New Product Blog
A bracelet that is also a hair band
Idea Generation
This product will be targeted toward females. How often do you wear your hair down and by the middle of the day it is in your way? When you need to get your hair out of your way you search for something to use, and end up with a rubber band. Wouldn’t you like something that is stylish, that you can wear on your wrist and it will be readily available for you use? There is a rising trend in the amount of money that women spend on hair care. In 1998 over $42 billion was spent. According to “First Research,” bigger companies to not have an advantage over smaller companies in this industry. It is more about marketing skills.
Idea Screening
I propose a bracelet that can be worn in your hair. This would be a multi task accessory. You can wear it on your wrist and then when you need it you can put it in your hair. Both ways that you wear this, you will be stylish. According to a survey done on “Softpedia”, 40% of the women who were surveyed said that their hair has made them late to work twice in the past year. Women also spend what is equal to a year’s worth of time styling their hair in the morning and they do not stop worrying about it throughout the day. This product I propose will have a great advantage to any hair problems that should arise during the day so that you can easily make your hair stylish again.
Concept Development and Testing
This product will need to be tested by women who have long hair. It should be tested by different ages and different hair types. It should also be made of different materials. We need to see which materials will work best. It should not get stuck in hair that is fine or coarse. It should be easy to use. This product should also be stylish.
Marketing Strategy Development
The target market will be woman. It will be targeted toward high school and college girls to start. These girls are young, care about style and already purchase hair accessories and jewelry. They like to look well groomed when leaving their house, but then they get tired of having their hair in their face and want a way to pull it away.
This product will be sold in Claire’s since they sell jewelry and hair accessories already. Customers will already be looking for these kinds of items. It will be advertised on Facebook to the target market and the price will be comparable to other accessories sold in Claire’s. Hair accessory shops combine two big industries which are fashion and hair care.
If profits are seen within the first year, the market will expand to include department store retailers such as Wal-Mart and K-Mart.
Currently the top accessories on the market are “Scunci” and “Goody”. They are sold just about everywhere, drugstores, department stores, and grocery stores. According to “Hair Accessory Guide”, these companies provide the most innovation, product design and marketing. There are other companies out there that sell knock offs of what these two companies are already selling. I will not be selling knock offs, but a product that they do not have as of right now.
Business Analysis
This product will satisfy the needs of young woman who need a stylish alternative to putting their hair up. The accessory will be inexpensive so that kids, teens, and budget conscious adults can afford it. According to a survey done by “Softpedia”, women spend what is equivalent to a year’s worth of salary on styling products for their hair.
Product Development
We will work with a company to make sure that this product can be made up to specifications. It should also go through stretching tests to see if it can with stand the pressure involved in wrapping it around hair day after day.
Test Marketing
There will be a test group that college girls can sign up to participate. The compensation will be free accessories. In return they will tell of their likes and dislikes of the product.
Commercialization
If everything goes well with the test market and no changes need to be made, then we will move to production and start selling the accessory in major cities. We will start selling it in the summer when most girls often put their hair up.
