ABSTRACT
New products play several roles for the organization. New products help keep the firm competitive in a changing market. The consequences of product development have a direct impact on competitiveness. The academic and the business periodical literature is replete with detailed listings and explanations of both why new products fail and what factors are related to success. Organizations invest many human, material, and monetary resources in new product development. TheProgressive Grocer report is notable for its specification of a classification scheme for new food and allied products which differentiates new products from new Universal Product Codes (UPCs); a specific definition of product failure that is used as a criterion to determine whether a new product is classified as a success or a failure; and empirical data on failure and success rates. Lots of food products get to market, obtain early distribution, and fail to sustain it.
