USA – Hostess Brands, an American bakery company, has announced the opening of a new Innovation Lab in Lenexa, Kansas, to bolster the company’s product development capabilities.
The Hostess Innovation Lab provides a testing center for development of its new product prototypes, as well as test them through sensory booths and a focus group room where consumer advocates are invited to take part in the testing process.
This experimentation uses consumer insights and the view of Hostess fans to inform the development of new products. Through these insights and views, the brand can give fans innovative and unique products that also perform well for retail partners.
“The Hostess Innovation Lab enables product innovation to the highest level of consumer delight, ensuring that the most desired products are going to market with the utmost quality and sustainability,” said Darryl Riley, Hostess’s SVP of quality, food safety and R&D.
The facility, which opened in mid-June, employs around 20 researchers, product testers and bakers.
“The Innovation Lab gives us the testing capabilities, analytics and market research insights we need to support innovation that meets consumer needs and expectations – such as the Hostess Hot Fudge Sundae CupCakes recently conceived and tested for early 2021 production,” said Riley.
“The Innovation Lab expands our ability to accelerate the speed at which we bring new products to market, meanwhile deepening our innovation roster and ensuring that these newest additions to our brand portfolio are fan favorites for many years to come.”
The US bakery company has expanded its portfolio in recent months with the introduction of new flavours to its Donettes and Coffee Cakes lines.
“For consumers, the Innovation Lab also provides a peek behind the curtain, as well as an opportunity to be a part of that process, demonstrating our commitment to consumer insight-based product invention.”
Hostess Brands, LLC is a leading packaged food company focused on developing, manufacturing, marketing, selling and distributing sweet baked goods in the United States and Canada.
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