Alex Woodruff Biz Buzz

Ulrike has once again pointed out a good example to me, this time of a product development strategy straight out of the Ansoff matrix. I’ve noticed the traditional German cuddly toy maker trying to do something about the dwindling birth rates in Germany before, most obviously by targetting older buyers in the media (who’ll buy [...]

When the size of your target group keeps shrinking, you need to find new ways to grow the business – or improve profits. Steiff, cult German producer of teddy bears, knows how important this is, in a country where birth rates don’t look like they’ll ever return to the high levels of the 1960s. So [...]

The Germans are dying out. Ok, they’re not really dying out, but the birth rate has plummeted. In fact it’s been in decline for decades. Bad news if your core target group is babies or kids. By 2035 each working person will be funding another German’s pension. Teds for grey markets To respond to the [...]