CEO nears 10-year goal to clean up a soupy mess

Conant's determined to take Campbell from 'bad' to best

USA Today, January 26, 2009 — Sip. Slurp.

Repeat.

That sums up the business plan at Campbell Soup before Douglas Conant took over as CEO eight years ago this month. It was the same old company doing much of the same old stuff it had been doing since it was founded in 1869. It had no clear direction. No red-hot brands. Its innovation cupboard was bare.

Pretty thin for a company whose basic product — soup — is held in such high esteem that the typical American home has six cans of Campbell's in the pantry.

Conant went to work. His self-described mission: to take a "bad" company and lift its performance to "extraordinary" by the end of one decade — that's by 2011.

BK Boxers Leads Pack of Worst Line Extensions†

Brandweek, December 13, 2008 — What do Burger King underwear, Kellogg's hip-hop street wear and Allstate Green insurance have in common? They all were voted among the worst brand extensions of 2008.

Earlier this month, TippingSprung polled 689 Brandweek readers and other marketing professionals, online, about this year's flurry of line extensions. Among the other duds: Coca-Cola's RPet clothing at Wal-Mart, Playboy energy drink and the Disney Sleeping Beauty executive fountain pens priced at up to $1,200.

Snapple Introduces Snappier Look, New Formula†

Beverage Brand to Emphasize Tea's Health Benefits Amid Weaker U.S. Sales; Sugar Will Be Added to Improve Drinks' Flavor

Wall Street Journal, November 14, 2008 — Snapple, one of the original "new age" alternatives to soda, is getting a makeover as its owner grapples with sliding U.S. sales.

Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc., the beverage business spun off from Cadbury PLC in May, is revamping Snapple's look and tweaking the formulation of its tea to try to revive consumer interest, saying tightened wallets and discounting by competitors have cut into sales. Far from the corny ads, ad hoc plugs from Howard Stern and Rush Limbaugh, and other ploys that catapulted the drink to cultlike status in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Snapple's current owner plans a more homespun campaign for its teas, emphasizing the drink's health benefits.

You Call That Innovation?†

New Survey Shows Consumers Value Unique Products -- Not Just Line Extensions

Advertising Age, November 10, 2008 — As everyone struggles just to stay above water, now is exactly the time to redistribute your resources to develop unique products that deliver a new consumer experience and create a franchise capable of long-term, significant growth. Try offering new benefits or delivery systems through real innovation.