The Monroe Street Journal

Issue date: 4/7/08 Section: Features

Media Credit: Alex Goldsmith [Click to enlarge]

Flat Earth was the kind of challenge that every marketing MBA student lives for. When Frito-Lay decided to launch a new line of chips, its first new brand in 16 years, the largest obstacle for the team was breaking through in generating overnight brand awareness. Leading this initiative was Michigan alumnus and Brand Manager Janelle Hottinger (MBA '03). Ross MBAs at Frito-Lay have spent their careers starting new brands, reviving old products, and shepherding new professional development programs. Evident today, we are no longer in a conventional era of consumer packaged goods careers, and the Michigan business community is leading in the CPG industry.

Janelle Hottinger led the three person team (one brand manager and two associate brand managers) assigned to Flat Earth to prepare for the launch in February 2007. Over the course of six months, they were going to be responsible for everything from the investor call with Wall Street to the wider brand launch for three veggie chip lines and three fruit chips lines. Janelle prepared CEO Al Carrey for the initial investor calls through memos and consumer insights that led to the creation of Flat Earth.

"We've been working on the project for over a year. It has been like raising a baby," said Janelle Hottinger (MBA '03). "The idea took hold early on, and our team ran with it with the support of the executive team. Frito-Lay is a lean operation, so I, along with my team, was able to affect every stage of the product launch and learn from the experiences."

Additional opportunities came up for Associate Brand Managers that one usually waits for until after a long career in CPG. Frito-Lay's second year associates, Jen Saenz and Ellen Copaken, went on Ellen to promote Flat-Earth and served as spokespeople for a variety of media programs. Accomplishments of the team included establishing Flat Earth as the #1 new brand in 2007 and the #16 new product in the workplace.

A final indication of Flat Earth's arrival as a pop culture phenomenon came in the form of a satirical article in the Onion. The Onion heralded the arrival of Flat Earth with a piece in which Frito-Lay CEO Al Carrey throws the product at shareholders during a meeting. As one quote reads, "Frito-Lay spokeswoman Lisa Greeley, who said that the company made a commitment in 2004 to develop a healthier line of snacks but 'never thought it would actually come to this.'" Even USA Today announced the arrival of Flat Earth by crediting its creation by marketers: "Marketers roll out healthier, vegetable-based snacks" (USA Today. By Bruce Horovitz. October 23, 2006).

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