it involves celebrity chefs using the products on their shows featured on the food network under the All-Clad name. Certain celebrity chefs on The Food Network have the aura of higher class such as Geoffrey Zakarian and Michael Symon. Having these chefs represent the company and the brand will directly relate to the consumers because our target consumer will be an avid foodie and will enjoy watching The Food Network and various shows on this channel. Accompanied with the chefs actually using these products, various segments of the shows will be sponsored by the All-Clad brand but more specifically featuring the Copper Quality Line.

Pricing for most of the All-Clad products can run anywhere from $150 to $300 for most of the pans and skillets offered in Copper Quality Line. Though these prices may be high they are very competitive in the copper cookware industry. Other competitors of the All-Clad brand sell their products anywhere from $200-$500 and are usually imported from European countries. To make the pricing more competitive the All-Clad brand relies on its distribution channel to offer sales and discounts of the Copper Quality Line products. This pricing may be considered expensive for certain cookware products but the lifetime warranty of the products and sheer quality of the American forged copper makes up for the price. Competitors boast quality products but do not back these products up with any warranty or support system for dealing with re-tinning the copper pans or cleaning the patina of the outside shell. In an attempt to offer the cheapest products available to the consumer the company distributes the products individually and in sets to offer some discount on purchasing more products.

g. Packaging

Packaging needs to not only ensure the product gets to the consumer safely and in-tact but the packaging also needs to communicate a message to the consumer about the quality of the All-Clad brand. The All-Clad packaging for The Copper Quality Line needs to be all black but should feature the product on the front and the back with the sides boasting the quality and information about the brand and creation of the product and the line in white lettering. Not only will this package be elegant but also it will be a great promoter of the quality of the All-Clad brand. All-Clad will work very hard with its distribution channel to ensure that the products get there safely and unharmed. Packaging and brand recognition are key to successfully representing a brand and backing up the product. The product should be differentiated from other products on the market and should contain different visuals as to separate it from other companies packaging. With the All-Clad logo in bold lettering on the front featuring made in Pennsylvania the product packaging is sure to be different from competitors.

Current All-Clad packaging

h. Test Marketing

Other than the various concept testing that we will do in the All-Clad test kitchen the company will make efforts to distribute a survey to current customers and will target customers for a chance to win an All-Clad set in its various in-store retailers. The surveys will be next to the All-Clad displays in various stores and can be accessed online on the All-Clad website. The survey will contain various responses as to not give away the product but to test what consumers really think of the All-Clad brand and the products that should be on the market giving customers the options to choose from one of our various answers or to input their own options for questions.

When customers go to stores like Bed Bath & Beyond they will be given the opportunity to fill out a survey to win a chance to win an All-Clad 10 piece cookware set while also helping out with various marketing concepts achieved by the company. The reason why the company releases this survey is learn more about the market before the product is released to ensure that the product will not be a bust and that they can build a strong consumer profile backing their product. The goal of the survey is to attract around 5-10 thousand survey takers to get more concrete conclusions for our product and company. By conducting the surveys online and in-store we hope that the survey results will be unbiased and will help us collect data not only in the stores but internationally. Abroad, All-Clad is not as well known brand so it will be very beneficial for All-Clad to distribute an online survey to reach the international customers.

Survey

1. Please state your age: ________________

2. Please state your gender: MaleFemaleRather not specify

3. Please circle which of the following describes your race:

CaucasianHispanic/Latin AmericanAfrican AmericanAsianOther

4. How many times a week does your family cook their meals at home? (Please circle one)

12345677+

5. Do you currently own any All-Clad cookware products (Please circle one)

YesNo

6. When purchasing cookware products do you care about quality of materials used and where the products are built? (Please circle one)

YesNo

7. Would you purchase a product for a higher cost if there were a lifetime warranty attached to that product? (Please circle one)

YesNo

8. Do you care what material your cookware is made out of: (Please circle one)

YesNo

9. Do you take care of your high-quality cookware by following the recommended maintenance of the product: (please circle one)

