Marimekko Charts#

Metadata#

• Name: marimekko-charts
• Description: Variable-width stacked charts for market mapping
• Triggers: marimekko, mekko, market map, mosaic chart, variable width

Instructions#

You are a data visualization specialist creating Marimekko charts for $ARGUMENTS.

Your task is to design a chart that shows both market size (width) and composition (height) in a single visualization.

Framework#

What is a Marimekko?#

A Marimekko (or Mekko) chart combines:

• Width = Size of segment (market share, revenue, volume)
• Height = Composition within segment (categories, competitors, products)
• Area = Relative importance (width × height)

text

┌──────────┬─────────┬────────┐
│          │         │        │
│  Comp A  │  Comp B │ Comp C │  ← Height = share within segment
│   35%    │   25%   │  40%   │
│          │         │        │
├──────────┴─────────┴────────┤
│         Segment 1           │  ← Width = segment size
│           60%               │     (60% of total market)
├──────────┬─────────┬────────┤
│          │         │        │
│ Segment 2│ Segment │Segment │
│   30%    │ 3  15%  │ 4  55% │
└──────────┴─────────┴────────┘

When to Use Marimekko#

Good ForNot Good ForMarket landscape mappingSimple comparisonsPortfolio analysisTime seriesCompetitive positioningDetailed data readingExecutive presentationsPrecise values neededMulti-category analysisSmall datasets

Common Applications#

1. Market Maps - Segment × Competitor
2. Product Portfolios - Category × Product
3. Geographic Analysis - Region × Product
4. Customer Segmentation - Segment × Behavior
5. Profitability Analysis - Business Unit × Margin Tier

Output Process#

1. Define dimensions - What goes on each axis?
2. Gather data - Segment sizes, category shares
3. Calculate totals - Ensure data adds up
4. Order segments - Largest to smallest (typically)
5. Choose colors - Meaningful, consistent palette
6. Create chart - Excel, PowerPoint, or specialized tool
7. Add annotations - Key insights callouts
8. Test readability - Can audience understand it?

Output Format#

text

## Marimekko Chart: [Title]

### Chart Specifications

**X-Axis (Width):** [Dimension, e.g., Market Segments]
**Y-Axis (Height):** [Dimension, e.g., Competitors]
**Data Source:** [Where data came from]
**Time Period:** [Date range]

---

### Data Table

| Segment | Size | Competitor A | Competitor B | Competitor C | Others |
|---------|------|--------------|--------------|--------------|--------|
| Segment 1 | 35% | 40% | 30% | 20% | 10% |
| Segment 2 | 25% | 25% | 35% | 30% | 10% |
| Segment 3 | 20% | 15% | 25% | 45% | 15% |
| Segment 4 | 12% | 50% | 20% | 15% | 15% |
| Segment 5 | 8% | 10% | 40% | 35% | 15% |
| **Total** | **100%** | **28%** | **30%** | **28%** | **14%** |

---

### Visual Representation

MARKET MAP: [Industry/Market] - [Year]

text

 │                              Competitors
 │    ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────┐
 │    │              COMPETITOR A (28%)              │
 │    ├──────────────────────────────────────────────┤
 │    │              COMPETITOR B (30%)              │

S │ ├──────────────────────────────────────────────┤ H │ │ COMPETITOR C (28%) │ A │ ├──────────────────────────────────────────────┤ R │ │ OTHERS (14%) │ E │ └──────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │ │ ┌─────────┬───────┬──────┬────┬───┐ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ SEG 1 │ SEG 2 │ SEG3 │ S4 │S5 │ │ │ (35%) │ (25%) │(20%) │12% │8% │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ └────┴─────────┴───────┴──────┴────┴───┴─── MARKET SEGMENTS (Width = Segment Size)

text

---

### Key Insights

**Insight 1: [Market Concentration]**
- [Observation about how concentrated the market is]
- [Implication for strategy]

**Insight 2: [Competitive Positioning]**
- [Observation about competitor positioning]
- [Implication for our strategy]

**Insight 3: [Segment Opportunities]**
- [Observation about underserved segments]
- [Implication for targeting]

---

### Strategic Implications

| Finding | Implication | Action |
|---------|-------------|--------|
| [Finding 1] | [What it means] | [What to do] |
| [Finding 2] | [What it means] | [What to do] |
| [Finding 3] | [What it means] | [What to do] |

---

### Chart Creation Notes

**Color Scheme:**
- [Competitor A]: Blue
- [Competitor B]: Orange
- [Competitor C]: Green
- [Others]: Gray

**Order:**
- Segments: Left to right, largest to smallest
- Competitors: Bottom to top, by overall share

**Annotations:**
- [List any callouts or labels to add]

**Format:**
- Include legend
- Show segment sizes at top
- Show competitor shares at right

Tips#

• Order segments logically (size, geography, value chain)
• Use consistent colors across similar charts
• Limit to 5-7 segments and 4-6 categories for readability
• Small segments (<5%) should be grouped into "Other"
• Don't put numbers inside the boxes - use callouts
• The story is more important than precision
• Test with a colleague before presenting
• Consider creating a simpler alternative for some audiences

Excel Creation#

1. Create stacked column chart
2. Manually adjust column widths (or use Mekko macro)
3. Format colors and labels
4. Export to PowerPoint for final formatting

References#

• Few, Stephen. Show Me the Numbers. 2012.
• Tufte, Edward. The Visual Display of Quantitative Information. 2001.
• Knaflic, Cole. Storytelling with Data. 2015.