SLR March 2022 edition by 55 North

MARCH 2022 | ISSUE 227

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Winner Nicotine Pouch Category. Survey of 9,897 people in the UK & ROI by Kantar.

VELO WON PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 2022 We’re incredibly pleased to announce that we won Product of the Year 2022 in the Nicotine Pouch category. This means that as well as being the #1 Nicotine Pouch in Scandinavia*, we’re the top Nicotine Pouch in the UK as voted by 9,897 consumers! Product of the Year is the UK’s largest consumer survey of product innovation, recognised as a marker of trust by millions of consumers throughout the UK. We are exceptionally proud of this win, which proves our product delivers on quality and satisfaction. But we know it wouldn’t be possible without the trust and support of our brilliant partner retailers. Without them, it wouldn’t be possible to get our award-winning product into the hands of the consumers who love it. We want to say a massive Thank You to those who continue to support us and stock our product in their stores. We couldn’t do it without you! We’re always looking for retailers who’d like to stock our award-winning product. Partner with VELO today and join the nicotine pouch movement!

This product contains nicotine and is addictive. For adult nicotine consumers only. For trade use only.

*Based on Nielsen RMS data on Volume Share and Share of Modern White Segment for the 12-month period ending August 2021 for Sweden & Denmark total retail market. Excludes Norway where nicotine pouches without tobacco cannot be sold. VELO is sold under the brand name LYFT in Sweden and Denmark.

SLR Products of the Year Winners unveiled! p30

Winner Nicotine Pouch Category. Survey of 9,897 people in the UK & ROI by Kantar.

This product contains nicotine and is addictive. For adult nicotine consumers only. For trade use only.

DELIVERING SALES

Snappy Shopper roundtable review

VAPING UP IN SMOKE?

MARCH 2022 | ISSUE 227

WHOLESALE ACHIEVERS

Wholesale stars recognised

GOING LOCAL

Local sourcing opportunity defined

AVIEMORE MOMENTUM

Spar Scotland tradeshow gearing up

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Promotion proposals threaten category

SLR AWARDS 2022

Entries now open for 20th anniversary running of SLR Awards

SLR Products of the Year Winners unveiled! p30

March 2022

Contents

Contents ISSUE 227

NEWS p6 p7 p8 p10 p11 p12 p18 p20

Symbol Groups CJ Lang makes appointments to support the growth of its retailer network. Vaping Scottish government vaping proposals will stop smokers from quitting, warns SGF. Levelling Up ACS welcomes the publication of the government’s levelling up white paper. Legislation A new Scottish government Bill proposes tougher action on the sale and use of fireworks. Age-restricted Sales Bestway trials the convenience channel’s first use of age verification technology. News Extra Coronavirus Nicola Sturgeon updates Scotland’s strategy for the road out of the pandemic. Product News Nestlé unveils a host of new products while Coke Zero targets gamers. Off-Trade News Glen’s Vodka kicks-off a football-themed promo and Absolut gets a makeover.

INSIDE BUSINESS p24 Northern Ireland focus SLR showcases some of the finest spirits, mixers and RTDs Northern Ireland has to offer. p26 Trade Events Over 70 suppliers have already signed up for CJ Lang’s annual tradeshow in Aviemore in September. p28 Advertising Feature Mars Chocolate Easter presents a great opportunity to build confectionery sales and Mars Wrigley’s seasonal range can help retailers do just that. p29 Speciality Food Show The best of Scotland’s food and drink will be on show at the SEC at the end of this month. p30 Product of the Year Awards 2021 The votes have been counted and the winners are revealed. p34 Wholesale Scotland’s wholesale stars are recognised at the SWA Achievers Awards. p36 Home Delivery A panel of top retailers and other industry insiders discuss the huge opportunity home delivery offers. p40 Retail Tech Henderson Technology celebrates the 50th installation of its Electronic Shelf Edge Labels system. p43 Local Sourcing New research finds thats stocking more locally sourced products could give Scotland’s local retailers the edge over supermarkets. p44 Hotlines The latest new products and media campaigns. p54 Under The Counter The Auld Boy ponders the wisdom of taking relationship advice from a beautician. FEATURES p46 Bottled Water Local retailers in Scotland have a refreshing opportunity to soak up bottled water sales in 2022. p48 Sports & Energy New formats and sugar-free variants continue to fuel the sports and energy market. p50 Vaping Flavour-packed convenient pod mod and disposable products are continuing to sweeten vape sales. p52 Tobacco Adult smokers are increasingly switching between formats to suit different occasions and keep spending in check.

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ON THE COVER p16 It’s the 20th running of the SLR Awards and we’re back with an extra-special live event for 2022 that will have a few surprises thrown in for good measure.

MARCH 2022 | SLR

News SYMBOL GROUPS Two key hires for Spar Scotland wholesaler and retailer

NFRN urges Chancellor help struggling businesses The NFRN has called on the government to extend its £350 package to help households

CJ Lang appointments support retailer network growth

cope with a rise in energy bills to small businesses. Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced the package after Ofgem revealed that the new energy bill price cap will rise by 54% from April. This means energy prices will rise by £693 a year for millions of households after regulator Ofgem hiked the price cap on bills to £1,971.

Jisp launches online Jisp has launched an online version to enable it to engage with a wider convenience audience. The website version will enable shoppers to use the full services available from Jisp at their local store without downloading an app. All stores on home delivery, click-and-collect, and Scan & Save will be issued new pointof-sale materials in-store to communicate the new way of shopping.

Nisa deliveries go paperless Nisa is introducing a new digital way of working that will see the end of paper delivery notes. The change means that when retailers now receive a delivery they will write on the glass of a handheld mobile device and the proof of delivery will be automatically emailed to them. Deliveries from all depots will move to the paperless system by early April.

NFRN appoints new Chief Operating Officer Stuart Hale has taken over the reins as Chief Operating Officer at the NFRN. Hale brings with him a wealth of experience in senior management roles in retail and manufacturing, including 18 years with electrical retailer Dixon’s. His career has also taken him to Porsche and Jaguar Land Rover, and his most recent role was as a Strategy Director for Hero Wellbeing Solutions.

SLR | MARCH 2022

CJ Lang & Son has appointed Neil Ogilvie and Craig Lynn to strengthen its independent retailer sales team. Neil Ogilvie joins as Business Development Manager covering Aberdeenshire to Kirkcaldy. Ogilvie has been in retail for more than 30 years following roles at a number of leading retail brands. He said: “Spar is the most recognised symbol group in the country and the opportunity to join a Scottish company, with a strong family background, was an opportunity too good to refuse. I am looking forward to working in partnership with our communityfocused independent retailers and supporting new retailers as they join the CJ Lang family.” In addition, Craig Lynn returns as Head of Recruitment and Key Accounts. He will be responsible for new business Spar accounts and wholesale business. Lynn has

been involved with convenience retailing for the past 20 years, originally starting his career with CJ Lang as a Field Sales Executive. He moved to United Wholesale Scotland to head up recruitment and store development in 2015, where he was responsible for store standards and creating a retailer recruitment framework. Lynn said: “CJ Lang has a professional standard that is highly

HEALTHY EATING Scots encouraged to make simple changes to improve their diet

Food Standards Scotland unveils latest healthy eating campaign Food Standards Scotland (FSS) has launched a new healthy eating campaign. The campaign will feature a TV advertisement, outdoor media, experiential activity in shopping centres, and a highly targeted digital campaign. FSS, along with its partner organisations, has developed a new online guide – EatWellYourWay.scot – to help tackle Scotland’s diet. The guide aims to encourage people to make simple changes to help improve their diet and offers a variety of straightforward steps and useful advice. The first roll-out of the practical guide is packed with advice based on shopping, cooking, and eating out. Dr Gillian Purdon, Head of Nutrition at FSS, said the guide offers a “realistic way to help people work towards new healthier food goals”. She added: “Discretionary foods continue to represent far too high a proportion of our shopping baskets, and purchases on promotion continue to be skewed towards these products. It’s important to highlight, however, that this campaign is not a move away from the Eatwell Guide, but a realistic way to help people make healthier food and drink choices.” There are plans to further tailor and evolve Eat Well, Your Way in the coming months.

regarded in the wider industry, and I am delighted to return to the company and focus on leading retailer recruitment.” CJ Lang & Son Wholesale Sales Director, Steve Irons, said: “We have ambitious plans to grow the independent side of our business and are positioned well to deliver a truly Scottish offering to grow market share and to support our customers further.”

STORES FOR SALE

Brownlies of Biggar put on the market Brownlies of Biggar Convenience Store & Post Office, in South Lanarkshire, has been put on the market. The 1,837sq ft store, which had a turnover £1.4m for the year ending 30 June 2020 and Post Office Commission of £26,786, is being marketed by Christie & Co. The freehold store has an asking price of £400,000. All of the main equipment within the shop is owned outright and will be included within the sale. Christie & Co said: “The store is currently the mainstay of the local community and would suit a first-time buyer or an experienced operator looking to expand their portfolio.”

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News VAPING Plans will see in-store promotions scrapped

Government vaping proposals will stop smokers from quitting, says SGF

ACS launches HFSS guide The Association of Convenience Stores has launched a guide to help retailers with the upcoming regulations restricting products that are high in fat, salt or sugar (HFSS) in stores. The ACS’ Assured Advice guide on HFSS regulations, which are coming

Proposals to outlaw the promotion of vaping products in Scotland’s shops are unjustified and risk hampering the drive for people to quit smoking, the SGF says. The trade body has called on plans for a ban on in-store promotions to be scrapped, describing them as “bad news” for the mission to make the nation smoke-free. It argues that a Scottish government proposal to ban in-store promotional displays of vaping products flies in the face of expert views – shared in its own consultation on the move – that “it would be a good thing if smokers used them instead of tobacco”. SGF Head of Public Affairs John Lee said: “The evidence base presented in the consultation document simply does not justify the measures proposed. It clearly sets out the benefits of using vaping products to stop smoking. That it then makes the contradictory

into force in October this year, covers everything retailers need to know on the key areas of the regulations.

