If a company already leads its market, maintaining leadership is not enough. Long-term dominance requires redefining the boundaries of the market itself. Innovation protects the current position in the short term, but no product—no matter how improved—can remain competitive forever once the market matures.
When market share surpasses roughly 35 percent, diversification becomes essential. Companies must expand horizontally and vertically, redefining their competitive space. This may include entering adjacent categories, building new product lines, or reframing the entire market to inspire internal momentum.
A classic example from global business illustrates this: A leading beverage company reframed its market not as “carbonated drinks” but as the entire non-alcoholic beverage universe—water, juices, teas, sports drinks, and more—reducing its share from dominant to small within the new definition. This allowed the company to pursue growth opportunities far beyond its traditional core.
Leaders must encourage teams to look beyond the boundaries of their current categories. Market definitions should never remain static.
That article came from the experiments we have conducted over the years.
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