LINK Innovation Day: 3 questions for Stephan Huber, Head of Marketing & Sales Retail HUG

The LINK Innovation Day will take place on 5 September 2023 in Zurich’s Kraftwerk. This year, the industry event for people from marketing and market research will be held under the motto “Success through innovation” and will focus on the successful practical use of AI, implicit research and customer-centric product development.

We have spoken with various speakers in advance to find out what innovation means to them and what visitors can expect at the event. Stephan Huber (Head of Marketing & Sales Retail HUG) and Marianne Altgeld (Head of Retail & FMCG Research LINK) will demonstrate what this innovation can look like in the context of a traditional Swiss company in their presentation “Guetzli-Geniestreiche: Kundenzentrierte Innovationsprozesse als Erfolgsfaktor bei HUG” (Customer-centred innovation processes as a success factor at HUG). We would like to thank Stephan for the interesting insight into his work!

Since the invention of the rusk over 140 years ago, the HUG family has maintained a high level of investment. What role do you play in this innovation context?

Marketing and sales, along with many other functions, play an important role in the area of investments, but also innovations. In the case of innovations, the potential must certainly first be worked out by marketing and then confirmed and, at best, concretised by sales. Accordingly, marketing and sales work very closely together as a team. Innovation, however, does not presuppose a high willingness to invest. In our last investments, it was not always about potential, but also about efficiency. Other functional areas such as process technology or research and development therefore play a central role.

What can the participants at the Innovation Day look forward to when they watch your presentation – what will you be presenting?

I believe I can show that even as an SME, you can benefit from existing market research processes, systems and tools (and with relatively small human and monetary resources) to drive innovation in a more robust and targeted way. We are a very pragmatic company, and yet we want to put the consumer at the centre of our marketing activities and thus become better (in a complex area).

In your experience, what are the three most important aspects for developing successful innovations and placing them on the market in the long term?

Mass suitability, brand fit and the “right” marketing/sales support… and a bit of luck!

You can register directly for the Innovation Day now – a few select spots are still available. Participation is free of charge. We look forward to an exciting event!