KIT KAT

CRITICAL SITUATION IN AN ORGANISATION & MANAGERIAL SOLUTION

T.AKSHARA
RA1952001020033
MBA - "A"

1. CRITICAL SITUATION IN AN ORGANISATION & MANAGERIAL SOLUTION NAME: T. Akshara Reg. no.: RA19520010200 33 Branch: MBA Section: “ A “

2. INTRODUCTION Kit Kat is a chocolate-covered wafer bar confection created by Rowntree's of York , United Kingdom, and is now produced globally by Nestlé , which acquired Rowntree in 1988, with the exception of the United States, where it is made under license by H.B. Reese Candy Company, a division of The Hershey Company . The standard bars consist of two or four pieces composed of three layers of wafer, separated and covered by an outer layer of chocolate. Each finger can be snapped from the bar separately. There are many different flavours of Kit Kat, including milk, white, and dark chocolate. The original four-finger version of the bar was developed after a worker at York’s Rowntree's factory put a suggestion in the recommendation box for a snack that a "man could have in his lunch box for work". Since 1957, the slogan for the Kit Kat in the UK and elsewhere has been "Have a break... have a Kit Kat".

3. global confection Kit Kat bars are produced in 16 countries by Nestlé: Brazil, Mexico, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Germany, Russia, Japan, China, Malaysia, Thailand, India, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Bulgaria and Algeria. Kit Kat bars in the United States are produced under licence by The Hershey Company, a Nestlé competitor, due to a prior licensing agreement with Rowntree. The year 2003 was a turning point for the Kit Kat bar as well as the confectionery industry in general. The popularity of low carb diets, and the push to healthier eating stifled sales growth in many parts of the world. In addition, fierce competition from Cadbury 's newly formed Dairy Milk superbrand also contributed to Kit Kat sales decreasing considerably in its home market of the UK, and threatened to depose it from its No.1 position. The solution adopted by Nestlé and others was to increase dramatically the number of new and unique variations of their confections and market them as limited or special editions , usually only available for a few months at a time so as not lose sales of their standard products. The strategy initially reversed the decline of the Kit Kat and has been adopted worldwide by Nestlé, Hershey, Mars , and others with similar success.

4. crisis in kitkat In July 2018 the more than decade-long legal battle to protect the “four-fingered” shape of Nestlé’s KitKat bar concluded with KitKat losing its appeal against Kvikk Lunsj (owned by Cadbury, now Mondelez ) a Norwegian four-fingered chocolate biscuit. KitKat’s EU shape trade mark is annulled, meaning the Kit Kat shape is no longer a valid trade mark across the EU. It is now only valid in member states where Nestlé has made a successful application as a national trade mark. Outside of chocolate, litigation has also arisen from less digestible shapes such as London black cabs and LEGO blocks , in both cases where trade marks on shape were unsuccessfully defended. Dispute over shapes is complex in trade mark law. It can be a more straightforward prospect to protect a word as a trade mark – and the KitKat name itself is. Marks like KitKat are inherently distinctive, meaning they’re made up, so only have meaning in relation to that brand .

5. CRITICISM In March 2010, Kit Kat was targeted for a boycott by Greenpeace for using palm oil , which the environmental organisation claimed resulted in destruction of forest habitats for orangutans in Indonesia. A YouTube video by Greenpeace went viral ] and Nestlé announced a partnership with The Forest Trust to establish "responsible sourcing guidelines" and ensure that its products did not have a deforestation footprint. They aimed to achieve a fully sustainable method of palm oil harvesting by 2015. Nestlé state that 58% of palm oil purchased in 2017 was responsibly sourced. Kit Kat Milk Chocolate is made for the North American market with the ingredient PGPR ( polyglycerol polyricinoleate , E476, AKA Palsgaard PGPR 4150), which is used to reduce the amount of cocoa butter needed and as an emulsifier. The FDA has determined it to be safe for humans in amounts up to 7.5 milligrams per kilogram of body weight. "Liver and kidney enlargement was noticed at much higher doses."

6. SOLUTION In 2015, a new luxury and giftable variant of Kit Kat called Kit Kat Rubies was launched in Malaysia. Comes with the box of 20 small bars, the Kit Kat Rubies bar made with the premium chocolate truffle cream and imported roasted hazelnut pieces. As of 2017, U.S. variants include the standard and king-size four-finger bars, standard bars covered with white or dark chocolate, snack-size orange-covered bars for Halloween, bagged wrapped one-finger miniatures, unwrapped minis, a redesigned Big Kat, and a king-size Big Kat and new Big Kat bars. The 'standard' Kit Kat finger bars can come in a variety of presentations and nutritional values. The bars can come in a miniature form of two finger mini bars, or a larger standard four, or in some cases, three, fingered bars.

7. reference Nestlé UK Website- History of Rowntree The Origin of the name Kit Kat Nestlé's new UK wafer line to boost Kit Kat production