Ripe & Ready KitchenAid Appliance

Time and time again, people have expressed their frustrations regarding spoiled produce. Most claimed that they did not realize the food had passed its ripest stage or that it would expire before they had the chance to consume it. From there, I identified an opportunity to solve the lack of knowledge consumers have regarding the ripeness of their fruits and vegetables. The target market is identified as health-conscious young professionals living in the US, between the ages of 25 and 34. There are over 41 million men and women in this age group (US Census Bureau). Most are single purchasers in such a way that a lot of what they spend goes to their own food consumption. Those with at least a bachelor’s degree have an average salary of $51,000 and will have more discretionary income than other possible market segments [1]. I developed a countertop kitchen appliance and formed a brand alliance with KitchenAid to solve the need for food waste reduction. Appliances seamlessly fit in with consumers’ usage of produce, which pre-dominantly occurs in the kitchen. Using ethylene detecting sensors in a device with similar dimensions as a blender, consumers will be able to figure out the stage of ripeness of their fruits and vegetables. Not only will our product tell consumers when produce is ripe or not, but it also includes a feature that indicates how many days are left until something is ready to eat. The product only works for fruits and vegetables that release ethylene gas because that is what the sensors detect and use to inform the consumer. due to fixed costs and a large advertising budget, the forecasted payback period is 1.57 years. After a year and a half, it will contribute to KitchenAid’s net income, increasing the appeal of the product.


Stage 0←Discovery, Identify Opportunities and Ideas
An opportunity in the food industry emerges when consumers store and consume fruits and vegetables in their home. I have decided to look into solving buyers' need for knowing when their produce is at its peak ripeness in order to prevent wasting money on food that has spoiled. In total, Americans throw away 25% of the produce they buy annually, mostly because it has expired [2].
Throwing away produce is akin to throwing away money and it is high time to provide a solution to this wasteful trend brought about by Americans' lack of knowledge. Healthy eating is a growing trend that contributes to the increased demand for fruits and vegetables.
In an October 2014 report on Mintel, 28% of people reported eating less canned fruit and 21% eating less frozen vegetables. This translates that fresh produce demand will continue to increase as people shift their preferences. According to the USDA Economic Research Service, organic produce sales alone were an estimated $12.12 billion in 2012 and would increase an estimated 23% in 2014. These statistics display the trend of individuals seeking fresher produce.
A study conducted by the Natural Resources Defense Council found that the average American household loses approximately $2200 every year due to food spoilage. In general, Americans lose approximately $165 billion worth of food each year [3]. Not only is this an unfortunate statistic on practical terms, but this also spills over into environmental issues and the hunger problem in America.
According to [3], "the uneaten foods ends up rotting in landfills as the single largest component of US municipal solid waste where it accounts for a large portion of US methane emissions." [3]. Clearly, this points to an exacerbation of the problem of pollution in the United States. Also, one in six Americans suffer from the lack of a stable food supply. If the rate of food waste was to be reduced by 15%, this would alleviate the hunger problem for 25 million Americans [3].
In essence, research suggests that food wastage is a problem that when solved, it will actually provide partial solutions to other pressing problems such as pollution and hunger. Hence, finding solutions to this problem is of utmost importance in terms of improving the quality of life of every American citizen.