Tesco restructures Jack’s Tesco will no longer operate stores under the Jack’s brand, but convenience stores supplied by Booker will still be able to get their hands on Jack’s-branded products. The supermarket giant said six Jack’s stores will

suggestion that displays of them should be banned is somewhat bewildering. “The trouble is that banning the in-store promotion of vaping products will inevitably stall the drive to make Scotland smoke-free by 2034. This is clearly bad news for Scotland’s public health.” The call comes as a government consultation on tightening rules on the advertising of vaping products gets under way.

The organisation is instead advocating the responsible use of vapes as a tool to help smokers kick their habit, highlighting the benefits that they believe they can have in the document Vape To Quit. Lee added: “Scotland has led the way in encouraging people to stop smoking. Making vaping easier could be at least as beneficial in 15 years’ time as the smoking ban was 15 years ago.”

be converted to Tesco, with the remaining seven Jack’s stores to close in the coming months. There are 130 roles in the seven closing stores and in head office that will be affected by the changes.

Spar Scotland continues to back Healthy Living Programme Spar Scotland has continued its promotion of the Healthy Living Programme, which encourages

DEPOSIT RETURN SCHEME System should make it easier to collect rewards

Digital wallets unveiled for Deposit Return Scheme pilot Sustainable payments provider HELPFUL and Mastercard have launched the first-ever digital wallets and micropayments for Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme pilot. The system, designed to make it easier to collect rewards for returning single-use plastic bottles, will reward users with 20p for each bottle collected. HELPFUL is trialling its digital wallets and micropayments in Glasgow. Consumers will be digitally rewarded for every container they return through their ‘Recycle Glasgow’ app, which makes recycling single-use plastic bottles as simple as scanning the barcode on the bottle, returning the bottle into a smart recycling bin or handing it to the shopkeeper, and getting the 20p refund into their HELPFUL digital wallet. Consumers can download the Recycle Glasgow app from their app store and return their plastic bottle to one of the participating conveniences stores across the city. For every bottle recycled a tree will be planted via Mastercard’s Priceless Planet Coalition. Founder of HELPFUL, Evan Michaels, said: “We will be working within the local communities and local schools to help educate and inspire action, as well as enabling recycling funds to go to schools and charitable causes.”

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NEWSTRADE

Menzies carriage charge to rise Menzies Distribution is to increase its carriage charge by 3.5% from 4 April, three days after the national living wage for over-23s by 6.6% and amid soaring utility bills. NFRN National President, Narinder Randhawa, said: “This is a bitter blow for Menzies Distribution’s retail customers as it comes at a time when our costs are spiralling out of control. “Where are retailers meant to find the cash to fund this increase? Wholesalers should be going to the publishers who not only control cover prices but the margins across the industry too.”

children to eat more fruit and enjoy a healthier lifestyle, by giving out free fruit and water to school children at Spar Glamis Centre in Glenrothes, Spar McAlpine Rd in Dundee, Spar Ladybank, Spar Stonehouse, Spar Bathgate, and Spar Linlithgow.

Nisa boosting retailer support with new insights Nisa has launched a new insight hub on its order capture system, giving its retailers access to information and data designed to help them make the most of every sales opportunity. The hub will provide regularly updated infographics sharing latest insights, key event messaging, and seasonal planograms created by Nisa’s category management team.

MARCH 2022 | SLR

News LEVELLING UP Retail crime targeted

Post Offices roll out coin for Platinum Jubilee Post Offices across the UK have started rolling out the new 50p coin, marking the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. The coin features a large number 70 design with the Royal Cypher and the dates of the Queen’s reign inside the zero. The coins are expected to be highly sought

Counter ACS welcomes PayPoint Cash service reaches 2,000 white paper store milestone on levelling up

after due to the limited release of 1.3 million coins by the Royal Mint.

Nisa’s charity donates over £1m to communities More than £1m was donated to good causes across the UK through Nisa’s Making a Difference Locally charity in 2021. Nisa retailers supported local charities and community groups with 2,060 donations, totalling £1,055,227. This included 297 donations, totalling £173,755, to help build stronger communities through funding shared community spaces, activities, events and projects.

Newsagents urged to seize Waitrose opportunity Independent retailers should seize the sales opportunities offered by Waitrose’s decision to scrap its free newspaper offer for its loyalty card customers, the NFRN says. The supermarket emailed myWaitrose card holders

The Association of the Convenience Stores has welcomed the publication of the government’s levelling up white paper, specifically the commitments to tackle crime in communities and boost connectivity in rural areas. The white paper, which will become law through the new Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, focuses on improving standards of living and working in disadvantaged areas across the UK through the delivery of 12 ‘missions’ by 2030. These include: Q Pay, employment and productivity will have risen in every area of the UK, with the gap between the top performing and other areas closing. Q Homicide, serious violence, and neighbourhood crime will have fallen, focused on the worst-affected areas. Q The UK will have nationwide gigabit-capable broadband and 4G coverage, with 5G coverage for most of the population. Q The gap in Healthy Life Expectancy between local areas where it is highest and lowest will have narrowed and by 2035 will rise by five years.

to advise that they can no longer receive a free newspaper when spending £10 or more. The NFRN said it will be working with news wholesalers to ensure its members have extra copies to capitalise on the opportunity.

Which? calls for overhaul of electric vehicle charging Which? is calling for a major upgrade to the UK’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure after its research found that only 13% of charging happens via the public network. Which? is calling for a significant increase in the number of charging stations and says action is also needed to simplify a system that currently

ACS Chief Executive James Lowman said: “It’s encouraging that the white paper recognises the importance of tackling crime, which is central to how people feel about their local area. This rhetoric needs to be backed with resources and powers for Police and Crime Commissioners and Neighbourhood Policing Teams to improve their response to crime in shops and elsewhere in communities.”

ACCESS TO CASH Service lets customers withdraw cash in c-stores

PayPoint has revealed that its Counter Cash service, which provides vital access to cash services for communities, is now live in more than 2,000 stores. The ‘Cashback Without Purchase’ service enables consumers to withdraw cash in convenience stores without the need to buy anything or pay a fee. Consumers can also check balances for free and withdraw any value of notes and coins from 1p and £50. The service, which launched at the end of last year, saw consumers withdraw more than £300,000 over the counter during the last week in January, with an average value of £24.18. Almost half of the participating stores have carried out a transaction to date. The next phase of the programme will see growth of the network, enhanced support for retailers to improve customer experience and adoption, and a campaign to drive further consumer awareness. Nick Wiles, Chief Executive of PayPoint, said: “Our Counter Cash service has proven popular with consumers and retailers since launch and this important milestone demonstrates our continued, long-term commitment to ensuring that cash access is protected. We look forward to seeing even more of our retailer partners benefit from offering the service as we expand it further in the coming months.”

NATIONAL LOTTERY

Airdrie retailer bags prize in Camelot draw Airdrie retailer Zahoor Ahmed, of Lifestyle Express in Airdrie, has bagged a £1,000 prize in Camelot’s latest Site, Stock, Sell online quarterly prize draw. Zahoor said: “I feel very proud to have won, as I take great pride in my store’s standards. I always promote the National Lottery in my shop, as I know ticket sales help my store generate money for National Lottery Good Causes.” The £10,000 top prize was won by Balasingam Jasotharan, who owns A Best Food & Wine in Pinner, Greater London. A further nine retailers secured a prize of £1,000 each for maintaining high in-store standards across the quarter.

has around 60 different charging networks.

SLR | MARCH 2022

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Stock up on Players Easy Rolling Tobacco Our cheapest Rolling Tobacco* High qualitty y

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News LEGISLATION Time for tougher action around fireworks

Shoppers focus on sustainablity credentials A report from Barclays reveals 52% of consumers believe sustainability and ethical

Scottish government publishes Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Bill Q A new offence of being in possession of a pyrotechnic while at, or travelling to, certain places or events, without reasonable excuse.

credentials are the most important consideration when shopping. The research also shows evidence that consumers will pay more for products that are truly sustainable and from retailers that have strong sustainable credentials.

Frozen sales maintain momentum Retail frozen food sales have grown by 13.5%, compared to pre-pandemic levels, The Frozen Food Report reveals. The figures show that ice cream is the largest single category in frozen, worth £1.3bn to retailers and accounting for 18.6% of their overall frozen food sales, up from 17.3% in 2019. Frozen fish broke through the £1bn barrier in 2020 and 2021’s sales represent a 16.4% gain in just two years.

Spar Scotland and Rollover give £4,000 to Marie Curie Spar Scotland and Rollover have donated £4,000 to Marie Curie after a promotion during December. The month-long promotion saw 10p from the sale of every Rollover product sold in Spar Scotland’s 80 companyowned stores donated to the charity. Spar Scotland matchfunded the donation. The Spar Scotland team at the Dundee depot also raised £600 from the staff Christmas raffle.

Retailers welcome new parking regulations The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has published the Private Parking Code of Practice, setting out the requirements that parking operators must follow when enforcing parking restrictions in England, Scotland, and Wales. These include a compulsory 10-minute grace period, higher standards for signage and surface markings, and a crackdown on the use of pseudo-legal language.

