industry food
skills design research & strategy, product management
collaborators Leigh Hamp (PM, Boss)
time frame 1 month
Pasta-adjacent product categories are lacking from a nutrition and flavor standpoint -- Banza has the opportunity to provide a more complete solution for pasta night, expanding beyond their core pasta product.
background
Banza makes pasta out of chickpeas. The company is becoming a household name because of its focus on making foods you love better for you with great ingredients and fun branding.
the challenge
With the ambitious goal to make pasta night healthier and just as delicious, Banza was looking to expand beyond pasta to a pasta adjacent category. As Product Intern, I conducted market and consumer research for a Banza category expansion. I developed and executed a four-pronged approach to get a holistic understanding of how consumers do ‘pasta-night.’
findings
Although Banza is a healthier pasta, people are still adding vegetables and proteins to make their meals more nutritious and complete. Products in this pasta adjacent category are lacking from a nutrition and flavor standpoint, and there were several compelling use cases to pursue. Based on this research, I found that Banza has the opportunity to provide a more complete solution for pasta night, expanding beyond their core pasta product.
research
My research consisted of the following initiatives, executed over the course of about a month:
~ Comprehensive, 5 day food journal and accompanying hour-long qualitative interviews with 6 participants
~ Quantitative analysis of supermarket sales data
~ Attitudes & Usage survey sent to 85 pasta eaters
~ In-Store shopper observations and interviews
insights
Approaches to pasta night are highly personal.
~ People tie their pasta making preferences to personality traits like: nutrition, control, effort, and creativity
~ Knowing the logic and traits that shape pasta night help Banza become a more cohesive part of it
Even with Banza, pasta night guilt remains.
~ "Even though Banza is higher protein, it still feels like a big plate of carbs"
~ Banza eaters at vegetables to mitigate this guilt, and in turn, elevate the flavor and texture of their meal
Jarred sauce is ubiquitous but lacking.
~ 84% of survey respondents stated that they used jarred sauce on their pasta
~ Only about 25% of survey respondents agree with the statement: "The supermarket already has a great selection of sauces"