Incognito in the Supermarket Aisle

“Between Grande Stevens, who would not coincidentally become the lawyer for the main Italian industrial groups, and Michele Ferrero, there was a complete understanding. "He told me one of his secrets for the fine-tuning of products," remembers the lawyer. "He had found a supermarket in Luxembourg that agreed to put his new products on the shelf without the Ferrero brand. Some agents would wait outside and intercept the ladies who had bought those chocolates, offering them compensation to be interviewed. They would go to the offices and Michele, who was listening attentively from behind a wall, would suggest the right questions to the interviewers." And so, incognito, he understood why his new products were liked or not by the customers. Ferrero himself loves to enter supermarkets and try all the products that intrigue him or whose competition he fears. He wants to see them in person, touch them, taste them. In these raids, according to company legends, he is accompanied by an attendant who collects the wrappers of the sweets sampled on the spot and takes them to the checkout to pay.”

“"Mr. Michele outside the supermarket, after making his choice, would ask people: 'Why did you buy it? For whom are you buying it?’. He translated the consumer's needs into an inimitable and unique product, accessible to everyone."”