Wrigley’s Eclipse Gum – Case Analysis Report
1. Key Issues/Problems
Overall chewing gum market was sluggish in late 90’s with an annual growth of only 2-3% due
to competition from flavored mints. Wrigley’s launched ‘Eclipse’ single pack pellet gum in
May 1999 to enter the pellet-gum market as a second entrant after Dentyne Ice –successful
new brand with 5 flavors. Eclipse had a dismal first year performance with shipments 24%
below the forecast and sales 21% below forecasted sales. Wrigley’s was the market leader
with 50% market share and chewing gum sales were only $2 Billion in year 2000. In this
context, Wrigley’s hired Mr. Paul Chibe as a senior marketing manager to manage the overall
breath-freshening department including Eclipse. Chibe’s immediate assignment was to
identify the potential reasons for Eclipse’s underperformance. Chibe was told by many
executives from Wrigley’s that the brand would never be successful and that it should be
dropped. Others warned and advised him to test the market before launching the gums out.
Chibe should decide if the brand should be abandoned or if potential issues could be
addressed to turn-around the brand in year 2.
2. Discussion of Alternative Solutions
Target Segmentation: Should 25-54 years be target segment for year 2? Chibe should analyze
why 35-54 years was not considered as a target segment for year 1 even when Eclipse has
the strongest appeal to this 35-54 segment (Table 11). Consumers in this segment will
