In the competitive world of consumer product development, creating new products that stand the test of time is a daunting challenge. To shed light on how to succeed, Headspace asked four experts from the industry to share their perspective: Marko Kete (TOSLA Nutricosmetics), Milan Van Nuffel (SOBR), Jonathan Raemdonck (Foodpairing), and Simon Van Cauwenberge (Foodpairing).
Here’s what they had to say.
1. Balance novelty with familiarity
“Consumers want something new, but at the same time, it should feel familiar. Achieving that balance can sometimes be tricky.”
Marko Kete, Head of R&D, TOSLA Nutricosmetics
TOSLA’s commitment to excellence:
“At TOSLA Nutricosmetics, we specialize in liquid food supplements for beauty and wellness. Our focus is on creating products that are functional, tasteful, and designed to be purchased repeatedly. What sets us apart is our expertise in liquid formulations. We strongly believe that what we ingest influences not just our health but also how we look.” says Marko Kete
Incorporating trends into their product:
Marko highlights three pillars for successful product development: functionality, taste, and stability. For Tosla, stability is a critical factor. “It ensures the product maintains its flavor and efficacy throughout its shelf life,” he explains.
When it comes to incorporating trends into their products, TOSLA follows a balanced approach – “We analyze trends by looking at three key pillars: flavor, functionality, and stability. Stability is especially important in our category because it ensures the flavor and functionality remain consistent throughout the product’s shelf life,” says Marko.
TOSLA also makes a distinction between incorporating trends into their new products and also into their existing products.
For existing products, innovation must complement the familiar. New products, however, require deeper cultural and geographical understanding. “Trends vary by region, and consumers’ preferences are often tied to local nuances,” Marko says.
“For new products, it’s also important to consider cultural and geographical differences. Consumers want something new but also familiar, and finding that balance is tricky. That’s why we actively engage with our clients throughout the process to make sure we’re on the right track.”
2. Iterate and adapt based on unbiased feedback
“One of our biggest lessons was learning to validate ideas with unbiased feedback. Testing products with friends and family is valuable but can often lead to skewed results.”
Milan Van Nuffel, Co-founder, SOBR
SOBR’s commitment to create standout products:
“We started SOBR Drinks three years ago with a mission to create the best non-alcoholic drinks. Back then, non-alcoholic options were either too sugary or flat in taste. We wanted to change that by adding complexity, which we achieve through non-alcoholic fermentation.”
For SOBR, complexity in flavor is key to creating standout non-alcoholic drinks. “We focus on fermentation to add depth,” Milan shares. But he warns against relying solely on internal feedback loops. “We’ve built a test pool of people over the years to test the product with. But the challenge is that these people know us and they like us because they know us making their feedback a bit skewed.”
“Apart from friends and family, we also try to test our product with sommeliers and experts. Because these experts can advise on taste. The challenge there is you can find a gap between what the expert likes and what the audience wants and likes.”
The importance of unbiased feedback:
“For our first two products, we launched them without extensive validation. We made adjustments based on feedback after launch. For our third product, we took a more structured approach. We analyzed all the data we had gathered so far and tried to incorporate it in our new launch.”
“Consumer testing is time-intensive but absolutely essential. We try to test our product with random people apart from friends and family. My girlfriend, who’s a data analyst, always tells me, ‘You need input from people who don’t know you.’ That’s a lesson we’ve really embraced.”
3. Embrace early-stage validation
“The ultimate goal of product development is to ensure repeat purchases. It’s not enough for consumers to buy a product once—they need to love it enough to keep coming back.”
Jonathan Raemdonck, Sales & Marketing Director, Foodpairing
Early-stage validation for consumer-centric innovation:
“In today’s landscape, consumers demand healthier, tastier, and more sustainable products,” says Jonathan. He believes that achieving this requires a new way of product validation – early-stage validation. “By validating concepts early, you minimize risks and maximize appeal,” he adds.
“With Headspace, we’re changing how companies approach consumer validation. Our AI-driven digital twins allow companies to test millions of product concepts in minutes.”
4. Don’t chase trends
“The speed of trends poses a challenge. Companies are under pressure to innovate quickly, but rushing can lead to mistakes.”
Simon Van Cauwenberge, Solution Delivery Manager, Foodpairing
Simon emphasizes how the speed of trends poses a challenge for brands. “Mood-enhancing ingredients like lavender became trendy, but their effectiveness depends on pairing them correctly with other ingredients,” he explains.
“Another challenge is what we call ‘trend bubbles.’ Sometimes a trend looks promising but doesn’t resonate with consumers in the long run. Early validation is crucial to ensure you’re not chasing a short-lived fad.”
How AI can help:
He highlights the role of AI in reducing the risk of ‘trend bubbles’—trends that are hyped but short-lived. By leveraging data-driven tools, brands can ensure they invest in concepts with long-term viability.
“AI tools like digital twins enable brands to simulate millions of product concepts and validate them instantly with virtual consumers.”
What does the future hold?
Jonathan:
“Innovation will become more democratized. Smaller companies will have access to tools that were once only available to big players. By 2025, I think we’ll see faster NPD cycles, more consumer-centric products, and less waste because of early validation.”
“Early validation with digital twins will become more common in the future. Digital twins represent real consumer preferences, so you get instant feedback on purchase intent, flavor preferences, and even how novel the concept feels. It’s a data-driven approach that removes human bias and speeds up the decision-making process.”
Marko:
“With the coming in of new technologies, enabling faster processes, I see the importance of human expertise and creativity growing when it comes to checking the output of the technology. When you have to look at different areas like we do at TOSLA for different ingredients, functionalities and also for clinical studies, we have to make sure to check the output, because accuracy of this data is very important.”
Milan:
“It’s all about staying close to the consumer. Trends will come and go, but understanding evolving needs will always be the foundation of success.”
“With the right technology the process of learning how to develop food will be accelerated. It will also make the process a lot more cost efficient.”
Simon:
“Data will drive faster and smarter decisions. The future is about making product development agile, precise, and consumer-focused.”
Interested in creating products consumers will buy, love, and buy again? Explore how tools like Headspace are revolutionizing product innovation.
We are a food-tech company at heart that believes that flavor might just change the world. We are pioneering the digitization of flavor and obtaining a deep understanding of people's flavor preferences. Our interconnected solutions cover the entire NPD cycle from trends and consumer insights all the way to launch and activation .
