Talk by Luca Sacchi, Piaggio Group S.p.A.
Executive Summary: Innovate in the target market or perish.
Piaggio is a comparatively small company that only builds motorcycles. This specialization forces Piaggio to innovate continuously, to plan ahead and to ensure high quality through continued testing.
"Failure is simply not accepted."
Light commercial transportation is the future. Piaggio, therefore, anticipates global mobility mega-trends which affect them directly.
- Mega-Cities: min. population of 10mil and GDP of 250 Billion or more
- Mega-Regions: (e.g. Delhi, which includes Delhi city)
- Mega-Corridors: Major cities or regions (60km or more apart) with big populations
- Mega Millennials: Group of people for whom ownership and transportation are changing
- Mobile Technologies: The way we communicate is changing rapidly
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| Source: Global Trends 2015: A Dialogue About the Future With Nongovernment Experts (page 29), National Intelligence Council, 2000 |
Possible approaches include:
Usage extension
When you want to get from point A to point B there are many more options available now (picture). The Piaggio bike can play a role in this (picture), as it also acts as a fitness machine.
Hyperspecialization:
Intermodality -> using different kinds of transport to get from a to b to c
For example, shared bikes, which are communal and pay per use. Additionally, people can use foldable scooters, stored at train station lockers.
Piaggio knows what their current and future customers care about through observation, Interviews and their generative wheel.
They have also noticed that it important to understand the conventional way products are used in different countries. Designs should, therefore, be pre-developed in the target market.
Such measures support the Brand's core representation (aspiration), as people even put Piaggio stickers on products of the competition.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Jonathan Mall is the Big-Data Brain behind Zeitgeist Horizon, providing deep insights into current trends and innovation opportunities. He is also the founder and CEO of recommend.to, a recommendation marketing tool to enable your customers and clients to recommend you to their friends. Reach him at JonathanTMall@gmail.com & Follow @CognitiveTwo