Stage 1←Scoping, Screen & Verify Opportunity Viability
Target Market: People living in the US and in the age group ranging from 25 -34 will benefit most from this opportunity. They are often classified as young professionals and are at a life stage when they are most likely to be acquiring new appliances at a level well above that of other age groups. Most are single, have some extra spending money each month and only purchase food for themselves. This is important because I have to link promotions to key events to this target market's different stages in life including: graduations, weddings, house-warming parties, and the arrival of children [4]. While millennials do not purchase more produce than any other age group, they are starting to "increasingly opt for R. A. M. Alshehre Open Journal of Business and Management fresher and healthier food" [4]. This growth suggests the significance of marketing to this young target market that is, overall, very proficient at navigating websites and social media to learn about new products, compare prices, and find new promotions [4].
Competitive Analysis: Below are a few current solutions to this need, followed by the reason they still leave a gap for consumer's needs. The failure of other products leaves room for a new solution to the problem. I know this problem is real because it was the number one concern of the target market that emerged from my primary research and the current solutions are inadequate.
Ethylene Gas Absorber: This is a small fake apple that is placed in your produce drawer, to absorb the ethylene gases fruits give off, making the produce last longer, preserving freshness.
Amazon reviews prove consumers are still disappointed by the lifetime of their produce even with the use of these gas absorbers. "Used it as directed and noticed no changes in my vegetables. They made no difference in the freshness or lifetime of the veggies. Was extremely disappointed in the product. Don't waste your money". Debbie Meyer: Various products including, green plastic bags and Tupperware containers, that help extend the life of produce [5].
According to Ph.D. chemistry expert, Anne Helmenstine, "most produce really shouldn't be stored in plastic bags … the shelf life of most produce is reduced" [6].
Consumer "Workarounds": From my ethnographic research, consumers informed me about their "workarounds"; tasks performed due to the absence of appropriate products. Consumers spoke about different tricks, including wrapping the stems of bananas in plastic or storing fruits in glassware to keep their produce fresher for longer. These different "workarounds" were more personal trial-and-error solutions compared to universal solutions for the target market.
This category of solutions is inadequate because consumers are typically uninformed of these makeshift ways of preserving produce and are usually unsatisfied with the outcome.
Sources of Differentiation: The Ripe & Ready is considered both a breakthrough product and a line extension for KitchenAid, making it unlike anything else consumers have seen within the countertop appliance industry. The ethylene gas detection technology built into the appliance enables it to sense exactly when the fruit or vegetables will be at peak ripeness as well as when it will no longer be good to eat. This separates us dramatically from any new entrants into the market. The accuracy of the appliance is another source of competitive advantage. The 99.9% laboratory-tested accuracy, I can guarantee that Ripe & Ready will always be exact and correct when informing consumers of the lifespan of their produce. This was difficult to attain and took many trials to perfect, so this definitely sets me ahead of my competition. Also, my affiliation with the well-known and highly trusted brand of Kitchen Aid will give our product a R. A. M. Alshehre Open Journal of Business and Management huge competitive advantage. When consumers see this new product with the Kitchen Aid logo in stores, they'll be more inclined to try the product and trust that it'll work because of the established brand loyalty and equity.
Internal Evaluation: From my group brainstorming sessions, I came up with a long list of potential new product ideas to meet my unmet need. I immediately eliminated impractical concepts that had large initial investments or were technically unfeasible. To narrow down the list further, the prospective solutions were subjected to a preliminary screening. The ideas were evaluated based on different strategic filters with emphasis on the ability to sell through distribution channels, patentability of the product and growth potential. This screening process allowed me to focus on the most fitting, feasible and profitable solutions.
After several group discussions weighing the advantages and disadvantages of my remaining concepts, we agreed on two, a produce sticker and an appliance.
I scrutinized the final two and realized there would be more of a complication with the produce sticker because it was a B2B product and could potentially cannibalize supermarket sales due to too much consumer awareness of produce ripeness in-store. On the other hand, the Ripe & Ready appliance is a B2C product that allows me to reach my target market more effectively. By forming a brand alliance with Whirlpool's KitchenAid, a well-known home appliance company, I am able to rely on their brand equity and current consumers. The Ripe & Ready appliance fits extremely well with their existing product mix and benefits from their established distribution channels, such as Bed Bath & Beyond, Macy's and Target. Additionally, this product would likely be approved for a provisional patent, protecting the unparalleled technology and concept from immediate competitors.

