If you are someone who’s trying to, or has tried to, launch a product, you know that it has never been easy. According to Clayton Christensen, a professor at Harvard Business School, close to 30,000 new products are launched yearly, and 95% of them fail.
Sometimes, it’s because the idea wasn’t strong enough. More often than not, it’s because the founders overanalyzed, launched too slowly, or underestimated the grind of gaining early traction.
But here’s the truth: you don’t need to have all the answers to successfully launch a product. That’s one of the central lessons from Simon Duffy, co-founder of Bulldog Skincare, a $150M global brand as of 2023, and Waken Mouthcare.
In a conversation that I had with Simon on my podcast, he unpacked what it really takes to move from idea to shelf, particularly in the FMCG context.
This article distills those insights into a practical guide. Whether you want to launch a new FMCG product in the market, prepare a pre-launch campaign, or simply learn how to launch a product without years of overthinking, you’ll find a playbook that can help you here.
Why Most People Never Launch (and Why You Should Start Anyway)
The number one reason people don’t launch? They think they need to understand everything before they start: market research, financial modeling, competitor analysis — all of which are admittedly useful — but none of which replaces the lessons that you’ll learn once your product is in the market.
Simon describes it bluntly:
“You don’t need to have all the answers before you start. You also don’t need to be a domain expert in almost any part of what you’re doing. I think you just have to believe that you can be good with people and you can collaborate your way to success”
Too much planning can kill momentum. If you want to launch a product in 2025, you need to accept that risk is inevitable. What’s truly risky is looking back 20 years from now and regretting that you never tried.
Entrepreneurs don’t necessarily see risk differently; they just frame the downside differently. For Simon, the worst-case scenario wasn’t bankruptcy — it was never having tried. That mindset shift is the difference between people who launch and people who spend their whole lives planning to.
The Formula to Launch a Product: Vision × Opportunity × Desire
At the New College of the Humanities (now Northeastern University London), Simon helped design an entrepreneurship curriculum. His “formula” for innovation was simple but powerful:
- Vision – What future do you see that others don’t?
- Opportunity – Where is the market gap that incumbents ignore?
- Desire – Do people actually want to buy whatever it is that you’re offering?
Picture a Venn diagram: the sweet spot for your brand idea lies at the intersection of vision, opportunity, and desire.
That’s how Bulldog was born. Simon noticed that in Whole Foods — at their New York City outlet, no less — there was no men’s natural skincare section. Which means that if it didn’t exist there, perhaps it didn’t exist anywhere. That was the opportunity.
His vision was to make natural skincare accessible and appealing to men. And his bet was that enough consumers would desire that change to support a viable business. He was right.
This formula isn’t theory — it’s a filter. Every product launch idea should be stress-tested through these three lenses. Miss one, and the odds of success shrink dramatically.
How to Launch a Product Step by Step
Step 1 — Identify a Stagnant or Overlooked Category
Simon didn’t invent a new human behavior; he spotted a category where the behavior existed but the products hadn’t kept pace. In New York, at Whole Foods, he noticed there was no dedicated men’s skincare section. Later, with Waken, he looked at mouthwash aisles around the world and saw the same plastic bottles that had sat there for decades.
The point? Don’t chase the shiny new object. Instead, look at what exists in the real world, scroll marketplaces, and ask: “What looks the same as it did ten years ago? What feels stale?” That’s where disruption is possible.
Step 2 — Define Your Core Positioning
Bulldog’s insight was that men weren’t buying skincare because the category felt complicated and alien. The solution wasn’t to pile on features but rather to simplify. Their early message was direct:
“Wash your face. Moisturize your face. And if you just take this small, positive step, your skin will thank you over the long term.”
For Waken, the positioning was about elevating a product (mouthwash) that people usually hid under the sink into something they’d be proud to display. Sleek bottles, natural flavors, recyclable packaging — all of which spoke to a lifestyle upgrade rather than a mere hygiene product.
When it comes to positioning, as a rule of thumb, if your product can’t be explained in a single line that resonates with the target consumer, you’re not ready to launch.
Step 3 — Test Quickly in Market
Simon’s biggest critique of big brands and corporates was the endless decision cycles. Years spent in focus groups to answer questions that the market could solve in weeks.
Bulldog did the opposite. Simon and his co-founder spent months validating the idea, then moved back to the UK, where they started a factory, and began pitching directly to retailers like Sainsbury’s. By 2007, they had got six products into Sainsbury’s and started learning from real shoppers. Some products flopped, some gained traction, but the point was: the learning happened in months rather than years.
Testing quickly also builds founder confidence. When you see customers buying — even in small numbers — the abstract business plan becomes a living reality.
Step 4 — Nail the Pre-Launch
For Bulldog, the “pre-launch” wasn’t about splashy marketing campaigns — it was about proving that there was a market in the gap.
Simon and Roger spent six months validating the idea while still working their day jobs. They asked themselves: “Yes, there’s a gap in the market, but is there a market in the gap?” That meant researching formulations, speaking with consultants, and checking whether consumers and retailers would take the idea seriously.
Once confident, they committed. They moved back to the UK, raised a seed round, started a factory, and started pitching to retailers. By June 2007, they had six products on Sainsbury’s shelves.
The broader lesson: pre-launch is less about perfection and more about commitment. Do enough to confirm there’s genuine demand, then go all in. Many would-be founders never make it past the “great idea” stage because they’re too scared to start. Simon’s advice is simple: start small, test, and then commit fully once you see the potential.
