FLAVORx &
CarePages:
How solving a personal problem can
trigger the recognition of a promising
business opportunities…
ENTREPRENEURSHIP & INNOVATION
SOUTHERN
TAIWAN
UNIVERSITY
Members of
“AMBITION NANTAI”
Bousquet
Alexandra
MA1N0243
Mouaci Anissa
MA1N0244
Pawel
Pretkiewicz
MA1N0224
INTRODUCTION
Many business opportunities are recognized
by people who are trying to solve a personal
problem.
The problem can arise from




Financial issues
Family issues
In a person’s job
In a recreational/volunteer activities
When a “creative solution” is found
 it can also help others!
RECOGNITION OF BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES
CASE DESCRIPTION
FLAVORx
 1992: Kramm family faced a
premature infant.
 Medical disorder.
 Need to take medicine 4 times a
day.
 Medicine tasted awful.
 Kramm a pharmacist mixed
concentrated flavor with his
daughter’s medicine to taste
better.
 it became a BUSINESS IDEA!
 1996: start an independent
business.
 Today : it covers more than 25 000
pharmacies worldwide.
CarePages
 1998: Langshur family faced a heart
defect son.
 Need of a series of surgeries.
 Creation of a Web site –Modern day
blog to post update about their son.
 BUSINESS IDEA!
 2000: CarePages market to hospitals,
& available to patients & family
members.
 Hospitals can promote their services
& attach their brand & benefit
through improved
patient/family/friend satisfaction.
 700 health care facilities.
 2007: acquired by Health Care.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q1) An opportunity is defined as being attractive, durable, timely & anchored in a
product or service that creates value for its buyer or end user. To what extent do
FLAVORx & CarePages meet each of this tests of an opportunity?
Attractive:
 The pharmaceutical industry is structurally
attractive
 The total market size is large
 A clear “value proposition” to the
consumers that are facing the problems
linked to the unpleasant taste of medicines
 A quality customer list
 A clear competitive advantage to the other
medicines
Durable:
 Real connection with the clients because
of the emotional adding value: the
“business funnel”
 Scalability of the product: could have a
significant impact in the daily life of the
patients
Attractive:
 No significant debt to place the
website, no need to invest personal
assets.
 No stock, equipment, fixtures and
fittings and human resources.
 No long-term lease commitments,
including asset and property leases.
 Can enhance the social responsibility
of the hospitals
 Can have indirect effects on the
patient life
Durable:
 Creation of a new « need »
Timely :
 Issue of the parent’s patients and
patients daily life.
 Emotionnal affect on the patient and
their family.
 No real competition on the sector at
that time.
Creates value for its buyer and end
users:
 Creation to a competitive advantage
to the medicine toward an other one
 Easier life for the patients and
relatives
 Can reduce the hospitals fees for the
patient: no need to visit it when the
children wasn’t able to take the
treatment by example
Timely :
 The digital revolution can also
allows improvements of our
standard living.
Creates value for its buyer and end
users:
 Improved customer satisfaction
 Positive emotionnal impact on
the families that receive support
during the stay in the hospital of
their relatives
Q2) Why do you think the idea for FLAVORx wasn’t developed by a large
pharmaceutical company long before Kenny Kramm came along, and the
idea for Carepages wasn’t developed by a hospital long before Eric
Langshur came up with the idea?
The idea of FLAVORx & CarePages wasn’t developed earlier
because...
The process of creating something new, leads
sometimes to a high failure rate.
Fear of losing money.
Even if someone had already this ideas, it is always hard
to make a business idea into a viable business.
No enough money/resources to invest in new ideas.
No enough personal experiences/ evidences in an
institution.
An opportunity is not only an idea: need to entry into the
market with the right characteristic, find a management
team to achieve this entrance and need to generate
significant profit and growth potential. Its is an huge
investment of effort.
Question 2 :
In the old days medicines were hardly accessible and patient
was pleased when he/she was able to get some, even if the
medicine had disgusting taste. There was no need for drugs
with a various flavor.
The B to B seems more appropriate: the patients and relatives
don’t pay for the service while this service is supposed to
make their life lighter and easier. They don’t need additional
fees.