Ripe & Ready Concept
Fit: The concept I chose fits very well into my identified opportunity because with this product, I have solved the biggest concern that was voiced during my ethnographic research. The Ripe & Ready appliance solves the problem of lack of consumer knowledge of when produce is ready to eat. This countertop kitchen device informs the user which stage of ripeness the produce is in, preventing produce going to waste, ultimately saving consumers money. By partnering with KitchenAid, Ripe & Ready easily fits into the existing brand image. As a well-known and highly trusted company, it possesses strong brand loyalty when it comes to all kitchen appliances, especially countertop appliances. KitchenAid's countertop appliance product mix includes blenders, toasters, microwaves, coffee grinders, and food processors. I found that our product could easily fit in with their current product lines, complementing their products and creating a stronger, more cohesive brand image.
Feasibility: The kitchen appliance industry is well-developed. Quality products with a similar design and structure to that of my product concept are already efficiently manufactured. My alliance with KitchenAid brings with its expertise in the industry, making it easy to find suppliers and manufacturers for R. A. M. Alshehre Open Journal of Business and Management my product. Furthermore, engineers at MIT developed the technology needed to detect ethylene levels released by small quantities of produce, like that used by a single user [7].
Profitability: According to Mintel, "the small kitchen appliance market is estimated to reach $5.9 billion in 2013, representing a substantial gain of 44% over the past five years". This forecasted growth offers a huge opportunity for the industry and for new products. In addition, Mintel also characterized the market as, "an environment in which innovative new products can flourish and drive incremental sales". This highlights that creative, novel products, like the Ripe & Ready appliance, are in a suitable domain where they can thrive [8]. Due to my strategic alliance and having the KitchenAid name on our appliance, I am able to charge a higher price because of the premium brand image. KitchenAid products range from less than $100, for blenders and toasters, to hundreds of dollars, for food processors and multi-cookers. For the Ripe & Ready appliance, I was thinking about pricing it mid range in comparison to their other products, around a few hundred dollars. I plan to conduct more research to understand the consumer's willingness to pay and the value proposition.

Produce Perfect Concept
Fit: The Producer Perfect sticker answers the key problem I am trying to solve in this situation; consumers not knowing when their produce is at peak ripeness.
This product fits perfectly because as the produce ages, the ethylene gas it emits will turn the sticker from yellow, to green, to brown as it becomes ripe and then rotten. This process informs the consumer what stage the produce is at while in the grocery store so they can more effectively choose the proper produce for their personal use timeline.
Feasibility: The technology used in the Produce Perfect stickers would be similar to the ethylene gas detector sensors already developed today. However, since we want the sticker to be more flexible and flush with the produce, it would have to engineered differently in order to be scaled down and made in to a different form since the current sensors are stiff data chips. Technologically speaking, this task could be quite difficult and has high potential to be impossible or ineffective.
Profitability: As stated above, the sticker's purpose is to inform consumers of the state of their produce while still in-store. Although I found this to solve their lack of knowledge, I came to the conclusion that the sticker has a high chance of creating a threat to supermarket sales and quality control due to consumers not buying as much produce because they know how quickly it will go bad. Therefore, it would be challenging to convince grocers to implement the stickers into their operations. Before choosing an effective price for this product, through research, I realized that Produce Perfect would ultimately not be profitable due to the cannibalization is would cause to produce sales in supermarkets.

Stage 2: Business Case
Concept 1 (Figure 1). Concept 2 ( Figure 2). I examined both the Produce Perfect sticker and Ripe & Ready as potential product concepts that could potentially fulfill the needs consumers expressed with their greatest concern when purchasing produce. After collecting feedback from my peers based on product skeletons for each, I realized that there would be more of a complication with the Produce Perfect sticker because it's a business to business product. The sticker displays the stage of ripeness their produce is in, creating a potential threat to supermarket sales due to consumers' reluctantly to purchase produce that doesn't display a green sticker. Therefore, it would be challenging to convince grocers to implement the stickers into their businesses. Most grocery store employees are well educated on the state of ripeness of the stores' produce, making the sticker concept unfeasible. On the other hand, the Ripe & Ready appliance is a business to consumer product that allows me to reach my target market effectively as well as being more feasible technologically. By forming a brand alliance with Whirlpool's KitchenAid, a well-known home and kitchen appliance company, I am able to rely on their brand equity and current consumers. The Ripe & Ready appliance fits extremely well with their existing product mix and benefits from their established distribution channels, such as Bed Bath & Beyond, Macy's, Target and e-commerce on the Kitchenaid website. Additionally, I have the opportunity to apply for a provisional patent with the KitchenAid Ripe & Ready concept which will ensure the protection of the unparalleled technology from immediate appliance competitors.

