I like Marmite. I think it's good on toast. But it's not a particularly popular food in Canada, without anywhere near the name recognition it enjoys in the UK. It's certainly possible to get it in Canada, but in a slightly odd way. The Marmite label doesn't provide any clues about its intended uses. It doesn't happen to prominently mention that you actually can spread it on toast. It just calls itself "Yeast Extract" which is not a term that implies snacking.
Because of that term, "Yeast Extract," we get the Canadian supermarket problem. No one really knows what Marmite is for, except the people who eat it. So where does it get filed and shelved? With the other yeast, of course. Marmite turns up in the baking section instead of the spread section.
What we have in the case of Marmite is a material classification problem. Marmite, an object outside of its normal context, gets misplaced. Those looking for Marmite, who know it as a spread, are unable to find it among its fellows, the jams and nut butters. In the physical space of the supermarket, a decision must be made about where the Marmite is shelved. So it goes with the yeast. It is classified by name instead of use, like putting the tomato paste next to the toothpaste on the principle that pastes should go together. Marmite loses its chance at serendipitous or curious purchases.
Because of that term, "Yeast Extract," we get the Canadian supermarket problem. No one really knows what Marmite is for, except the people who eat it. So where does it get filed and shelved? With the other yeast, of course. Marmite turns up in the baking section instead of the spread section.
What we have in the case of Marmite is a material classification problem. Marmite, an object outside of its normal context, gets misplaced. Those looking for Marmite, who know it as a spread, are unable to find it among its fellows, the jams and nut butters. In the physical space of the supermarket, a decision must be made about where the Marmite is shelved. So it goes with the yeast. It is classified by name instead of use, like putting the tomato paste next to the toothpaste on the principle that pastes should go together. Marmite loses its chance at serendipitous or curious purchases.