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Between November 2018 and November 2019, Gates Foundation and Mars Edge discussed collaboration opportunities to accelerate the urban go-to-market strategy of Mars Edge’s nutritious savory snack GoMo™, specifically designed to help address nutritional deficiencies of 6-18 year olds in India, with a focus on reaching low-income consumers. The Growth for Growth (G4G) network of service providers set up by the Foundation’s PSP program co-designed this strategy to reach lower-income urban areas. In December 2019, the PSP approved a grant to assess and adapt the model during a market test. As part of the grant, the collaboration between G4G and Mars then continued until December 2020. This case study aims to share the lessons learned throughout this journey, in terms of public-private collaboration and innovation process.

This document has been designed to provide you with sustainable approaches to increase the consumption frequency of nutritional and other beneficial FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) products for lower income consumers. This toolkit has been created by experts in consumer insights and behavioural science, as well as marketing, distribution and communications strategy. It is a series of standardised modules and tactics to fuel your strategic marketing and innovation processes, helping you reach sustainable impact at scale (SIS).

Consumer intelligence refers to the insights and recommendations generated by research teams about target demographics of consumers. In the Growth for Growth network, ThinkPlace used a range of research methods to develop consumer intelligence. Regardless of method, this research focused on spending time with people in their context, learning about how consumers experience the world, not how we see their world externally. 

This toolkit introduced design-led prototyping for companies serving low-income customers. Design-led prototyping is an iterative process, meaning that critique and refinement comes through a series of validation exercises wherein consumers provide feedback to the prototype. Testing does not entail asking users what they think about the prototype as much as it anchors a broader conversation with consumers about how the central idea of the prototype might add value in their lives. 

Companies selling fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) have traditionally focused their marketing and distribution efforts on increasing penetration of their products. However, few have focused on increasing how frequently consumers purchase their products. While focusing on penetration can be a sound business strategy for traditional FMCGs companies, it cannot suffice for brands selling products meant to have a health impact achieved through repeat use. How can last-mile distributors encourage frequent consumption among consumers?

This report offers practical guidance to last mile distribution (LMD) companies seeking digital solutions that can help them to scale up their activities. It focusses on five key areas that will enable them to better engage with digital solution providers: understanding how LMDs can benefit from digitalisation, improving accessibility, financing IT, understanding how to integrate different digital solutions, and helping digital service providers to enter new markets.

To scale successfully, you need to adapt your business model several times as you learn about your new markets, distribution networks, customer segments and other organisational challenges. In this tool we explore the use of lean startup principles such as experimentation, iteration, and learning to ensure your adaptations are based on evidence-based data.

Conexsus supports small farmers associations and cooperatives that work under a income-generating model that preserves standing forest and other biomes. It focuses on three lines of action: business model, market access, and impact finance.

Fomento Social Banamex is the philanthropic arm of Citibanamex Mexico, and its goal is to reduce inequality in Mexico. It promotes capacity-building for social organizations to better meet the needs of marginalized communities living in poverty. Under this scheme and through its strategic partners, it has supported Unión Majomut, a cooperative of coffee farmers from Chiapas, so that it partakes in the entire value chain and earns a higher income for partner families.

There is a strong need for increased adoption of sustainable agricultural practices to bring the food from farm to fork while addressing three major challenges: feeding a growing population, providing a livelihood for farmers, and environmental protection. This is where decentralised renewable energy (DRE) technologies must play a key role. Moreover, as innovation in DRE-powered agricultural equipment and appliances steam ahead, their technical and commercial viability will improve further. Based on best practices from the 15 case studies, this publication makes recommendations for public and private stakeholders.