Paul Stephenson | Pioneered with Mars
…who has pioneered not only with human customers but also with animals as consumers. He worked at Mars for 20 years, leading innovation in pet care internationally and on chocolate globally. Examples include the creation of a whole new category of product that helps dogs have better smelling breath and healthier mouths. This is Dentastix, and it was deep care of the pets wellbeing that led to the identification of the problem, then exploration of the cause with dogs, and the creation of a solution that would delight both the pet and their owner. Details matter – for Dentastix to perform its health enhancement role a new daily routine needs to be established. Using packaging cues (they were always sold in sevens) and making the chew ultra-tasty for the dog resulted in a new daily connection moment between pets and their owners. Serious success followed, for Mars with a business worth several hundred million dollars within 10 years, and more broadly with the creation of a new category, the sign of a genuine piece of pioneering that others copy.
In Chocolate one of the challenges tackled was to take the category into India and Africa, which, despite producing 70% of the world’s cocoa, consumes only a tiny proportion of the end product. Part of the challenge is not with consumers but with the retail chain to reach them, with high temperatures and scarce refrigeration making it impossible to get good quality chocolate to the people who might enjoy it. The team developed a chocolate with a higher melting point plus a very low-cost refrigerator that would maintain chocolate at around 20°C, and thought they’d cracked it. But as it started to be rolled out, there were unexpected quality issues of melted product. It took some outside-in exploration to serendipitously uncover what had gone wrong. By happening to be at a small shop when the owner closed it for the day, a Mars team member saw them switch all the power off as they left, to save on their bills. In so doing, they switched off the Mars fridge and the temperature soared overnight. It was enough to guide the adjustment of the design so it could maintain a low enough temperature for long enough when not connected to power. Mars today has a thriving portfolio of chocolate brands in India, and is expanding its footprint in Africa.