SLR | MARCH 2022

The Scottish government has published The Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Bill, which proposes tougher action on the sale and use of fireworks and the misuse of pyrotechnics. The Bill follows the report of an independent Firework Review Group, which recommended tightening legislation to reduce the harm fireworks can cause. An analysis of the public consultation, published in December 2021, showed strong support for key measures in the Bill among those who responded.

The Bill’s proposals include: Q A new offence to criminalise the supply of fireworks and pyrotechnics to under-18s to ensure adults do not purchase such products for children. Q Restricting the days fireworks can be sold to and used by the general public. Q A new power for local authorities to designate firework control zones, where it is not permitted for the public to use fireworks. Q The introduction of a fireworks licensing system.

Community Safety Minister, Ash Regan, said: “We have undertaken a significant programme of engagement and evidence gathering which has demonstrated strong public support for tougher action. “We have already moved quickly to introduce regulations restricting the times of day and the volume of fireworks that can be supplied to the public – as well as the times fireworks can be set off.” The proposed Fireworks and Pyrotechnics Bill is in addition to regulations, which came into force at the end of June, restricting the times of day and the volume of fireworks that can be supplied to the public.

SERVICES November and December see record parcel volums

ILLICIT TRADE

CollectPlus, part of the PayPoint Group, has recognised the efforts of its retailer partners in delivering record parcel volumes in its busiest Christmas in 2021. In November and December 2021, overall parcel volumes were up 11.3% compared to the same period in 2020, with more than 6.5 million packages handled through the CollectPlus network of over 10,000 stores, despite additional Covid-19 restrictions. The news comes as CollectPlus launches its plans for 2022 to build on this performance. Key initiatives now in motion include opening the entire CollectPlus network to returns for all carrier partners; expanding ‘in-flight diversion’ of parcels to convenience stores for more carriers; parcel locker trials to complement the existing network; and new technology to improve the in-store customer and retailer experience. Nick Williams, Head of Strategic Parcels Partnerships at The PayPoint Group, said: “As online shopping continues to grow and consumer behaviour evolves post-Covid, we’re committed to continuing to enhance our service to help our retailer partners respond to these trends and deliver vital community services across the UK. “2022 will be even bigger again, with more developments, more parcels and more opportunities for retailers to benefit from partnering with CollectPlus in their stores.”

A construction worker has been jailed after illicit cigarettes worth £95,000 were discovered inside a van on the M74. Thomas Donnelly, 39, of Kilmarnock, was interviewed by HMRC officers after the hire van he was driving was stopped by police on the motorway near Wamphray. After carrying out a search of the vehicle they found boxes containing thousands of cigarettes. HMRC was contacted and after examination, found there were more than 324,000 illicit cigarettes worth £95,000 in lost duty and taxes. Donnelly pleaded guilty to Excise Duty fraud at Dumfries Sheriff Court and was sentenced to 12 months in prison.

CollectPlus hails retailers for ‘best-ever’ Christmas

Kilmarnock man caught with 324,000 illicit cigarettes in hire van

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News AGE-RESTRICTED SALES New tech has potential to cut in-store aburse

Bestway stores test age verification technology Bestway Wholesale is partnering with Innovative Technology to pilot the convenience channel’s first use of age verification technology. The trial is part of the Home Office and Office for Product Safety and Standards regulatory sandbox, which provides an opportunity for industry and retail to test innovative approaches to age verification. Other participants in the regulatory sandbox are Co-op, Tesco, Asda, Aldi, and Morrisons. The Bestway/Innovative Technology trial will run across three Bestway Retail stores in Leeds: Bargain Booze in Otley, Wine Rack in Roundhay, and Tippl in Garforth. Innovative Technology’s ICU age verification technology is tailored to help retailers avoid selling alcohol and tobacco products to underage customers. While the

trial will still require humans to check customers’ ages, the technology has potential use cases in retail, particularly when it comes to protecting staff from abuse. The ICU technology is nonintrusive and uses AI that incorporates spoof detection technology. ICU’s algorithms can detect photographs and videos to prevent fraud attempts and takes place in the background without affecting the user experience. ICU does not require internet access and scans the face offline in seconds. The technology is fully GDPR compliant, as once the face scan is processed, all related data to that subject is permanently deleted. The technology can be installed alongside point of sale with the screen facing the customer and the screening outcome visible to staff. Once a customer is scanned,

the screen will flash green if above 25 or red if 25 or under, alerting staff that further age verification is required. The trials are due to run until the end of May 2022 and the learnings will assist in identifying consumer protection issues that need to be addressed and support the development of national standards for technology. The government will consider the results during future policy development. Any use of technology beyond the agreed time limits of the sandbox will be a matter for local authorities and local police. Mike Hollis, Retail Director at Bestway Wholesale, said: “All participants agreed that using technology could reduce staff abuse and we believe that using the ICU screen will act as a deterrent when it comes to staff abuse.”

Nisa retailers boost biscuit sales with Pladis Nisa retailers involved in a trial with Pladis have grown their biscuits sales by almost 20%. The snacking company worked with a selection of stores in the autumn to increase sales and help to maximise biscuit fixtures through range optimisation and merchandising recommendations. The project gave retailers a chance to grow sales in this key category working closely with experts in the market. The work undertaken through the trial is now set to be rolled out to all Nisa retailers. Laura Gomersal, Head of Marketing at Nisa, said: “These projects can be very successful for an independent retailer and are a worthwhile investment in terms of time and effort. It is something we are keen to do more of at Nisa and we’ll be looking at other key categories with our supply partners.”

if in doubt ASK FOR ID It is illegal to sell National Lottery products to anyone under the age of 18

TOP TIPS TO PREVENT UNDERAGE SALES ` Always look at customers to assess their age ` If in doubt, ask for ID ` Ensure all staff are fully trained to correctly ask for ID, especially new starters

ACCEPTABLE FORMS OF IDENTIFICATION  Passport  Photo Driving Licence  Military ID Card  Or any ID which has the PASS logo, e.g. CitizenCard More information and our Responsible Retailing training modules are available on The Retailer Hub. Scan here to visit now Rules & Procedures apply. Players must be 18+.

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MARCH 2022 | SLR

News Extra

Covid-19 Update

NewsExtra SOAK UP SOME SERIOUS BOTTLED WATER SALES – P46 CORONAVIRUS The First Minister maps out the road ahead

Scottish Grocers’ Federation

Convenience Matters with the SGF Crisis management has probably become a way of life for convenience retailers. We know the unprecedented challenges the pandemic brought to the sector and equally we know how impressively well the sector responded. The resilience that this created could be one of the most important, long lasting and valuable legacies of the pandemic. Why? Because as we all know we now find ourselves in the midst of another crisis: the cost-of-living crisis. The spike in inflation above 5% is just the most recent indicator of this. For retailers one of the most serious aspects of this has been the severe rise in energy costs. At least one high profile retailer in Scotland has already directly attributed this to the closure of one of his stores. The other less direct but equally important impact of this crisis is reduced consumer demand – household consumption is the largest element of expenditure across the UK economy, accounting for almost 60% of the total in 2020. Once again retailers find themselves in the eye of a (far from) perfect storm. How the sector responds to this will only become clear over the next few months. However, one thing we might be seeing is a new focus on value ranges and own-label products. These have become well established in c-stores and could become a much more important part of the overall mix. It could be that the pandemic has moulded c-stores into businesses which have the right mix of categories and ranges, the right balance between on-line and in-store shopping and the right mix of brands and local products. Taken together this could get us through. At least until the next crisis!

SLR | MARCH 2022

Masks off from 21st March as retailers demand clarity Retailers say relaxing the restrictions is welcome after two difficult years, but more clarity is needed for the road ahead. By Liz Wells

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has unveiled a major update of Scotland’s strategic framework for the road out of the pandemic. In parliament, Sturgeon set out a timescale for remaining legal protections to be lifted, this includes: Q Current legal requirements on the use of face coverings, the collection of customer details for contact tracing purposes, and for businesses, service providers, and places of worship to have regard to guidance on Covid and to take reasonably practicable measures set out in the guidance are expected to be lifted on 21 March, subject to the state of the pandemic. Q Access to lateral flow and PCR tests will continue to be free of charge, ahead of a detailed transition plan being published on the future of Scotland’s test and protect programme in March. Q People who test positive for Covid-19 will continue to be asked to self-isolate to reduce the risk of infecting other people. Q The vaccine passport will no longer be legally required from 28 February, although the app will remain available so any business that wishes to continue certification on a voluntary basis to reassure customers will be able to do so. Sturgeon said: “Covid is unfortunately still with us and we must therefore remain vigilant and prepared for the threats it poses. But today’s new framework is an

important moment in our recovery. It marks the point at which we move away, hopefully sustainably, from legal restrictions, and rely instead on sensible behaviours, adaptations, and mitigations. “Our return to normality must go hand in hand with a continuing determination to look out for and after each other. All of us have a part to play in ensuring a safe and sustainable recovery, so please continue to follow public health advice on getting vaccinated, testing as regularly as appropriate, wearing face coverings when required or recommended, and keeping rooms ventilated.” Retailer reaction to the announcement was pretty much aligned; relaxing the restrictions is mostly welcome after a series of lockdowns hit high street retail hard, but more clarity is needed for the road ahead. “After a difficult winter of regulations and restrictions retailers will welcome today’s milestone announcement of a clear timeframe for ending the remaining curbs and statutory guidance that shops must follow,” David Lonsdale, Director of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said.