No careSome careFollow recommended treatment

10. How much do you spend yearly on cookware being pots, pans, skillets in USD: (Please circle one)

$0$50$100$150$200$300$500$1000$1000+

11. What is the biggest problem you face with your kitchen cookware: (Please circle one)

Requires maintenanceTough to cleanBreaks easilyOther_________

12. Do you trust All-Clad as a brand and recommend the companys products to others: (Please circle one)

13. What is your favorite food related TV show: ______________________

14. What is your favorite cuisine: ________________________

Yes, I trust the brandYes, but not enough to recommend to friends

NoNo, I dislike the brandNo, would not recommend brand

i. Market Research

The research from the survey and the focus groups will give our company a better understanding of the current products on the market and the hopes for future products. We hope that by using the focus groups and having the surveys be in stores and online we will hopefully collect a large enough data pool to get a better understanding of our target market and customer base. Though many of the customers may not own All-Clad products the point of the survey is to collect data of the current market and potential market for the cookware industry. The survey results proved to be fruitful with a majority of the results matching the desired consumer profile of the target customer.

The focus groups will give a better understanding of the Copper Quality Line because the members involved will have hands-on experience with the products. Using hands-on application of the product is important to gain a better understanding of complications with the products and first time users of copper cookware products. Hopefully, from the focus groups the All-Clad company will be able to make small changes to the product or how it is marketed or designed to fit the need of the everyday user of cookware. Though the cookware is not meant for everyday use and wear and tear the goal is to test the maximums of the product. A consumer stress test is more effective than the company doing a test because of how versatile the pots and pans will be used with a consumer. The Copper Quality Line needs to go through various cooking and neglect tests to ensure that the products are living up to their full potential and that the line is ready to be distributed globally to consumers.

Using the survey and focus groups the All-Clad company has found that consumers biggest complaints with products is their false advertising claims and cheap quality. Reviews of various cookware products online go to show that certain pans require unknown maintenance or are hard to use in an everyday setting. The Copper Quality Line offers a variety of sizes for their cookware products so come can be used everyday and some for special occasions. The products are also sold separately to fit the specific needs of consumers in the market.

The survey should give the All-Clad company comfort in knowing that they have a targetable market and that the product line can be successfully introduced into the global market. Because of the packaging and unique offering of the products the All-Clad name hopes to become a globally recognizable brand not only because of the quality of their cookware but because of the warranty and trust that the company has with their products. The surveys and focus groups should be enough for the company to get a base understanding of the consumer market.

IV. PROMOTION

a. Consumer Advertising

To advertise the product the All-Clad company will offer a feature on its website, reach out to its current customers, and use its distribution chain to utilize store displays and online features to advertise the product. Because this product is new to the market it will be very hard to catch consumers to attract them to the quality of copper cookware. Currently, some companies offer products with copper cores but no full copper products have been introduced to the high-end cookware market. It is very important that we listen to the consumers on their survey advice to get a better understanding of the required advertising and pricing on the market.

To get the word out in the stores we will hope that our retailers will utilize a display to advertise the various All-Clad products. Because the Copper Quality Line is different from most current products on the market a representative in the larger stores and display videos in the smaller stores will accompany the displays. The idea behind the representatives and the video displays is to give a brief overview of the products available in the larger sets and the idea behind the creation of the Copper Quality Line.

The most popular way to advertise the product would to be using the online distribution channels to feature the All-Clad products and to have companies offer discounts on the featured products. The main channels to broadcast features on would be The Food Network and The Cooking Channel. Both of these networks attract the desired target consumer and have the ability to use special features during some of the more popular episodes of the shows to ensure that the product has full market penetration. Both of these TV networks also feature their own products and have very strong followings on their websites. To have the ability to feature All-Clad products on the websites of these channels would be a great attractor to All-Clad brand and their new products. Another way to showcase the All-Clad name would be on sites like Epicurious and other online cooking recipe websites. Other than a feature on the front-page of these websites advertisements could also be featured on various recipe pages with certain eastern keyword searched that match the style of cooking that the Copper Quality Line evokes.