Step 5 — Focus On Packaging and Brand (They Matter More Than You Think)
In the FMCG space, packaging is one of the most important tools for communication. It tells shoppers about your features, benefits, and purpose in the three seconds they give you on the shelf.
Simon admits that Bulldog didn’t get their packaging right at first, leading to costly redesigns and warehouses of obsolete stock. When your packaging doesn’t instantly explain why your product matters, you won’t earn trial — no matter how strong your business plan is. Simon’s fix was to focus on clarity: sustainable, natural, straightforward.
Later, at Waken, he doubled down on design — bottles so beautiful that you’d want them prominently displayed on your bathroom shelf.
Step 6 — Build the Right Team Early
Simon and his co-founder, Roger, were guilty of trying to do everything themselves: supply chain, finance, marketing. It slowed progress and delayed growth.
Bulldog raised only £1 million in its early days — a small sum for launching a consumer brand. That resource constraint made them cautious about hiring. But in hindsight, Simon says they should have brought experts in sooner.
The paradox with startups is that it feels cheaper to do everything yourself, but it’s actually more expensive when you factor in lost time, missed opportunities, and founder burnout.
This is where frameworks like the McKinsey 7S Model become powerful. While Bulldog and Waken weren’t built with consulting slides, the lessons map well: strategy, structure, systems, style, staff, skills, and shared values all need to be in sync and balanced for a product launch to succeed — and scale — beyond the founder’s hustle. Even if you’re just starting out, thinking about these levers early — especially staff, skills, and systems — helps prevent the bottlenecks Simon experienced.
Step 7 — Develop a Launch Week Game Plan (Get the Basics Right)
When Bulldog hit the shelves in Sainsbury’s in 2007, there wasn’t a big-budget marketing blitz. The “game plan” was simple: make sure the products were on shelf, stocked, and communicate clearly enough to sell.
Even though the packaging wasn’t perfect at first, the fundamentals were sound: a product consumers could understand, operations that delivered reliably, and a retailer relationship they could build on.
For anyone planning to launch a product, if there could be one takeaway from this, it’s that launch week really is about nailing the basics.
- Operations: Retailers won’t forgive empty shelves. Sort out the logistics and stock adequately.
- Presentation: Your packaging must tell the story instantly.
- Early traction: Even modest sales numbers matter, because they prove to retailers (and yourself) that the model works.
You don’t need perfection, but you do need to get going with a sense of purpose and learn in-market.
Step 8 — Stay Determined and Flexible
Bulldog’s path wasn’t smooth, and neither was Waken’s. Waken launched in late 2019, right before the Covid-19 pandemic upended retail. Orders froze, supply chains ground to a halt, and international expansion plans were impaired.
The difference-maker? Determination. Instead of panicking, the team adjusted. They sharpened the messaging, doubled down on core consumers, and carefully managed cash flow.
Entrepreneurship is a marathon that demands plenty of adaptation. Categories evolve, crises hit, and competitors emerge. The only guarantee is that the original plan won’t perennially keep in touch with reality. Staying determined while adapting tactically is how brands survive over the years.
How to Launch a New FMCG Product in the Market
Launching an FMCG product comes with its own unique set of challenges compared to software or digital products:
- Packaging is non-negotiable. It must be clear and eye-catching.
- Sustainability is a wedge. Bulldog pioneered bamboo razors and recyclable cardboard packaging; Waken uses aluminum toothpaste tubes and real mint instead of synthetic flavoring. These choices could also nudge bigger players to follow as environment-conscious brands continue to win big in the present-day market.
- Focus your early SKUs. Bulldog spread themselves too thin at first with six products. Later, they narrowed down to moisturizer and face wash. The improved focus helped them begin stacking up wins before they reinvested on the back of the improved cost profile that they achieved thanks to the economies of scale.
If you want to launch a new FMCG product in the market, lead with 1–2 hero SKUs, nail the packaging, and weave in a sustainability narrative that resonates.
Lessons from Bulldog & Waken: What to Avoid
Simon’s journey offers us just as many lessons on what not to do as it does on what to do. Three stand out:
- Packaging missteps
Bulldog’s early packaging didn’t communicate their benefits clearly, forcing an expensive redesign. In FMCG, packaging is one of your most important growth levers. If it fails to grab attention and explain value in seconds, you’ve lost. - Too many SKUs too soon
Launching with six products spread Bulldog’s focus and diluted early traction. The eventual pivot — focusing on moisturizer and face wash — brought clarity to both consumers and retailers. Concentration beats expansion at the start. - Doing everything yourself
Simon and his co-founder tried to stay on top of every little detail, from supply chain to marketing. It slowed progress and added stress. The turning point was learning to delegate to true experts, freeing themselves to focus on vision, fundraising, and distribution.
These mistakes are common, but they’re avoidable. The key is to remember that early-stage resources are finite — focus them on the 20% of actions that deliver 80% of results.
The Secret to Launch a Product in 2025
So, how do you launch a product in 2025 and succeed?
It’s not about being an expert in every detail. It’s about:
- Starting before you’re ready
- Using the formula of Vision × Opportunity × Desire
- Learning faster in-market than you ever could through research
- Designing your packaging and positioning such that they do the heavy lifting
- Building a small but mighty team
- Staying determined when setbacks hit
And remember that it is infinitely better to have tried and failed than to have never tried in the first place.
If you’re preparing your own launch, the time to start is now. Don’t wait for certainty — it never comes. Build momentum, test quickly, and let the market teach you.
If you want tailored support on your own product launch and other challenges that come with scaling a business, explore The Founder & CEO Accelerator.
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How to Launch a Business (With No Experience): A Founder’s Playbook
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