Innovation management and new product development

Résumé du document

Samsonite has chosen to position its brand in the niche market of high-end luggage. Before 2006, the brand was positioned mid-range. The downside for companies choosing this positioning is that they are attacked by both top and bottom.

Moreover, Samsonite Black Label, born in 2005, positioned its collection in a high-end niche. It is under this umbrella brand that are launched most significant innovations such as Curv, a compound woven polypropylene, which is lighter and stronger than the usual material.

Samsonite gets the support of famous people, such as Isabella Rossellini, Jean Reno, Richard Branson, towards its products since 2006.
Before Tim Parker became CEO in 2008, Samsonite had a strategy which was too upmarket, with external collaborations with, for instance, the fashion designers Alexander McQueen and Viktor & Rolf. This, coupled with the economic global crisis, lead to a financial drift. Samsonite now designs its products lines internally ensuring to remain a high-end but not luxurious brand.

Extraits

[...] This category has hype taste, hence the importance of the image conveyed by their accessories. It meets the expectations of customers' in terms of performance as well, as quality is a guarantee of reliability for them. To better understand the position of Samsonite on the market, it is interesting to analyze its strengths and weaknesses. Context and competitive environment and their effects on the firm's innovation strategy To analyze the competitive environment within which Samsonite evolves, one can first discuss the opportunities and threats of the market. [...]

[...] - Families: Not only parents and children but also grand-parents and grand-children. Due to the number, the amount of clothes to carry increases. However, the space available does not. The luggage with a vacuum compartment answers directly the need of the target with a clear benefit and, very easily, the traveler can gain up to 75% of the volume. The product offers an added-value to its target compared to other luggage. It will decrease the discomfort that could have been possibly felt by the target when travelling. [...]

[...] Finally, launching a new product requires some investment. As previously seen, Samsonite is an innovative firm, always trying to bring new technologies to the market. To develop such ideas, it has efficient R&D and marketing units and the means to maintain it financially. Indeed, Samsonite now tries to invest efficiently by increasing the amount spent to develop new products. In the first six months of 2012, the firm increased its investment on marketing by to US$ 63.1 million. This amount is all the more justified that its sales are increasing worldwide. [...]

[...] 2007: Invention of the first shock absorption suitcase. The wheels of the suitcase are made of rubber dampers, which help to preserve fragile baggage damaged by shocks. It also allows saving the arm's energy and strength when pulling the suitcase. The suitcases, which benefit from this invention, are the Graviton Samsonite suitcases. 2008: Invention of Curv technology and invention of the suitcase Cosmolite using Curv technology. Cosmolite suitcase is the lightest and most durable on the market. Built from materials inspired by the automotive and aerospace, Cosmolite suitcase is meant to be indestructible. [...]

[...] The benefits may not be well pursued by the consumer. Regarding the legal part, Samsonite has to pay for the using of the patent The use of the vacuum compartment is legalized if Samsonite pays the right to use the patent No. : US 6,499,574 B1; this patent explains how to use the vacuum compartment and the advantage of it, here reducing the volume of the articles of travel to a minimum and thus increasing storage efficiency. The design of the suitcase is not new; at the beginning the consumer can't see the evolution of the product, and hence can't identify the new product. [...]