market research

Need for the Fortune Cooker

Below a short overview is shown of the fuel consumption of the test persons. Also an indication of the available budget of the test persons for the Fortune Cooker is given.

Fuel consumption

The test persons indicate to think the gas is expensive. Currently, the Moroccan government subsidises gas, but there is a chance this subsidy will be withdrawn. This will lead to the price of gas bottles being twice or more as expensive. Three of the test persons, now cooking with gas, indicate they have to start cooking on wood, when this happens.
This could be interesting for the Fortune Cooker, further research could be performed on how much gas consumption the Fortune Cooker should save in order to prevent this people from cooking on wood fires.

Influence on the price of Fortune Cooker

The test persons indicate to be able to spend about the same amount of money on the Fortune Cooker as on their current cooking device – if the Fortune Cooker can do at least the same as their current cooking device. The test person that cooks solely on wood fires (Gadera) does not have any money to spend on the Fortune Cooker. They are financially constrained to cooking with wood and thus have almost nothing to spend.

Also, all the test persons indicate they do not have more to spend on the Fortune Cooker when the Fortune Cooker saves fuel or has a longer durability than their current cooking device.

Geographical influences

The last thing that needs to be discussed is the influence of the geographical location of Morocco, and in particular the region we carried out the research, on the feasibility of bringing the Fortune Cooker to the market. During our stay it has become clear that weather conditions in the north east of Morocco, in the region Oriental, are not ideal, especially in winter. The intensity of the sun is less compared to for example more southern countries in Africa, but also within Morocco the differences in sun intensity are quite high (Solargis.info, 2016). Concerning this information, the Fortune Cooker could be functioning better in other places. When the intensity of the sun is higher, the heat loss will be more compensated by solar energy. Thereby the cooking process in the Fortune Cooker will be improved, as it can maintain a higher temperature for a longer period of time.

While on one hand Morocco is a suitable test location, because when the Fortune Cooker works in a relatively ‘bad’ climate, it can be spread to other countries without losing its quality of function, one could consider whether the north east of Morocco is, geographically seen, the most ideal location for the Fortune Cooker to be brought to market, as the Fortune Cooker may not be able to be used the amount of time that is needed for the aim of the product, due to weather conditions.

Production in Morocco

Materials and tools

A complete list of the materials and tools with their costs and availability are given in Appendix 8.

Below the most crucial findings are described.

All the materials that were needed for the prototype are purchased in Morocco, except from the press plates, the reflective material on the inside and outside of the box. Press plates are normally used to print newspapers, and in this way it could form a cheap, recycled material. We looked for these press plates in the region Oriental, but they were nowhere available, neither in Oujda, because all newspapers in Morocco are being printed in Casablanca. In Oujda we did find an alternative material: galvanized steel plates. However, they turned out to be not only more expensive, but also harder to work with. Together with the wheels, these galvanized plates are among the materials that aren’t broadly available.

Regarding the tools, all tools could be purchased in the Bricoma in Oujda, a large hardware store. This means all these tools are in stock. A lot of these tools can also be purchased in Saïdia, at the second hand market each weekend. It is not sure whether these tools are sold there every week.

In general we could say that all materials and tools can be purchased in Saïdia and Oujda together. However, one should take into account that Oujda is the capital of l’Oriental and Saïdia is a relatively big city. Thus, smaller towns in for example the south or in the mountains do not have the same facilities as Saïdia and Oujda. The minimal amount of tools that is currently needed is around €130,-. This amount should be included in future seed money to set up a business when production and selling are done by the same party. If not, it should be ensured that the local producer either already has the necessary tools or has the money to purchase it.

Cost price

Both prototypes are calculated on their costs for the materials. Labour is not included.

Prototype 1 costs around 650 Dh (± €60,-) and prototype 2 around 480 Dh (± €45,-).
Prototype 2 being around €15,- less than prototype 1 can be explained by the fact that the format of this prototype is smaller and therefore less material is used, mainly wood. The wood takes up about  1/4 to 1/3 of the costs (amounts can be found in Appendix 8). This is, therefore, also the part on which could be saved. The same applies to the gas burner, which costs 100 Dh. These costs could be reduced by mass production and bulk purchase. Also it is possible to use another material for the frame of the Fortune Cooker. Then screws and angular profiles are possibly not needed anymore.

Options to produce the Fortune Cooker low-cost are given in the new Business Model Canvas on page 78.

Conclusion

Research with test persons and calculations on the costs show that the amount of money people are willing to spend on the Fortune Cooker does not come close to the costs that are currently made for building the prototype (namely, 20 euros spend versus 45 euros to build). Moreover, the people that are truly in our target group (people cooking on wood) have so little to spend, that it is the question whether they could spend it on the Fortune Cooker.

To reach the goal of bringing the Fortune Cooker to the market, in Morocco, either the product should become cheaper, or there has to be a suitable pay-back model. According to the project leader the Fortune Cooker must be able to stand on itself in the market, because in his opinion, a product depending on subsidies or donations will not survive in the long term. Therefore, the product should become cheaper to become successful in the market.

As described in our Project Plan (Future Business Plan), local production and use of local materials is preferred. With local production pollution from transport can be reduced and employment can be created. Also, local waste materials can be used. In the conclusionsthe Business Plan described in the Project Plan will be revised with our present knowledge.

Discussion

Although all the answers of the test persons on their budget correspond with each other and with our own experiences, it is still a small group. Therefore, significant conclusions for the whole target group cannot yet be drawn.

Regarding the materials and tools, those are solely purchased in Saidia and Oujda. Thus, these prices and availabilities may not be the same in other parts of the country.