idea submission
Do you have an innovative idea?
then we want to know.
then we want to know.
| Boots Centre for Innovation: frequently asked questions Who owns Boots Centre for Innovation? It is a not-for-profit partnership between Alliance Boots, Longbow Capital and the Institute of Life Science at Swansea University. What do you do? The Centre works closely with inventors and innovators to develop pioneering products for the shelves of Alliance Boots stores and ultimately to improve the quality of life for Alliance Boots consumers Where do these ideas come from? Ideas come from a diverse range of sources but typically come from 3 key areas: small businesses, academics and sector professionals. We have identified ten key consumer needs and we welcome all ideas from people who are developing solutions to these needs. Do you provide funding to developers? The Boots Centre for Innovation does not provide direct funding for companies that it works with. However, our venture capital partner, Longbow Capital has set up a Healthcare Fund which will support promising ventures emerging from the Centre. In addition, we can also provide funding advice and support to help secure funding from other sources. Why did Alliance Boots set up the Centre when it already has its own development facilities? While Alliance Boots develops many successful products in its own research facilities, it wants to further enhance its successful product ranges. One of the ways it plans to achieve this is by bringing more ideas to market through working in partnership with external third parties. The Centre’s role in this strategy is to identify future customer needs in the health and beauty sector, stimulate global innovation and provide the expertise and network - including working with Boots experts in all areas, from product development to packaging - to bring new ideas to life. Does this mean the development lab in Nottingham isn’t coming up with enough new ideas? Absolutely not! Take the recent example of No 7 Protect & Perfect anti-ageing serum – a great example of connecting scientific innovation with consumer demands which has now become the fastest selling product in Boots’ history. However, we are committed to the principle of Open Innovation - the concept that, companies should not only rely entirely upon their own research but should draw on external resources, ideas and best practice to complement their own work and advance the development of new technologies. The Centre for Innovation complements the work in Nottingham and provides an interface for Alliance Boots to form partnerships with small companies that may be financially supported by the Longbow Healthcare Fund. What is the relationship with the development lab in Nottingham? We have a close relationship with Nottingham. The Managing Director for Boots Centre for Innovation, Ged O’Shea, is also Head of Product Innovation and Development in the Global Product Development team at Alliance Boots, and so is closely involved with both organisations. Our team is in regular contact with colleagues in Nottingham to discuss ideas and share information and we work together to identify areas of new product development; for example, we recently hosted a 2015 Summit to discuss the nation’s future healthcare needs and drivers, which was attended by a range of academic and industry experts including key members of the Nottingham team. Have your competitors set up similar organisations? We believe we are the only retailer in the UK to adopt an Open Innovation approach to new product development. What do you offer inventors/entrepreneurs? We offer:
Will the end products be sold exclusively in Alliance Boots stores? Yes. The Boots Centre for Innovation is interested in products which can be sold exclusively through Alliance Boots stores or to independent pharmacy customers so we expect a period of exclusivity. What is the cost to the original inventor of working with the Boots Centre for Innovation? We agree a royalty payment with the inventor on sales through Boots. The royalty payment helps us to continue support new product development through the Boots Centre for Innovation and is typically 3% of cost price to Boots. If the product is ready for market and requires limited input from the Boots Centre for Innovation, we agree an introductory fee and this ensures that the new product is introduced to the right team within Alliance Boots and therefore has the best chance of being listed. This is a discretionary service for products that we feel closely meet our top 10 criteria. What happens if the product does not complete the development process and is not ultimately sold in Alliance Boots stores? Some products inevitably do not make it through the development process. We do not guarantee that if we start working with an inventor that the product will definitely launch. . In this case, we may then help the inventor find alternative development partners to bring their idea to market and bring the relationship to a close. Who owns the Intellectual Property (IP)? The inventor retains their original IP rights. We believe it is important that the inventors protect their IP, both to protect them and to give us confidence that we are dealing with a unique idea. How do you handle confidentiality? We recommend that inventors sign a confidentiality agreement when they first approach us, before disclosing the details of their idea. This form can be requested on our website. What have you achieved so far? In our first year of business, we have evaluated more than 400 ideas and expect to launch some ten products into Alliance Boots stores within the next year. We have also established an experienced team in Swansea and built relationships with scientific experts in a range of relevant fields. What are the products you’re planning to launch? Our first product launched on www.boots.com in May 2008. Our first product is a stress incontinence product that will help relieve the symptoms for many women who suffer with this embarrassing condition. We have a number of other products in the pipeline, however these remain confidential until they are launched to the public and to the media. What are your future plans? We will continue to invite entrepreneurs from around the world to bring their ideas to us, and we will continue to search actively for new solutions to healthcare needs. We are also planning a series of surgeries with leading academic institutions across the UK. What is your relationship with the Institute of Life Science? We are based at the Institute of Life Science and the Director of the Institute, Professor Marc Clement, is also Deputy Chair of the Centre. He has been involved with the concept since it began and is a key member of our team. We work closely with other researchers at the Institute. Their expertise is invaluable in identifying and reviewing new concepts and we are embarking on some joint research work with them. Are you interested in all health and beauty ideas? We have identified ten key consumer needs and are actively looking for ideas in these areas. However, if an individual or company has an innovative product or concept in a different area which has potential to improve the lives of Boots customers, we are also interested in hearing from them. How easy is it for people to bring their ideas to you? Very easy. They simply contact us by phone, via our website or through personal contact. We suggest that they complete an initial confidentiality agreement and then fill in a short questionnaire telling us about their product which we can review and discuss with them. It’s a very straightforward process. How long does the process take? We ask inventors to begin by completing a short questionnaire about their product. We will acknowledge receipt of this within five working days, consider it at our next project assessment forum and contact the originator within four weeks of receipt with next steps. From this stage the timescale depends on the product concerned and how far it has progressed towards final development. How do you evaluate ideas and decide which ones to develop? We evaluate all questionnaires submitted on a weekly basis using a number of predefined criteria such as:  fit to Boots business objectiveshow innovative, novel or potentially exclusive is the ideadoes it deliver customer value what is the capability to deliver How does the inventor benefit from working with you? The innovator benefits by being supported throughout the development process, obtaining valuable advice on how to develop their idea and bring it to market from an experienced organisation, and through the gateway to market provided by the Alliance Boots stores and distribution and retail network. The amount of support provided is tailored to the individual company’s needs. Why should people come to you with their ideas, when they will lose a percentage of their final profits once the product is in Alliance Boots stores? We offer a unique combination of access to funding, commercial and technical expertise to help develop the product and get it to market with the largest pharmacy led health and beauty retailer in the UK. We can advise on everything from market trends to design for manufacture, to retail execution. Do you see many ideas that are very unlikely to succeed or simply not well thought through – like some of those we see on TV’s Dragons’ Den’? No, we have found that most people who approach us have thought through their product idea and have something interesting to say. However, we have to evaluate their idea in the context of whether it is ultimately suitable to be sold directly to our customers, and not all ideas will succeed. |
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