Product Positioning Statement
"For health-conscious young professionals, Kitchenaid Ripe & Ready is the easy-to-use countertop appliance that informs you of the ripeness of your produce within seconds, utilizing ethylene detecting technology".   and "Probably Would Purchase". This means to say that 28% of the total respondents express the sure intent to purchase the product. This is precisely why the product will remain competitive in the market.  (Figure 3).

Qualitative Summary
I conducted a focus group with 60 participants including male and female students ages 18 -23. The focus group lasted about 30 minutes and included questions such as "What do you believe is the primary benefit of this product?" and "How much would you expect to pay for this product?". Similar to the quantitative results, the participants' ages and occupations proved to be the wrong market that I was attempting to research. The students' overall feedback was that they do not consider this a need for themselves because they eat out or have meal plans and most of their consumption at home includes frozen foods, not fresh produce.
The focus group helped me get a deeper insight into why our target market saw no need for this in their lives. The good outcome of this negative feedback is that it guided me towards conducting more secondary research on Mintel and found that the majority of purchasers in the small kitchen appliance industry includes individuals ages 25 -34 [12].   Note however that this was conducted on 60 participants only. Hence, the sample size is far small and not representative of the wider market that we are trying to evaluate ( Figure 5).

Financials
Presented below is the financials I researched several industry standards and used those to predict the retail markup and the manufacturer markup, which ultimately gave me the cost of goods sold. The average retail markup for electronics and appliances was 33% in 2014 [14]. One source stated slotting fees range anywhere from $1.5 to $3 million when introducing a product nationally [15]. I decided to estimate about $2.5 million dollars in slotting fees because I want to increase shelf-space and I plan for retailers to place end-of-aisle displays to help boost sales and awareness [15].  Average appliance manufacture markups in the industry start at 30% [16].
Based off pricing classes, multiplying the manufacture markup times net sales will leave me with my cost of goods sold. It will cost $115.08 to manufacture one unit of the Ripe & Ready. This includes the cost of materials and labor, as well as any manufacturing overhead. The ethylene detecting sensors inserted in the appliance will cost a total of one dollar for each unit of production and are accounted for in the total cost of $115.08 per unit [17]. Included in the cost of goods sold on my P & L is $20 million dollars in fixed costs.
In 2014, KitchenAid put $40 million into expanding their Ohio production factory [18]. I assumed about half of that expansion will go towards the manu-

Stage 3←Development, Work Cross Functionally Design and Develop
The Flesh out manufacturing approach, intellectual property, design issues and solutions, technology "how it works".
My manufacturing approach will rely on KitchenAid and its parent company, Whirlpool, to assemble my appliances. I will utilize their various industrial factories across the United States, from Ohio to South Carolina to Arkansas.
Whirlpool has primarily focused on being a US manufacturing-based company with the mantra, "invested in America, and designed and built in the USA" [20].

Technology & "How It Works"
The Ripe & Ready appliance is extremely user-friendly and is commended for its simple design. The appliance was purposely constructed for effortless use and 2) Turn the dial to the correct produce setting and press the "Start" button i.e.
if testing avocado-turn dial to the avocado selection and hit "Start".
3) Wait 5 -10 seconds-allow produce to discrete ethylene gas and sensors to pick up levels.
4) Light will appear informing you what stage your produce is in Light will be either green, yellow or red.

5)
If green-produce is Ripe & Ready-enjoy your perfect piece of produce!
The Ripe & Ready appliance is centered around its revolutionary technology, small sensors that, "can detect tiny amounts of ethylene, a gas that promotes ripening in plants" [21]. Each appliance has four sensors embedded in the top chamber, that allows the machine to work quickly but also with extreme accuracy and precision. According to Timothy Swager, a chemistry professor at MIT, The dial allows you to pick a specific setting and the sensors know the optimal ethylene gases for that type of produce, ensuring the most accurate detection.
According to a study from Oxford's Science and Mathematics Journal, theses sensors can obtain detection of ethylene gas within 5 to 10 seconds [24]. This time is so short that consumers will be instantly gratified and never bothered by a long wait time will using the Ripe & Ready appliance. After gas levels have been identified, a bright light will notify the user of the ripeness. A green light simply means Ripe & Ready, your produce is at peak ripeness and ready to consume. A yellow light indicates that your produce is still maturing and to wait.
The digital screen next to the light will display an approximate number of time