“We hope there will now be a concerted effort to encourage commuters and shoppers back to our town and city centres. High streets have suffered enormously from the lack of visitors in the last two years – it will require both financial assistance and a clear upbeat message to rebuild after the hardship of the last two years.” The sentiment was echoed by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) in Scotland. “The lifting of the remaining covid rules will be a weight off the shoulders of Scotland’s small business community,” Andrew McRae, the FSB in Scotland’s policy chair, noted. “However, the hard work to get local economies moving needs to start now. Ministers need to inject confidence as well as roll out vaccines. “With a new economic strategy in the pipeline, we’d urge Ministers to ensure that the local firms and self-employed people that gave up so much are at the centre of their plans. And local authorities and the Scottish Government must work together to ensure that cash aimed at recovery reaches the real economy.” www.slrmag.co.uk

We work with local producers to help identify new trends, bring forward innovative products and grow their business.

Northern Ireland.

Bringing our world-class food and drink to your table. Over 100 years ago Northern Ireland introduced whiskey to the world and now our distillers and craft brewers are in the midst of a vibrant renaissance. Over the last decade, our drinks sector has become one of the region’s most dynamic, innovative and export-driven industries. Our drinks producers are winning awards across the globe, driving buoyant sales at home and abroad and our buzzing visitor centres and tap rooms are enticing tourists into cities, towns and villages across the four corners of our beautiful country. Northern Ireland is now home to over 20 distilleries and breweries producing single malt, pot still and blended Irish whiskeys, gin, poitin, vodka, rum, craft beer, cider and hard seltzers. From Old Bushmills Distillery, the world’s oldest licensed distillery, to innovative newcomers including Hinch, Echlinville, McConnells, Rademon, Killowen, Copeland and Boatyard you can be sure of Pure, Natural, Quality drinks and a warm welcome. Slainte! Learn how you can serve our quality food and drink.

Northern Ireland. Altogether more.

For further information contact Iain Joannides, Invest NI E: iain.joannides@investni.com Michelle Charrington, Invest NI E: michelle.charrington@investni.com

Comment

TWO DECADES OF CELEBRATING YOU It’s hard to believe it but the 2022 running of the SLR Awards marks our 20th anniversary of the event. Two decades of recognising and rewarding the best retailers in Scotland, two decades of celebrating this entire remarkable industry and all that it’s been through in that period. I still remember the very first SLR Awards, all those years ago, at Murrayfield Stadium, hosted in a typically robust performance by our launch hosts Stuart Cosgrove and Tam Cowan. They were lively, down to earth, passionate and prone to the odd bit of colourful language and I like to think they set the tone for the Awards for the years to come. Since then we’ve never looked back and we’ve enjoyed some outstanding hosts from Frankie Boyle to Romesh Ranganathan and we’ve been to some fantastic venues; Stirling Castle remains a favourite, but unfortunately we outgrew the historic castle and its relatively limited capacity. We had to move onwards and upwards – just as the Scottish local retailing community has done over those same two decades. Our list of Scottish Local Retailers of the Year reads like a who’s who of the industry and, remarkably, many of the previous winners, even those from the earliest years of the awards, are still in the game and arguably doing better than ever. Part of the reason for that, of course, has been the pandemic. A truly horrific period in the life of all retailers, but a period of unprecedented financial success for most. And speaking of Covid-19, we are delighted to confirm that, barring any more major upheaval, we will be hosting the SLR Awards as a live, face-toface event for the first time since 2019. What a journey it’s been – and long may it last for us all. Here’s to you and here’s to a very special industry that I’ve been proud to be involved with for almost 25 years.

ANTONY BEGLEY, PUBLISHING DIRECTOR

EDITORIAL Publishing Director & Editor Antony Begley 0141 222 5380 | abegley@55north.com Editorial Manager David Rees drees@55north.com Web Editor Findlay Stein 0141 222 5389 | fstein@55north.com Editorial Contributor Karen Peattie

ADVERTISING Sales & Marketing Director Helen Lyons 07575 959 915 | hlyons@55north.com Advertising Manager Robert Aitken 0141 222 5302 | raitken@55north.com

DESIGN Design & Digital Manager Richard Chaudhry 0141 222 5388 | rchaudhry@55north.com

EVENTS Events & Operations Manager Kirsty McDowall 0141 222 5383 | kmcdowall@55north.com

CIRCULATION & SUBSCRIPTIONS Circulation Manager Cara Begley 0141 222 5381 | cbegley@55north.com Scottish Local Retailer is distributed free to qualifying readers. For a registration card, call 0141 222 5381. Other readers can obtain copies by annual subscription at £50 (UK), £62 (Europe airmail), £99 (Worldwide airmail). 55 North Ltd, Waterloo Chambers, 19 Waterloo Street, Glasgow, G2 6AY Tel: 0141 22 22 100 Fax: 0141 22 22 177 Website: www.55north.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/slrmag DISCLAIMER The publisher cannot accept responsibility for any unsolicited material lost or damaged in the post. All text and layout is the copyright of 55 North Ltd. Nothing in this magazine may be reproduced in whole or part without the written permission of the publisher. All copyrights are recognised and used specifically for the purpose of criticism and review. Although the magazine has endevoured to ensure all information is correct at time of print, prices and availability may change. This magazine is fully independent and not affiliated in any way with the companies mentioned herein. Scottish Local Retailer is produced monthly by 55 North Ltd.

SLR | MARCH 2022

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£6m BRAND ON TV INVESTMENT FROM MARCH

Cover Story

SLR Awards 2022

SLR AWARDS 2022: 20TH ANNIVERSARY! It’s the 20th running of the SLR Awards and we’re back with a live event for 2022. Make sure you are in with a chance of being among the winners this year by getting your entry in now!

ifficult as it is to believe, this year marks a very special occasion for the SLR Awards, and we are delighted to confirm that for the 20th anniversary running of the SLR Awards we will be back with a live, face-to-face event for the first time since 2019! Held at the plush Radisson hotel in Glasgow, the event will once again see the cream of Scotland’s local retailing community gather to recognise and reward some of the best retailers, stores and initiatives in the Scottish convenience sector. To mark the occasion and to make the most of the chance to meet face-to-face for the first time in two years, we have an extra special event planned with a few surprises to help ensure the event remains a highlight of the local retailing calendar in Scotland. The entry portal is now live and we invite all of Scotland’s retailers to get their entries in now and give themselves a chance of being part of this unique celebration of an outstanding industry in yet another very challenging year. The local retailing sector has shone brighter than ever during the coronavirus outbreak and the collective efforts of local retailers across the country has helped build what we all hope will be a lasting positive legacy from a period that has been horrendous on so many levels for so many people.

SLR | MARCH 2022

On 7 September, we aim not only to reward the winners on the night, we aim to recognise the spectacular efforts of the entire sector during the pandemic. When the going got tough, the tough most certainly got going – and the independent retailing sector can be rightly proud of the role it played in communities across Scotland. SLR Publisher Antony Begley said: “We are absolutely thrilled that, barring any more major disasters, we will be able to return to live event for this, our 20th anniversary SLR Awards. “The industry has been in turmoil for two years now but, for my money, no sector has risen to the challenge quite like Scotland’s local retailing sector. “We are proud to be able to build a platform where we can celebrate not only the winners on the evening but this entire remarkable sector. Retailers have put their heart and soul into keeping communities functioning across the last couple of years and let’s not forget that they and their teams quite literally risked their lives for the communities they serve. “That’s something no-one should ever forget and every community in Scotland owes a debt of gratitude to their local retailer. “The SLR Awards 2022 should be a very special night for everyone involved and I’d urge every retailer to make sure they enter this year. You’ve performed minor miracles during this pandemic – and we want to hear about them.” www.slrmag.co.uk

SLR Awards 2022

Cover Story

CATEGORIES

For more information visit www.slrawards.com events@55north.com

Bread & Bakery Retailer of the Year Confectionery Retailer of the Year Food-to-Go Retailer of the Year Forecourt Retailer of the Year Fresh & Chilled Retailer of the Year Newstrade Retailer of the Year Off-Trade Retailer of the Year Scottish Brands Retailer of the Year Soft Drinks Retailer of the Year Tobacco Retailer of the Year Community Retailer of the Year Home Delivery Retailer of the Year New Store of The Year Refit of the Year Sustainability Retailer of the Year #ThinkSmart Innovation Award Unsung Hero of the Year Special Recognition Team of the Year Young Scottish Local Retailer of the Year Scottish Local Retailer of the Year Symbol / Fascia/ Franchise Group of the Year Symbol / Fascia/ Franchise Community Initiative of the Year Symbol / Fascia/ Franchise Innovation of the Year

ENTRY DEADLINE: 20 MAY EVENT DATE: 7 SEP 2022, RADISSON, GLASGOW

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MARCH 2022 | SLR

News

Products

Fellow Creatures puts planet before profit Scottish plant-based chocolate brand Fellow Creatures has achieved B Corp certification. Working exclusively with cocoa collaboratives in Ghana, its bars are fully traceable back to farm. Committed to paying 60% over the industry average for cocoa, the company has signed a legally binding agreement confirming that it will make decisions that put people and the planet before profit.