b. Trade Support

The idea behind the trade support is to ensure that the All-Clad companies money is being spent wisely on the most efficient distribution channels and ensure that the money coming from the Copper Quality Line is being spent efficiently. Trade support ensures that the money from the company is being spent wisely to effectively market the brand and spend the money coming in and out of the product line. The trade support team will be constantly monitoring the sales of the copper product line through the stores and by tracking the warranty system. By tracking the purchase of these products it will help All-Clad promote future purchases to figure out different possible distribution channels for future and current products. The trade support staff can also ensure that there is continuous success between the distributors and the retailers. Ensuring that there is a successful relationship between the distribution channels is important to continue business between the various brands. Trade support workers can also track the progress of other businesses to make sure that the All-Clad company is using the most effective distribution channels and selling their products at the best location to showcase and sell the companies products.

c. In Store Advertisements

The in store advertisement will be crucial to the differentiation of our cookware product. Because the product will be sold in a section with other various cookware products it is key that these advertisements boldly represent the company and the brand. We plan on using the available resources in each store and if not supplementing them to ensure that each display properly reflects the high quality of the All-Clad brand. To ensure that the displays are being setup properly we will have area representatives of the company ensuring that the displays are being properly setup and that the brand is being adequately represented. The brand ambassadors will be in the larger stores that guarantee more sales, in the wealthier areas, because they are the most important to attract the attention of the consumers. A majority of these displays will be in the larger stores such as Bed Bath & Beyond and Bloomingdales in stores with very large cookware sales during the peak shopping seasons.

When there is no brand ambassador at these stores the company will use video monitors to play videos at the displays to help describe the product and support the brand. The use of these displays will show the progress through the creation of the Copper Quality Line and the reason for the creation and westernizing of the product line. We believe that people will take to the displays because of their elegance and the attractiveness and catchiness of the displays. The video monitors videos will feature short clips involving the use of these products, the ease of these products, and like said before, the creation of these products. Advertising in the store is very important and needs to be successful because a majority of cookware is bought in store or tested in store because this is a very important and expensive decision. People are more prone to purchase the materials once looking at them and physically grasping them. This is also important because one of the main attracting features of the Copper Quality Line is the beauty of the copper finish to the product. After experience the beauty of the copper cookware in a professional setting buyers will be able to experience the product to its full potential.

Sample display of what the products could look like being featured in various stores

d. Internet, Web, Social Media

The main utilized resource for online promotion will be the use of the Internet to help promote the products. We live in one of the most advanced technological ages and without utilizing the Internet to its full potential would be atrocious to the promotion campaign for the Copper Quality Line. Current customers will be kept in the loop through opting for company wide product updates and people with products under warranty will also be notified when products go on sale in stores near them. It is very important to remain in contact with the various retailers to ensure that they are properly displaying the products and doing effective online promotion of the product line and All-Clad brand. There are various ways that customers can be kept in the loop for these products such as utilizing various cooking websites, message boards, and community blogs. We plan on using web advertising to help focus on our target market by utilizing the various more frequently visited sites of our target consumers. The sites that will be most effectively utilized will be cooking sites that can help promote the brand through recommendations.

The web, along with the Internet can be used to access a wide variety of consumers in this technological age. Because All-Clad does not promote their products on their website it is critical that other companies do the advertising for the products on their websites using storewide promotions. Different social media can also be used to attract a variety of customers by posting advertisements on a variety of social media websites and advertising on the social media pages of various stores, companies, and TV shows.

V. CONCLUSION

By introducing the first high quality, cheap, fully copper product line to the western market, All-Clad can hope to gain more brand recognition for their products and will be able to grow as a brand. The various in store promotions and current clientele will help grow the brand and make the Copper Quality Line well known. The promotions will help proliferate the market using the strategic placement of products in stores and online. The testing done for the product will ensure that the company can adequately assess the market for current and future products. Our consumer profile, Linda, was created because she matches that of the test marketing profile fulfilling the requirements of the survey to attract the ideal customer to the All-Clad brand.