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From invention to commercial success!

Inventors typically face an uphill battle to convert their product invention into a commercial success. Even some products which are now very successful, such as the Anywayup Cup or the Dyson Vacuum cleaner, initially failed to capture the attention of established market players. There can be many different reasons why inventors struggle to make a commercial success of a new product. In fact, even experienced corporations struggle with new product development.

"An estimated 46% of the resources that companies devote to the conception, development and launch of new products go to ventures that don't succeed - they fail in the marketplace or never even make it to market". (Source: R. Cooper, Doing it Right Winning with New Products, Ivey Business Journal July/August, 2000).

At Shaping Business, we believe that with the right product, substantiated market data and a compelling business case, inventors can overcome many of the barriers to achieving a commercial success with their products.

68% of US corporations use the well-known Stage Gate Process for new product development. (Source: Product Development & Management Association (PDMA) best-practices study).

This Stage Gate Process highlights how the design and development phase is only one small part of the overall process. The front end of the process is focused on market research and business case development with the end of the process preparing for market launch and commercialisation. This is where inventors can become unstuck. Typically an inventors enthusiasm is in the design and development of the product. It is not uncommon for little or no market research to be conducted to support the development. So, when it comes to looking for partners to commercialise the product the inventor is at the mercy of the market and usually ends up with a deal that suits the partner and not the inventor. So it is essential for inventors, having devised a product solution, to backtrack and gather market data to support the demand for their product and use this data to build a business case for investors or potential partners.

There are of course many options for an inventor to commercialise their product. The route chosen will typically depend on the aspirations of the inventor, their commercial background and their sensitivity to risk. One of the attractive options which offers low risk and good returns is a contract business. With a contract business, the company can licence sales and marketing for geographic markets and market sectors. This could include a manufacturing licence for the right partner, or the company may decide to control manufacturing and supply sales and marketing partners with finished products. There are advantages and disadvantages to each and the best route will depend on the market for the product.

At Shaping Business we have developed and proven a ‘Six Phase Commercialisation Process’ for inventors to make a success of their products

Step 1: Understand the market for your product:

It is essential that an inventor qualifies the market need and reaches a quantification of the market size. This enables the addressable target market to be identified and pricing sensitivity to be considered.

Step 2: Develop a model of the market:

This stage enables the supply chain for the market to be mapped out from the manufacturer all the way to the end consumer of the product. Key players can be identified at each level in the supply chain.

Step 3: Build a business case:

This is the opportunity to build a compelling business case to attract investment or distribution partners. A well researched business case makes it easier for a potential partner to make a decision in your favour. With a five year business case partners can see the financial impact on their bottom line of taking your product on board. This is key to convincing them that this is an opportunity that they can’t walk away from.

Step 4: Research potential partners:

Establish relevant criteria to assess potential partners and score each key player in the market against this model. There are many aspects to consider at this stage including brand strength, market presence, fit with existing product range, sales and marketing capability and financial strength/stability.

Step 5: Produce supporting material:

There is a wide range of material that the inventor needs to support commercial discussions. This phase aims to pull together all the relevant material to enable discussions to progress smoothly and protect the interests of the inventor.

Step 6: Partner engagement:

This is the ‘make or break’ phase which requires the inventor to sell the concept to a selection of potential partners. In most cases, the focus will be on getting a contract in place for the home market, but potentially one partner may be interested in securing additional territories. Shaping Business advises inventors to have a commercial lawyer on hand for advising on the legal side of the contract development.

Shaping Business has already assisted inventors to commercialise their new products. We welcome approaches from inventors and offer flexible commercial arrangements including fixed fee, funded support, risk/reward frameworks and equity share deals. For a free initial consultation, please email results@shapingbusiness.com or contact our office.