Rug-pea league deal Batchelors Peas has renewed its Rugby League partnerships becoming Official Partner of the Betfred Super League and Official Partner of the Challenge Cup for the seventh consecutive season and Official Partner of the England Rugby League team for the fifth year. The brand will feature on all Betfred Super League matchday programmes,

Product News GIVE YOUR SPORTS & ENERGY FIXTURE A BOOST – P48 CONFECTIONERY Nestlé unveils a host of new products

Nestlé reveals fresh launches for KitKat, Aero and Rowntree’s Nestlé Confectionery is adding new offerings to its KitKat, Aero and Rowntree’s portfolio this spring. New KitKat Bites, featuring wafer pieces in a milk chocolate shell and chocolatey centre, as well as Chocolate Caramel KitKat Bites, are available now from Booker in 90g sharing bags. KitKat Brand Manager Meg Miller said: “Perfect for a little evening indulgence, such as a family film night or after dinner treat, KitKat Bites deliver an intense, chocolatey hit with every mouthful. This is a grown-up twist

on our much-loved brand, and we are so excited to bring KitKat Bites to the market.” In addition, KitKat 4 Finger Orange and KitKat 2 Finger White are added to the line-up, available in multipacks of nine. The KitKat 4 Finger Orange is also available in a multipack of 4 x 41.5g bars exclusive to the Co-op until May. The entire KitKat range is made using 100% certified sustainable cocoa, sourced through the Nestlé Cocoa Plan in conjunction with Rainforest Alliance and contains

no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives. Also available now are Rowntree’s Randoms Squidgy Swirls (three varieties: blackcurrant & yogurt, strawberry & yogurt, and apple & yogurt) and sharing bags of new Aero Melts (milk chocolate and caramel flavours).

on pitch perimeter boards and on all official competition backdrops at more than 180 games.

Shearer signs for Birds Eye Birds Eye has appointed former Molson Coors strategy leader Jim Shearer as Marketing Director UK & Ireland. He joined the frozen food company at the end of February and leads the marketing agenda for the Birds Eye, Goodfella’s and Aunt

CONFECTIONERY Hancock’s list throws up some surprises

Fizzy bubblegum bottles top pick & mix chart

Confectionery wholesaler Hancocks has revealed the most popular pick and mix items it has sold over the last year. Kingsway’s Fizzy Bubblegum Bottles topped the chart, closely followed by vegan Tongue Painters and Meerkat fruit-flavoured jellies. Sour treats also proved popular, with Fizzy Cola Bottles, Fizzy Watermelon Slices and vegan Dracula Teeth all making the list. Perennial favourite Flying Saucers also land high among the top-sellers, alongside Kingsway Sour Dummies and Blue Bon Bons.

Bessie’s brands. Shearer worked for Molson for 17 years, where he most recently led the business’s Strategy, Insight and Innovation team for EMEA & APAC.

Oetker shuffle Dr. Oetker is reshuffling its UK senior leadership team as current boss Georg Heerdegen Parsbo takes on an international role in the business. Johannes Rosenthal will continue to serve as MD and be joined by John Brassington, previously Executive Head of UK Sales, as joint MD responsible for Sales, Marketing, Category, Insights & NRM, I&D, Quality Assurance, HR and act as Coach for Dr. Oetker Ireland.

SLR | MARCH 2022

SPORTS & ENERGY

Monster Ultra takes to the slopes Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) has unveiled a new snowsport-themed promotion for its Monster Ultra. Tapping into energy drinkers’ thirst for thrills, Monster is giving Ultra fans the chance to win an immersive money-can’t-buy snowsport experience. The lucky winner will enjoy three days of skiing or snowboarding in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, with accommodation, lift pass and equipment rental, and exclusive Monster Energy hospitality perks – as well as a meet-and-greet with some high-profile Monster athletes. Consumers have until 21 March to enter. High-impact snowsport-themed POS materials are available from my.ccep.com. The promo coincides with the launch of a new Monster Ultra Watermelon variant (see Hotlines p46).

FRESH & CHILLED

Babybel continues Comic Relief partnership

Babybel is once again supporting Comic Relief’s Red Nose Day campaign, marking the continuation of their established 22-year relationship. The partnership will see Babybel give 5p to Comic Relief for every limited-edition promotional pack sold. The money raised will support vital life changing work in the UK and around the world. This includes tackling homelessness, domestic abuse, poverty, and mental health problems. The packs feature fun and inspiring ways for consumers up and down the country to raise money for the charity. The brand is urging retailers to stock up on promotional packs and drive visibility in-store to maximise the opportunity.

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Products

News

Platinum prize To mark the Queen’s 70year reign, Cadbury is giving shoppers the chance to win a pair of tickets to the Platinum Jubilee Pageant on 5 June

SOFT DRINKS CCEP promotion gives consumers chance to win a host of prizes

Coke Zero targets gamers

2022. The prize draw offers a

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) has announced a new onpack promotion for its Coca-Cola Zero Sugar range that taps into young adults’ passion for gaming. From now until 25 April, gaming fans can scan QR codes on promotional packs of Coca-Cola Zero Sugar for a chance to access instant wins and to enter weekly prize draws. A host of prizes is up for grabs including Xbox Game Passes for PC and exclusive Coke branded HyperX headsets. The promotion will run across the Coca-Cola Zero Sugar range, including the cherry- and vanillaflavoured variants, and will include

enter, shoppers visit jubilee.

both on-the-go and take-home pack formats. The promo is backed by a multi-million-pound marketing campaign, ‘Real Thrills, Real Magic’. This includes paid social media, out-of-home, in-store and digital activity – along with a new online advert featuring the League of Legends video game team.

Convenience retailers can request POS materials via My.CCEP.com. Martin Attock, Vice President of Commercial Development at CCEP GB, said: “Bringing together GB’s fastest-growing cola brand in retail with a huge part of the entertainment industry is a perfect partnership.”

once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be part of one of the biggest celebrations in decades. To cadbury.co.uk and provide their details. The promotion runs until the end of April, with 250 pairs of tickets up for grabs.

Shrinking ice The Ice Co. has announced the launch of a brand-new 1kg bag format for its best-selling Party Ice product range, available to order from spring 2022. Currently, the brand’s Party Ice product comes in a 2kg bag, with the 1kg bag rolling out in selected Co-op stores in time for the summer. The new size bag format is designed with the convenience shopper in mind,

SNACKS Beef & Onion and Chip Shop Curry are back

Golden Wonder marks 75 years with the return of fans’ favourite flavours Golden Wonder is celebrating its 75th birthday by bringing back Beef & Onion and Chip Shop Curry flavours in classic 1970s packs. This follows a vote to discover consumers’ all-time favourite Golden Wonder varieties. The brand’s flagship Cheese & Onion flavour, which launched in 1962, will also receive an oldschool makeover. All three heritage packs also feature an on-pack competition to win one of 75 experience vouchers. As part of the promotion, every entrant will receive 10% off at experiencedays.co.uk. Matt Smith, Golden Wonder’s Marketing Director, commented: “On our 75th birthday, we wanted our devoted consumers to be part of the celebration by giving them just what they want – their favourite flavours in packs that bring back wonderful memories – as well as

offering them the opportunity to create some new memories.” The on-pack promotion is also running across Golden Wonder’s recently launched £1 crisps range. Promotional packs are available now and the campaign is being pushed across social, digital and trade channels throughout 2022. Visit goldenwonder.com/75 to find out more. Golden Wonder advised retailers to stock up now, so they don’t miss out on the party.

VAPING New packaging rolled out

Geek Bar continues fight against fakes Geek Bar has launched a range of new packaging to help combat counterfeit and non-compliant vaping products. The new packaging places greater emphasis on an on-pack security code. Retailers can check the authenticity of products by verifying the security code online. Retailers and distributors can also report suspected counterfeit and non-compliant products at legal@geekbar.com and the company is incentivising retailers to report counterfeits or products that do not comply with UK regulations. New packs also include a new top-integrated seal, which will allow consumers to open the Geek Bar using a tear brace. Geek Bar has also replaced the certification and environmental protection information to emphasise the recyclable nature of the product.

as it can fit in much smaller freezers.

Dr. Schär acquires GDR The UK’s No.1 gluten-free brand Dr. Schär has bought Glasgow-based allergen-free, fresh bread manufacturer, GDR Food Technology. The move is intended to strengthen Dr. Schär’s proposition by entering the UK fresh bread sector. The company has 16 sites in 11 countries, and the acquisition represents its first UK production plant. GDR’s workforce will remain in place, including current MD Ronnie Stebbings.

Sheba gives oceans hope Mars Petcare has launched the Sheba Hope Reef programme, as it works towards restoring 185,000sq m of coral reef by 2029. The company is marking the launch with a £1.25m investment in online and in-store support for its Sheba cat food brand. Over the past 13 years, Mars Petcare has worked with community ambassadors to plant more than 285,000 coral fragments.

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MARCH 2022 | SLR

News

Off-Trade

Brewdog guarantee BrewDog has unveiled ‘The Brewdog Guarantee’, which gives shoppers the chance to claim a full refund if they are not satisfied. The guarantee is available on BrewDog’s headline range and being promoted on 4-packs of Punk IPA, Lost Lager, Hazy Jane, Elvis Juice and Planet Pale. The campaign is backed by in-store, out-of-home, paid digital and social media activity, with the tagline ‘Love our beer or your money back’.

