The Birth of Category Management
For the last 30 years, category management has been a key strategy within the sales and marketing functions of consumer goods industry. If we look back at the history of category management, we can understand how it came about and most importantly what its relevance is today.Read More
Mike AnthonyFebruary 7, 2017 
The Growth of Trade Expenditure
Category Management was the first step toward realizing that the needs and behaviors of the shopper played a key role in sales growth. The problem is that Category Management presumes that the manufacturer’s goals could align with the retailer’s. But real alignment is often elusive: retailers just want to sell more products and don’t really care which brand. Manufacturers have a diametrically opposed goal: they want to sell more of their brand and don’t care where it is sold.Read More
Toby DesforgesJanuary 9, 2017 
The Sony Example
For Sony, the key finding was how its in-store presentation affected different shoppers. For those who had no particular preference or rejected Sony, repeated visits to outlets did nothing to sway their opinion; indeed, these shoppers became increasingly disaffected with the Bravia proposition. Money formerly spent on massive TV campaigns that reached millions of people who would never buy Bravia should be directed elsewhere.Read More
Mike AnthonyNovember 23, 2016 