Stage 4 Pre-Launch Testing Plan
Prior to a full-scale launch, we plan to conduct alpha testing with KitchenAid

Stage 5←Launch, Successfully Market and Sell Product
Product name: Initially when I discussed this product concept idea, I labeled the mock-up as the "Produce Perfect", hinting toward the use of the appliance.  [25]. After accounting for inflation over the last 15 years, I calculated that $4.35 million is a good marketing budget for Ripe & Ready because it represents a small portion of the KitchenAid product line compared to the various types of blenders, food processors, coffee makers and toasters. Objectives: 1) Generate 15% awareness of ripe & ready appliance amongst health-conscious adults aged 18 -34 years' old.
2) Help 80% of aware audience understand primary benefit of ripe & ready. Priority Touchpoints: 1) #1 Need Identification  Due to this category being new and possessing high-growth potential, the need identification consumer touchpoint is an important focus for connecting the consumer with the KitchenAid Ripe & Ready appliance. 2) #3 Brand Awareness  By partnering with KitchenAid, I am acquiring the brand loyalty of their current consumers in the countertop appliance industry. I can inform these consumers of the benefits of using my appliance and how it's unique compared to the competitor's product. Promotional Tactic #1: I chose to promote my Ripe & Ready appliance using the social media mogul, Kimberly Snyder. Snyder, deemed the "Princess of Plant Power" is a nutritionist and New York Times best-selling author, best known for her dietary expertise through her blog and podcast [26]. Using her frequently visited blog, Snyder can endorse my new appliance and post a customer review. By tapping into Snyder's extensive social network, I am able to easily access my target market and com-Open Journal of Business and Management municate our message through a highly trusted nutritional expert. In addition, according to the research study, Marketing to Millennials conducted by Mintel, millennials are reliant on customer reviews when shopping, "and may respond to sponsored blog posts" [26].
Creative Execution (Figure 8): Promotional Tactic #2: One way to reach my objectives is to run banner advertisements on the phone apps and websites of the two "leading online ordering providers for independent restaurants", GrubHub and Seamless (Glass). With a combined coverage of over 1400 US cities, the services provided by the companies appeal to over 3.6 million consumers every month. The typical user is a young, media-savvy professional with a fast-paced lifestyle who is looking for a meal that is more nutritious than that provided at chain restaurants and fast food. My advertisement will acknowledge the frustration of not knowing if produce is ripe or too ripe, therefore leading to the throwing away of spoiled food. Also, when the user is on the site or app food is on their mind, so my advertisement will be relevant and will have a better chance of recall later on.
Creative Execution (Figure 9): According to Damen Jackson, a Chicago-based brand and design agency, who conducted a package design case study on KitchenAid, discovered American shoppers are more interested in features and benefits when it comes to packaging. Based on this research, the Ripe & Ready packaging will feature bright colors, a realistic picture of the appliance and most importantly, "a standardized format for key product information, helping shoppers make informed comparison and buying decisions" [26].

Conclusions
The rationale behind the conception of the Ripe & Ready KitchenAid appliance is rooted in improving the average American citizen's quality of life. The Ripe & Ready KitchenAid is intended to help alleviate the food wastage problem in America, thereby reducing the gravity of other major problems such as pollution and hunger. After conducting various forms of research and surveys, it can be concluded that this goal is achievable with the right marketing and sales strategies.
The study suggests that the ideal target demographic is young professionals within the age of 25 -34. Additionally, sales forecasts project a payback period of 1.58 years. The included within this study are other relevant matters such as the product concept, sales logistics, and technical discussions. All these different facets have been studied carefully and support the idea that the product is a worthwhile business venture and agent of improvement concerning the American lifestyle.

Conflicts of Interest
The author declares no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper.