INNOVATION

Innovation 2020-01-17T06:30:23+00:00

We help companies grow with sustainable innovation.

Our solutions include:

Opportunity Identification

Platform Development

Idea Generation and Development

Product Testing and Positioning

Launch Plan Priorities

Click here for information about our innovation workshops that are designed to solve your specific business challenges.

Our Client Projects

SUSAN WEAVER

TIM HORTONS

  • Created a product strategy to accelerate growth and strengthen its leadership in the breakfast occasion.

Business Challenge

  • Tim Hortons wanted to protect and expand its share leadership in breakfast by increasing consumer preference for its breakfast sandwich.

Solution

  • We identified product, positioning and experience drivers for the breakfast occasion. We assessed Tim Hortons breakfast sandwich performance versus the competitive set. We evaluated new breakfast sandwich products to understand overall appeal and optimization opportunities. We identified new innovation platforms to scale up the preferred breakfast sandwich product.

Results

  • Optimized the breakfast sandwich product which lead to increased sales at breakfast. Developed new innovation platforms which drove increased frequency in the breakfast occasion.
SUSAN WEAVER

LOBLAWS

  • Created an innovation strategy, priority innovation platforms and new product pipeline to drive growth for Loblaws brands.

Business Challenge

  • Loblaws was interested in creating sustainable innovation that could have application across multiple Loblaws brands and categories.

Solution

  • In several cross functional workshops, we identified consumer opportunity areas and innovation platforms where Loblaws could source growth. In the final workshop, the team generated new product ideas for the priority innovation platforms.

Results

  • Together we generated over 200+ ideas to support the Loblaws innovation pipeline, enough to support a 3 year rolling calendar of innovation.
SUSAN WEAVER

BOSTON PIZZA

  • Optimized a product recipe and its positioning for a key menu platform.

Business Challenge

  • Boston Pizza was interested to understand how better to deliver on their customers nacho experience.

Solution

  • In a quantitative central location test, gathered product feedback on new nacho products and gained customer feedback in qualitative groups on positioning, product and in restaurant experience opportunities.

Results

  • Boston Pizza launched an improved “Fully Loaded” nacho platform with stronger sales revenue than the original product.

Contact: Susan Weaver, Managing Director at susanweaver@pearl-strategy.ca or call 416.908.2446

TESTIMONIALS

At Club Coffee, in my role as Chief Innovation Officer, Pearl supported the launch of the award winning PurPod100, the world’s first compostable coffee pod. Pearl led our product testing and brand positioning research with consumers. I would highly recommend Pearl Strategy for innovation strategy and pipeline development projects where deep consumer understanding and insights are critical.
Club Coffee
I have had the pleasure of working with Pearl Innovation & Strategy Design Inc. on several projects while working at both Tim Hortons and Bacardi. During my tenure at Tim Hortons, Pearl was our lead Innovation research and consultancy firm managing many strategic innovation projects including our Lunch Re-positioning, Food & Beverage Concept validation, Innovation Consumer Sensory Validation, Competitive Validations and Consumer Ethnography studies. Pearl’s work was invaluable in helping Tim Hortons re-establish itself as a Lunch destination for Canadians, surpassing McDonalds as #1 for Lunch.
Sherry, Senior Commercial & Marketing Manager
We engaged John and Susan to work with us on a project that we had identified as an opportunity over the last few months. The Pearl group have consistently exceeded expectations by always being prepared, organized and providing thought leadership at each intersection of the project. would recommend working with Pearl Group for any projects that are in consideration.
Siew Tan, Senior Commercial & Marketing Manager
My team recently had the opportunity to work with Pearl Strategy on an innovation project using the Facilitation for Innovation framework. We brought together 20 cross-functional team members for an intense session with the objective of generating brand new innovative ideas. To say the session was a success would be an understatement! Under Susan and Donya’s skillful leadership and complete understanding of the business issues, the team developed an array of platforms and positionings that could potentially make a strong impact on our category.

Following the session, the team’s feedback was overwhelmingly positive. We are looking forward to working with you again.

Senior Insights Manager
Working with Pearl was a pleasure as they brought a disciplined approach to uncovering consumer centric trends and insights, a strategic process and an integrated innovation plan that was new to the organization. Their experience in connecting consumer insights to platform opportunities was valuable in providing a roadmap to the innovation pipeline for the future. Not only did they lead the team in the process, they coached the team to replicate the process. I highly recommend them.
Vice President Innovation
We recently worked with Pearl Strategy on an innovation and positioning project, which was an absolute pleasure. We initially came to Pearl with a business problem and purpose, to reignite an existing category, but with little direction on how to best involve the customer in testing the innovation and positioning areas to explore. Pearl brought a level of strategic leadership to the project and immediately recommended a workshop and online qualitative approach that worked within our tight timelines.

Throughout the workshop, Pearl helped us refine our innovation platforms and develop positioning areas with alignment from key stakeholders. The outcome was a clear consumer insight driven recommendation on how to proceed with specific innovations, recipes and positioning territories. Further to the planned outcome, the project identified a new framework for the team to use for future innovation work. Boston Pizza would highly recommend Pearl Strategy for any innovation or strategy work where consumer insights are integral.

Senior Insights Manager

Pearl Strategy is a trusted innovation research partner for our company as we focus on bringing the right consumer products to market for Canadians. Pearl’s strategic, consumer-centric approach enabled us to uncover key insights and opportunities that directly address our specific objectives, while their business perspective and experience gives us the assurance that they can work within our timelines and that they have our best interests in mind. That we are able to leverage Pearl for both concept development and validation allows us to move quickly and confidently in our rapidly changing market.

Innovation Director
In the development of new product innovation platforms, Pearl Strategy and Innovation Design helped us align our retail brand strategy with overarching business objectives, ensuring that our innovation and marketing investments would generate the highest returns and reinforce the corporate brand positioning. Pearl led the project through opportunity development, concept development, idea validation process and strategic recommendations.

This work helped the team navigate a new retail landscape and created a framework for prioritizing volume-driving initiatives. Their work helped establish a path for consumer-led product development to ensure our innovation is differentiated and meets customer and category needs. We were pleased with the client service and engagement in our business Pearl acting as an extension of our team. I look forward to working with them again in the future.

Executive Vice President-Retail

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