 Creation of such a product is associated with an increase in
final product price, which certainly customers wouldn’t like.
Q3) Why do you think CarePages markets its products to hospitals rather
than directly to consumers. Like MySpace & Facebook do
?
 Carepages prefer to use Business to Business strategy than Business
to Consumers because…
 The overall volume of B2B transactions is much higher than the
volume of B2C transactions.
 B2B is also used in the context of communication and collaboration.
They also use social media to connect with their
consumers/patients/family/friends.
 Finding gap in the markets, services/product were needed by a group
of people but doesn’t represent a large enough market to be interest
to mainstream retailors or manufacturers!
 Opportunity to attract a larger number of users. The product
proposed to the patient by the hospital builds trust and is reliable.
 Patients are not willing to pay for this type of service, so the only
chance to make a profit is to offer cooperation to the hospitals.
Q4) What similarities do you see between FLAVORx & CarePages? What
does each company teach you about the opportunity recognition process?
Similarities :
-Solving a problem: Identifying opportunities involves noticing a problem & finding
a way to solve it!
-These problems can be pinpointed through observing Trends.
- Creating such a business is a good way to earn money and in the same time to help
people.
Opportunity recognition process:
 1st step: Recognition of problem
 2nd step: Need to observe & follow Trends! In the case: Social forces- “what
people think is IN”. Need to observe the business/product/service Opportunity
Gap which is the difference between what’s available & what’s possible it will
lead to a new business idea.
 3d step : Finding gap in the markets, services/product were needed by a group of
people but doesn’t represent a large enough market to be interest to
mainstream retailors or manufacturers! People are frustrated because they
can’t find a product/service that they need & recognize that people feel the same
way.
Need to have a strong social network (also prior experience, cognitive factors,
creativity) to recognize opportunities.
Q5) How could FLAVORx & CarePages effectively use focus group to
Strengthen their existing products & solicit suggestions for related product
ideas?
A focus group is a small number of people (usually between
4 and 15, but typically 8) brought together with a moderator
to focus on a specific product or topic.
 The people who are facing durable sickness have special
lifestyle and issues.
 Both companies can generate and conduct discussions
among all the employees, patients relatives and patients
themselves about the issues they are facing and the
feedbacks of the service and products.
 It could lead Flavorx and Carepages to find new
problems that patients are facing, and trying to solve
them with new products, service that can enhance the
daily lives of their clients; or just find some way of
ameliorate their product/service to maintain on their
market sales.
Q6) Think about the service that Carepages offers. Brainstorm other situations that
people are in where it might make a sense to set up a Web site or blog that allows a
person to provide frequent updates & receive notes of encouragement & support
from friends. Pick up your best idea. Could a business be set up to facilitate the
process for others?
We think that in order to create a similar
Website that would offer frequent updates
and notes of encouragement and support,
we have to focus on the groups of people
who have some real problems such as…
-drug addicted.
-anonymous alcoholic.
-prisoners.
-Students in a foreign country struggling with
their exams.
-young pregnant lady.
-battered women/men by their husband.
-new entrepreneurs struggling with their new
business.
-Parents facing their children’s adolescent
crisis.
Question 6:
 In the cases of people trying to managed to solve a problem, they might share their
impressions and give some hints how they were able to fight with addiction or other difficult
period of their life such the case of battered women/men by their partner , parents facing their
children’s adolescent crisis, or even young pregnant lady rejected by their family.
 New entrepreneurs struggling with their new business. Young entrepreneurs can get help
from expert persons such as CEO, teachers… They can even have support from their customers
by suggesting them new collection of product or services. It would be a strong community
sharing ideas and supports.
 Regarding with the prisoners it would be totally innovative Website. For example nowadays in
Europe inmates in prisons have access to internet, but they can’t use social network like
Facebook. Often they need support from their family or friends. Permanent contact with
relatives can have good impact on socialization process and may decrease the case of repeat
offence. Website like this can be founded by private investors and then offer to government or
prison authorities
 Students in a foreign country struggling with their exams can have supports from their friends
and parents. The Website can also be a platform for senior students to share their experience
with junior students from the same university. Transactions can be done such as selling books
from previous year, offering private lessons, for graduated students  sharing their
professional network / internships.