Neitiv fights period poverty Coconut flower beer maker Neitiv is marking International Women’s Day (8 March) with the launch of the Red Dot Project. The initiative aims to combat period poverty by providing free period products across the UK and then in all locations where the brand’s beer is available to buy. Individuals will be able to visit the Neitiv website, input

Off-TradeNews DISPOSABLES DRIVE VAPE SALES – P51 VODKA Shoppers can win an SPFL player’s wages in new promotion

Glen’s drinkers can be paid like a pro Glen’s Vodka is giving shoppers the chance to be paid like an SPFL professional footballer with the launch of a new on-pack promotion, ‘Paid Like A Pro’. Sporting the tagline ‘You don’t have to play like a pro, to get paid like a pro’, the promotion gives shoppers the chance to win a SPFL Premiership footballer’s monthly wage, alongside other SPFL prizes. Promotional bottles of Glen’s Original and Glen’s Platinum 70cl and 1-litre bottles feature a unique QR code that consumers can scan to be taken to a microsite, where they’ll be

invited to ‘take a chance’ in a series of spot the ball challenges. Between instant wins and big prize draws, over 250 prizes are expected to be won throughout the promotion, which runs until the end of March. The promo is supported by a £900,000 marketing campaign that includes out-of-home, pitch-side and digital ads. Glen’s brand owner, the Loch Lomond Group, is Official Spirit Partner of the SPFL. CEO Colin Matthews said: “Footballers often appear to live in a different world – an aspirational world – which

we’re lucky to be a small part of due to our relationship with the SPFL. But the magic of the Scottish game lies in its range – from the life of the Premiership stars, to the tough but rewarding ‘play before pay’ routine of the lower leagues. Either way, all football fans would love to live the dream. “The ‘Paid Like a Pro’ campaign recognises the breadth of the game and gives a cheeky nod to the vast difference between the pay packet from top league clubs and the smallest clubs in the most remote areas of Scotland, rewarding consumers with a taste of the footballer lifestyle with cash prizes at either end of the scale.”

their details, and have period products posted to them free of charge.

Chef sells mash Royal Mash Ultra-Premium Vintage Vodka has named Mike Jennings, a Michelin-trained chef turned hospitality consultant, as Head of Sales (UK) for the brand. Royal Mash Vodka (40% ABV) is made just once a year when Jersey Royal potatoes are harvested, and is hand-crafted in 200 litre copper pot stills. It is available in 70cl bottles with an RSP of £43.80. To stock, retailers should sales contact mike@ royalmash.com.

Echo Falls celebrates Galentine’s Day Flavoured wine brand Echo Falls is celebrating female friendships with a new £1m campaign to encourage consumers to get together and share a bottle. ‘Phone on Silent, Girls on Loud’ celebrated Galentine’s Day (13 February) and will return during the summer. Adverts on major shopping centre billboards will aim to increase awareness of the brand and drive purchase.

SLR | MARCH 2022

BEER

Krombacher Pils lands in cans German premium beer brand Krombacher has launched its Pils in a new 330ml sleek can format. Golden in colour with an aroma balanced between hops and malts, the beer is crisp, clean, and full in flavour with a refreshing bitter finish. Distributed in the UK through Manchester-based Morgenrot, Krombacher Pils (ABV 4.8%) is available now in cases of 24 x 330ml cans. Stephan Kofler, Krombacher’s Director for Sales & Marketing in the UK & Ireland, said: “Our Pils has become a mainstay in quality on-trade establishments and leading retailers so with the evergrowing trend for cans, it was only right that we rolled out this new SKU. “The desire for our authentic, natural, full-flavoured beers from retailers, pubs, restaurants, hotels and most of all consumers is continuing to grow and we are confident that this thirst for quality and real German provenance will only increase further as 2022 heats up.” Krombacher registered its most successful year in the UK in 2021, after first launching over 30 years ago in 1990. The brand saw volume increase by 30% across both the on- and off-trades in 2021 against 2020 figures. Even when compared to pre-Covid 2019 figures, the 2021 sales still represents growth of just under 10%.

MIXERS

Cushiedoos raises mixer game with new soda launch Edinburgh-based drinks business Cushiedoos has launched a new Pink Grapefruit & Rosehip Soda, available now in four-packs of 200ml, RSP £4.25. The brand is looking to branch out beyond G&Ts with a new mixer suitable for a wide range of spirits like gin, vodka, rum, tequila and mezcal that can also be enjoyed on its own. The firm will plant a tree for every 12 bottles purchased. Cushiedoos founder Andrew Ligertwood commented: “As with our premium tonic, we use the finest ingredients to deliver a superior tasting soda which is also natural with no nasties. The great news is our tasty little soda is low in sugar without compromising on offering drinkers a better tasting Pink Grapefruit mixer.”

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Off-Trade

News

Heineken puts up prices Heineken is to increase the price of its beers due to the impact of inflation. The Dutch brewer, whose other brands include Amstel, Old Mout, Red Stripe

VODKA New look harmonises range

Absolut reveals ‘biggest ever’ design and flavour shake-up

and Strongbow, blamed soaring

Absolut has unveiled a new bottle design and remixed flavour range as part of its biggest shake-up since the vodka brand’s launch in 1979. The new packaging aims to reflect Absolut’s flavours, while harmonising the portfolio, with the stripped-back design offering clearer navigation to encourage discovery and improve shelf standout. The bottle is also made with over 50% recycled clear glass, demonstrating the brand’s commitment to minimise its impact on the planet. The new design uses the canvas of 18th century medicine bottle

inflation, I think we have not seen

silhouettes, with clear product information added to the front, including an ingredients list, ABV level and provenance. The name of the brand’s founder, Lars Olsson Smith, has also been added to the medallion on the front of the bottle, while the font of the script has been modernised to make it easier to read and the logo has become bigger. In addition, the Absolut flavour range has received a shake-up, which pays “homage to the brand’s provenance, authenticity and progressive DNA”. Absolut’s fruity and spicy flavours – Raspberri, Vanilia, Passionfruit,

Watermelon, Mango and Pear – will benefit from a slightly lower ABV of 38% to deliver a sweeter flavour, while Citron, Lime and Mandarin remain at 40% ABV to deliver a fresher taste profile. Each bottle also features a vibrant colour block reflecting the flavour of the liquid within. Pernod Ricard UK Brand Director, Marnie Corrigan, said: “Absolut’s bold new look is sure to raise the bar and inspire creativity for any cocktail lovers, mixologists in the making and those with a passion for great tasting drinks.” The new look is rolling out between now and the autumn.

ingredient and energy costs. How much prices will rise by isn’t known. The company’s boss, Dolf van den Brink said: “These kind of price increases and in a generation.” Heineken’s profits rose 80% in 2021.

New look for Courvoisier Beam Suntory has unveiled a new bottle design for its premium French cognac Courvoisier which will feature globally across the brand’s portfolio. A spokesperson for Courvoisier commented: “The new look rediscovers distinctive codes from centuries past that made Courvoisier iconic during the Belle Époque era, the opening of the Eiffel Tower and while gracing the royal courts of Europe during the 20th century.”

BEER Limited Edition packaging

Guinness launches Six Nations packs Guinness is celebrating the return of The Guinness Six Nations Championship with limited-edition packaging. Available from now until the end of the tournament (19 March) whilst stocks last, the promotional new look is available across the off-trade in four-pack, eight-pack, 10-pack and 15-pack formats, with PMP options available. Packs capture the brand’s association with the tournament and celebrate ‘fanticipation’ with ‘Let’s settle this’ emblazoned across them. John Burns, Head of Guinness GB said: “Guinness is strongly associated with the Guinness Six Nations, Women’s Six Nations and partnerships with the Home Unions, and has been for many years. We are always looking at ways to help our customers make the most of occasions and iconic sporting moments, so we are excited to roll out the limited-edition packaging; not only to offer existing Guinness consumers something special, but also to welcome new consumers to enjoy the famous stout.”

GIN

Rock Rose springs onto market

Kiwis cross fingers

Eco-friendly Scottish gin and vodka producer Dunnet Bay Distillers has launched its 2022 Rock Rose Gin Spring Edition to the trade. The limited-edition, handmade batch of gin will come in a ceramic, wax-sealed 70cl bottle, a miniature 5cl bottle, and a 70cl fully recyclable refill pouch. It boasts coltsfoot, coconut, liquorice, cardamom and water mint notes to create a combination of sweet, earthy and fresh flavours. All ingredients are foraged from the local area, on the coastline of Scotland. Email TeleSalesCustomer Services@globalbrands.co.uk for trade enquiries.

winemakers are hoping for a

The first grapes of the 2022 New Zealand vintage have been harvested, and the country’s significantly larger harvest this year in the face of ongoing international demand and low stock levels. The 2021 harvest was 19% smaller than the previous year. Increasing production costs, availability of labour and the on-going effects of Covid-19 have also impacted the industry.

Big Drop’s big plans Alcohol-free brewer Big Drop has unveiled new packaging designed to appeal specifically to the wholesale, convenience and cash & carry channels as part of plans to extend its market beyond the multiples. The business launched in 2016 with the aim of being “the world’s first brewer dedicated to alcohol-free beer”. Its products include Pine Trail pale ale, a two-time winner at the World Beer Awards.

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MARCH 2022 | SLR

Our Bread. Our Brand. Our Story. Here at Hovis we have been baking bread from the finest ingredients for more than 130 years. Our range may have changed and evolved over the years, but our exceptionally high standards of care and expertise never will.

Since 1886...

® Established back in 1886, have had a long presence in Scotland, first starting on Paton Street then moving to Duke Street, Glasgow in 1983. We employ approx. 350 colleagues locally, all who show fantastic commitment in baking and delivering excellent quality bread every week. The Glasgow team have an average service of over 20 years across the site; this is testament to the family spirit everyone ® brings with them every day to bake our best and Mothers Pride® bread.

We were proud to launch the Hovis Bakers Since 1886® range in April 2021. Since the launch, new loaves, rolls, burger buns and hot cross buns were created using our extensive baking experience to deliver products with great quality and taste.

