Umar Draz 0499012Jana Hoenig 0504499

Sophie Werner 0505773Amanda Shonubi 0501492

Sales €3390 million

EBIT €481 million(2015 figures)

➜ Journey begins in 1845 in Switzerland➜ Leader in market for premium

chocolate➜ 12 production sites in Europe and

US➜ Most sites have separate R&D

Centers➜ Distribution in 120 countries

through 24 subsidiaries➜ 300 own stores with 13,000

employees➜ Competitive advantage

• Quality ingredients• Craftsmanship• Assortment• Innovation

➜ Introduced melting chocolate in 1879 termed as ‘Swiss Chocolate’

➜ Company enjoyed continuous growth in last ten years

Brief Company Information

R&D Spending

✓ 0.28% of sales✓ Food industry average is 2%✓ Apple spent 3% Lindt is spending less in R&D comparatively

Know How

✓ Chocolate know how within the company

✓ More than 170 years of experience

✓ Dedicated chocolatiers

Resources

Innovation Process

Consumer Testing Panel

Commercialization

Internal R&D

Marketing Studies

Consumer Focus Group

Innovations are more incremental rather than breakthrough by having close collaborations with consumers

Packaging• As closed as

possible

New Recipes• Closed process• Protected by trade

secrets• One way interaction• Maîtres Chocolatiers• Iterative

experimentations

Manufacturing• Avoid suppliers

as much as possible

• Modification in internal machinery

New ConceptGenerations

Aroma Suppliers

Consumer Focus Group

Graphic Design

Agencies

Subsidiaries all over the globe with decentralized R&D

departments

Global Company Structure

Advantages✓ Close to market✓ Enable collaborations

with different customers

Disadvantages✓ Multiple costs✓ Less consolidation

of knowledge

International R&D and Quality Department, provides only basic

guidelines

➜ Centralize R&D activities to some degree

• Lindt is planning to build a Chocolate

Competence Center

• Our analysis supports this plan

➜ Control of international R&D activities

Strategic Advice & Recommendations

Questions