Instant Pot and Its Overcooked Revenue Plan

How does a cult-like staple appliance designed to decrease cooking time in nearly every kitchen end up in Chapter 11 bankruptcy three years later? Instant Pot, once iconic and quite popular, redefined how many people prepared their meals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, it didn’t see the iceberg (not the lettuce) looming ahead.  

In 2020, sales of multicooker appliances peaked at nearly $758 million, with a majority of that revenue going to the Instant Pot brand. However, category sales for multicookers decreased by 50% in 2022, with another 22% drop in the first quarter of 2023, followed by seven quarterly declines since its peak.  

What Went Wrong?  

Once the COVID -era “lockdowns” ended, another trend emerged: the decline in repeat purchases for Instant Pot. A devoted customer base didn’t need to purchase more than one multicooker. The companyhad the customer hooked, but with no compelling reason to keep them coming back as with other industries (think printing cartridges, mobile phone accessories, etc.). Their consumer was left to seek other solutions or opportunities from Instant Pot’s competitors.  

When they ultimately recognized this, Instant Pot entered other appliance segments with limited success. Unfortunately, those devoted consumers had already moved on to other options. While Instant Pothad “the next great thing,” they also needed to focus on staying power. How do you do that? Listen to your consumer and understand what they really want. What pain points need to be solved? Lasting brands answer this question, but continue to re-ask and re-answer to keep their customers engaged. 

What Are the Takeaways? 

First, this beloved, iconic, and revered multicooker, along with the category itself, believed it could do no wrong. There was no end in sight to the product’s popularity and momentum. The reality is that they focused on the now and didn’t look to the future, nor did they plan to keep that devoted consumer base for repeat purchases. The lack of repeat purchases alone should have been the first warning sign. While some products are designed to be one-time buys, successful products understand that the real metric is repeat purchases.  

Second, where was the product pipeline? You have this devoted customer base, but how do you keep them in the Instant Pot franchise? While they admittedly tried to launch other appliances, their expertisewas reducing cooking time: why try to compete with incumbent brands in those categories, all offering the same features and benefits? Yes, they copied the competition rather than addressing their customers' unmet needs, which leads me to my third point.  

Focus on what made you successful in the first place. Keep in mind that Instant Pot did not invent the multicooker; rather, it quite successfully identified a segment of users who wanted a new approach to multicooking (in this case, reduced cook times). Rather than focusing on this customer base and understanding their pain points, they arrogantly launched into other appliance segments, hoping that the brand power of Instant Pot would be enough to persuade consumers in those segments to switch to their brand.  

At the same time, competitors such as SharkNinja expects sales of $6 billion in 2025, with multiple appliances in multiple categories, largely by solving customers’ unmet needs. Thus, it was too little, too latefor Instant Pot, and not satisfying enough for their consumers. Why do I need another air fryer?  

The final lesson: once you have acquired the consumer, work diligently to keep satisfying their unmet needs and solving their pain points. That’s a successful recipe on which you can build, and one thateveryone likes.  

How does it work? Let’s start with staying power. BSM Partners can guide you from concept to commercialization, starting with market intelligence and consumer insights and connecting the dots others don’teven see—transforming expertise, data, trends, and custom research into the clearest picture of what’s happening and what’s next. 

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About the Author

Eric Rittenhouse works at BSM Partners as Business Development Manager. His areas of expertise include business development, sales and trade marketing while helping brand companies uncover and execute on opportunities to strategically dominate their niche in the consumer product space. He has completed the Blue Ocean Practical Introduction certificate by the Blue Ocean Academy and is Action Selling Master Certified by Action Selling and The Sales Board.