Hovis has the #1 unit share across three types of bread in the impulse channel #1

IN LARGE WHITE

IN LARGE WHOLEMEAL

30.5% Unit Share1

36.2% Unit Share3

IN LARGE SEEDED & GRAINS 29.9% Unit Share2

White:

Half & Half:

Wholemeal / Brown:

Bread with Bits:

Other Bakery:

1. Source: NielsenIQ Scantrack, unit sales for the pre-packaged white bread loaves category, loaves 600g and over, for the 12-month period ending 04/12/21, for the total GB impulse channel (Copyright © 2021 NielsenIQ)

Regional:

2. Source: NielsenIQ Scantrack, unit sales for the pre-packaged bread loaves with seeds and grains category, loaves 600g and over, for the 12-month period ending 04/12/21, for the total GB impulse channel (Copyright © 2021 NielsenIQ)

3. Source: NielsenIQ Scantrack, unit sales for the pre-packaged brown/ wholemeal bread loaves category, loaves 600g and over, for the 12-month period ending 04/12/21, for the total GB impulse channel (Copyright © 2021 NielsenIQ)

Inside Business

New Products | Northern Irish drinks

RAISE A GLASS TO NORTHERN IRELAND

W SCOTTISH RETAIL FOOD & DRINK AWARDS 2022

SLR has partnered with the Scottish Retail Food and Drinks Awards and Invest NI to bring Scotland’s local retailers some of the finest spirits, mixers and RTDs Northern Ireland has to offer.

ithin the pages of SLR, we’re always banging on about the importance of having a unique selling point and giving customers a reason to walk past another store to get to yours. One way of achieving this is through a differentiated spirits range, one that offers your shoppers an alternative to the usual selection of mainstream tipples. And if you’re looking for something a bit different, you don’t have to look very far. With only 12 miles of separation at the closest point, Northern Ireland is practically within touching distance for Scottish local retailers and what’s more, it’s home to a number of small independent

distilleries and other drink producers who are keen to get their products into your store. Irish Whiskey is in the midst of a vibrant renaissance at the moment and Northern Ireland’s distilleries remain integral to this growth. The category continues to be one of the fastest-growing drinks categories and the value of the global Irish Whiskey market is expected to increase by nearly £1bn over the next five years. So, to help you get a piece of that action – and stand out from the crowd – SLR has partnered with the Scottish Retail Food and Drink Awards and Northern Ireland’s economic development agency, Invest NI, to bring you this outstanding selection of drinks.

BELFAST DISTILLERY COMPANY MCCONNELL’S IRISH WHISKY 5-YEAR-OLD

McConnell’s is an award-winning blend of fine Irish malt and grain whiskies, matured for five years in first fill ex-bourbon casks, and bottle at 42% ABV. How does it taste? Expect vanilla. Butterscotch. Hints of citrus and spice, with a soft, sweet, lingering finish. First established in 1776, McConnell’s is one of the oldest Irish whiskies. And, we still spell it the way we did back then… without the ‘e’. Now the new McConnell’s distillery is bringing back a proud whisky-making tradition. One robust, silky-smooth bottle at a time. WEBSITE: MCCONNELLSIRISHWHISKY.COM EMAIL: INFO@ BELFASTDISTILLERY.COM TELEPHONE: 0782 747 8310

SLR | MARCH 2022

TROUGHTONS PREMIUM TROUGHTONS RAISING SPIRITS RANGE

Troughtons Premium is an extension of Armagh Cider Company, run by the Troughton family, which has been growing and nurturing apples for five generations and has produced award-winning craft cider since 2006. More recently the company has created a new suite of lemonades, tonics and mixers using spring water from its estate at Ballinteggart. The range is available in several delicious flavours including an award-winning Premium Indian tonic. Troughtons Premium Indian Tonic is a refreshing, crisp and clean tonic water, blended with the finest African quinine to create a great tasting tonic to invigorate your spirits. It also has subtle tea notes to represent how popular tea is here in Northern Ireland. WEBSITE: TROUGHTONSPREMIUM.COM EMAIL: INFO@ARMAGHCIDER.COM TELEPHONE: 028 3833 4268

www.slrmag.co.uk

Northern Irish drinks | New Products

Inside Business

RADEMON ESTATE DISTILLERY

SHORTCROSS COCKTAILS

We take white rum from the sun-kissed islands of the Caribbean and infuse it with local Jonagold apples grown in the orchard of Ireland, which nestles on the border of Co. Armagh and Co. Tyrone. To this heavenly mixture we add the essence of a local botanical that imparts the spicy flavours of nutmeg and cloves to the apple, making this golden spirit taste like apple pie in a glass. Doing this we perfectly capture our vision: to remain true to the purity of science and nature by capturing flavours and fragrances of botanicals to make the best-tasting spirits in the most eco-efficient way.

Each of our premixed 200ml cocktail bottles contain two serves and consumers just shake or stir over ice for 30 seconds – no extras are needed to create premium cocktails at home. The range includes Elderflower Negroni (27% ABV), a twist on a traditional negroni made with Shortcross gin, vermouth, Campari and elderflower tea; Modern Martinez (30% ABV), a modern twist on the classic Martinez that uses Shortcross gin, vermouth, maraschino liqueur and curacao; Gin Old Fashioned (30% ABV), a dry and rich spin on the classic whiskey cocktail made with Shortcross gin, sugar syrup and bitters; Bramble (21% ABV), one of Rademon’s most serves that combines Shortcross gin, crème de mure, lemon juice and sugar syrup; and Classic Aviation (29% ABV), a blend of Shortcross gin , Crème de violette, maraschino liqueur and lemon juice.

WEBSITE: SYMPHONIASPIRITS.COM EMAIL: STEVEN@WOODLABDISTILLERY.COM TELEPHONE: 0785 895 5785 OR 0288 765 8408

WEBSITE: SHORTCROSSGIN.COM EMAIL: HELLO@SHORTCROSSGIN.COM TELEPHONE: 0284 483 0001

SUKI TEA MAKERS

MOURNE DEW DISTILLERY

SYMPHONIA SPIRITS

SYMPHONIA APPLE RUM 500ML 40% ABV

BLACK BUSH BLEND With a mutual pursuit of quality and flavour, the team at Suki has collaborated with Bushmills Irish Whiskey to introduce Black Bush Blend. Each has its beginnings in a single ingredient: a grain of malt, the leaf of a tea plant. Both, through time-honoured craft, express themselves in endless ways. “We are proud to be working with the oldest distillery in the world to create a unique hand-blended Black Bush-inspired tea blend. Taking influence from the rich, smooth notes of Black Bush, Suki has created a blend bursting with aromatic, warm spices and a finishing flavour of sweet, dried fruit, mirroring the big robust flavours and velvety smooth character of Black Bush. Packed into biodegradable pyramids,” said Oscar Woolley, co-founder, Suki Tea.

POOKA HAZELNUT POITÍN LIQUEUR

Mourne Dew Distillery is part of the renaissance in Irish distilling. It is a fusion of ancient and modern in that old recipes have been updated using modern technology. Tried and tested techniques are augmented with cutting-edge distillation and flavour-development processes to produce outstanding award-winning liqueurs. Alongside its portfolio of award-winning whiskeys, gins and poitíns, Mourne now also offers a new vodka range. Its hazelnut poitín liqueur is infused and distilled with roast hazelnuts to give a strong, rich nutty flavour which complements the flavour of the poitín spirit and the oaky notes arising from the storage of the spirit. Sweetened and blended to 35% ABV, it can be enjoyed as a shot, over crushed ice, in coffee, with a dash of fresh cream or in cocktails. WEBSITE: MOURNEDEW.COM EMAIL: NEIL@MOURNEDEW.COM TELEPHONE: 07858 523946

WEBSITE: SUKI-TEA.COM EMAIL: QUERIES@SUKI-TEA.COM TELEPHONE: 07891427590

www.slrmag.co.uk

MARCH 2022 | SLR

Inside Business

Spar Scotland Tradeshow

MOMENTUM BUILDING FOR SPAR SCOTLAND TRADESHOW Over 70 suppliers have already signed up for Spar Scotland wholesaler and retailer CJ Lang’s annual tradeshow in Aviemore in September.

par Scotland has confirmed that over 70 suppliers have already signed up for its annual tradeshow in Aviemore this September. Confirmed suppliers come from every category and the tradeshow has also attracted a list of major sponsors including Coca Cola, Hovis, Graham’s the Family Dairy and AG Barr. The event will return to a live format after two years being held virtually. Independent retailers have already been invited and all other delegate invitations will be issued this month for what looks set to be a highlight of the local retailing calendar in 2022. Spar Scotland says event plans with “a huge amount planned both in terms of during the day and into the evening – a food safari and a marquee dance!” Taking place in Aviemore and the Cairngorms National Park, the event will be held at the MacDonald Hotel and Resort on Thursday 22 September 2022. Spar Scotland expects more than 700 delegates to attend, and the event is set to be one

of the biggest local retailing events to take place in Scotland this year. Colin McLean, Spar Scotland CEO, said: “Our 2022 tradeshow will be a great opportunity to engage once again with a live audience. We will have over 180 national and Scottish suppliers turn their stands into exciting showcases for their products. By taking part in our tradeshow, our suppliers will be able to bring their innovative products to the attention of the largest group of independent retailers to visit a tradeshow in Scotland. “We are looking forward to welcoming our estate of independent Spar retailers and company-owned staff, key personnel from Spar Scotland, Spar UK and Spar International, to what promises to be a sellout event.” For details on how to attend please call CJ Lang on 01382 512000 and speak to the Spar Scotland Tradeshow team.

700+

delegates

180

suppliers

22 September 2022, Aviemore 26

SLR | MARCH 2022

www.slrmag.co.uk

Aviemore ‘22

! k c a B e r ’ e W

Announcing our Tradeshow sponsors so far...

Have you registered yet for one of the biggest retail events of the year? Thursday 22nd September 2022

To find out more call us on 01382 512 000 www.sparscotland.co.uk @SparScotland CJ Lang & Son Limited

@SparScotland SparScotlandOfficial

Advertising Feature

Mars Chocolate

DON’T MISS OUT THIS EASTER Responsible for 30% of the confectionery category’s total sales, Easter presents a great opportunity to build sales and Mars Wrigley’s seasonal range can help retailers do just that. BY SOPHIA PADT, SENIOR BRAND MANAGER FOR EASTER, MARS WRIGLEY

TRENDS The total confectionery market is in growth, up by 3.6% amounting to £900m1 in sales, making it a lucrative category for convenience retailers. Within confectionery, there is a sales focus on occasions such as the big night in and on-the-go. With consumers being able to move more freely and meet together, occasions such as these can provide perfect opportunities to boost both impulse and planned sales.

LAST MINUTE EASTER OPPORTUNITIES Easter is an incredibly popular time for the off-trade, enough so that this period drives 30% of the confectionery category’s total sales throughout the season2. Seasonal products can encourage permissible and impulsive treats, creating an opportunity that retailers can easily gain from. This year, Mars Wrigley is focusing on its two biggest brands for the Easter sales period – MALTESERS and GALAXY – to drive sales and category growth around Easter 2022. MALTESERS Bunny is the UK’s most successful chocolate product in the novelty shapes category in both value share and sales. Last year, MALTESERS Bunny sales grew by an impressive 53.6%, driven by sales of the classics, as well as NPD in the category3. Consumer favourites from last year, including the MALTESERS Orange Bunny, will be back by popular demand. Since 2019, sales of chocolate orange have grown by 59%4, making them a must-stock for retailers looking to make the most of any last-minute 28

SLR | MARCH 2022

Easter opportunities. Following their successful launch last year, the MALTESERS White Mini Bunnies will be available in all major retailers. We are confident that this increase in availability will see retailers benefitting from this popular small sharing NPD. Baking is a key ritual with consumers around Easter. With confectionery use in Easter baking doubling in the past five years5, this will be a key trend for retailers to reflect in their offering to maximise sales. Mars Wrigley recognises this consumer ritual, with consumers showing preference of baking with our MALTESERS Bunny. To support this, we will be releasing a series of fun recipes on our brand website to help consumers hone their Easter baking skills. Running alongside this will be a competition, offering consumers the opportunity to send in their most creative Easter bakes for the chance to win a morning or afternoon baking with Lottie Bedlow, a contestant from GBBO 2020. The MALTESERS Bunny range will be a must-stock for retailers looking to profit from from those last minute Easter opportunities. New to UK shelves this year is GALAXY Creamy Truffle Mini Eggs, a foil wrapped indulgent treat, perfect for the Easter egg hunt ritual or Easter baking. These delicious mini treats are targeted to meet different touch points throughout the Easter season, posing a prime opportunity for retailers to target a different demographics and boost further Easter sales. Easter is also a prime occasion for gifting, with truffles being a must-stock for retailers looking to upsell consumers. For two consecutive years, Mars Wrigley has launched the number one NPD in the boxed confectionery market with the MALTESERS Truffles and GALAXY Truffles proving that truffles are a consumer favourite and can help drive category sales at a key point in the year.

RANGING AND MERCHANDISING ADVICE With celebratory occasions increasing, consumers are looking for products that they can enjoy with loved ones for these moments. To align with this, we are seeing an increase in sharing and gifting formats, with consumers looking to celebrate both pinnacle and mini moments throughout the year, such as Mother’s Day and birthdays. Nearly half (45%) of confectionery products are picked up from main fixtures, so ensuring that confectionery items are placed on these fixtures will help to drive sales as they stand prominently in the store catching the eye of consumers. In addition, secondary fixtures can be placed near the till, best positioned at eye level, or buy level, coupled with clear and engaging POS where possible.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Kantar 2021 Kantar Worldpanel data 2016-2019 Source: NielsenIQ Scantrack | Easter: data to w.e.03.04.21 Source: NielsenIQ Scantrack | Easter: data to w.e.03.04.21 Kantar, Worldpanel Division, Take Home/ rolling 4 w/e data up to 29th December 2019

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Scotland’s Speciality Food Show

Inside Business

THE BEST OF SCOTLAND’S FOOD AND DRINK ON SHOW Scotland’s Speciality Food Showattracts strong line-up of exhibitors.

27-29 March, SEC, Glasgow

ith consumer interest in locally, regionally and nationallysourced food and drink arguably at an all-time high, the Scotland’s Speciality Food Show taking place this month is an event worth a visit for local retailers looking to grow their range of quality Scottish products.. The line-up of exhibitors for this year’s postponed Scotland’s Speciality Food Show is one of the strongest for many years with a third of all exhibitors new to the Show. With the Show taking place at the SEC, Glasgow from 27-29th March 2022, this event is not to be missed by all Scottish food retailers. www.slrmag.co.uk

Among the newbies are The Buffalo Farm from Fife which produces Scottish Buffalo Mozzarella, meat and dairy products, Crofters Larder from Isle of Arran, Gin Etc who produce gin making kits, Glenkinchie Distillery from East Lothian, Island Bakery Organics from Isle of Mull, Left Field Kombucha from Eyemouth producing award winning drinks, The Ochil Fudge Pantry, well known butchers Ramsay of Carluke and The Scottish Tea House. A highlight of this year’s Show are the regional food stands which include Food from Argyll, East Lothian Food and Drink, Tastes of Fife, Lanarkshire Larder and the large Taste of Orkney stand. This allows retailers to source products

from their local Scottish regions, renowned for their fine offerings. Scotland’s Speciality Food Show is more than just a food show. The programme of inspiring talks, panel discussions and seminars is designed to allow retailers to hone their business and retail skills - https://www.scotlandstradefairs. com/whats-on/talking-shop-seminar-timetable. Hilary Anderson from Allarburn Farm Shop in Elgin said: “It’s very important to keep ahead of trends and keep bringing fresh ideas into the business, and the show is a great place to see everything new and up and coming under one roof and a great time of year after the busiest quarter to refresh and restock.” MARCH 2022 | SLR

Inside Business

SLR Products of the Year 2021

RETAILERS’ FAVOURITE NEW PRODUCTS OF 2021

REVEALED! The votes have been counted, so read on to see the winners of SLR’s Product of the Year Awards 2021... BY GAELLE WALKER

SLR

OF PRODUCT THE

YEAR 2021

NEW PRODUCT AWARD

s experienced retailers know by now, the survival, success and growth of the local retailing industry depends on all elements of the supply chain working in harmony. If retailers themselves are the heart and soul of the sector, then new products must surely be the lifeblood. Innovative new launches deliver a steady stream of great opportunities to grow footfall, sales and profits. SLR’s Products of the Year awards 2021 celebrate the very best of these game-changing new products – the

SLR | MARCH 2022

HOW WERE THE WINNERS CROWNED? bright sparks that have helped to ignite growth in what was another challenging but successful year. Crucially, the winners have been crowned by those who matter the most, local retailers themselves, with store owners’ thoughts, opinions and accounts having helped to shape every stage of the judging process. So sit back, relax and bask in the glow of 2021’s most-prized new products, the tipples, treats and sweets that provided a welcome shot in the industry’s arm, setting it up for a healthier start to the year ahead.

The winners were decided exclusively by retailer vote. When there was only a small margin between the winner and the runner up, we have awarded Highly Commended status. All products that were launched in the 2021 calendar year and were available in the Scottish local retailing channel, were eligible for entry. The shortlist was curated from a list of every product that was carried in the print and digital versions of SLR and The Week In Retail and scored against a range of key engagement criteria including digital views, reads and clicks and offline retailer feedback. All winners are entitled to showcase the special Winners logo on pack and in their marketing materials while all shortlisted entrants can display the special Shortlisted logo.

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Inside Business

SLR Products of the Year 2021

MEET THE WINNERS BEER CIDER AND LOW NO ALCOHOL BEER WINNER: GUINNESS 0%

BISCUITS AND CAKES

FREE FROM

RTDS

ENERGY

WINNER: RUSTLERS MEATLESS MAVERICK

WINNER: REKORDERLING PINK LEMON CIDER

WINNER: IRN BRU ENERGY BIG CAN (500ML)

HIGHLY COMMENDED: FLORA PLANT BUTTER SPREADABLE

HIGHLY COMMENDED: BEEFEATER NEW RTDS LONDON DRY, BLOOD ORANGE, PINK STRAWBERRY

HIGHLY COMMENDED: LUCOZADE ZERO TROPICAL

GUM

TOBACCO

SQUASH

WINNER: EXTRA REFRESHERS NEW BOTTLE FORMAT AND TROPICAL FLAVOUR

WINNER: STERLING DUAL CAPSULE LEAF WRAPPED 20S

WINNER: CAPRI-SUN MULTIVITAMIN SQUASH – ORANGE, APPLE & BLACKCURRANT

WINNER: JAFFA JONUTS HIGHLY COMMENDED: MCVITIE’S DESSERT INSPIRED RANGE: CHOCOLATE DIGESTIVES/ CHOCOLATE HOBNOBS

BREAD AND HOMEBAKING WINNER: KINGSMILL 50/50 MULTISEED/KINGSMILL 50/50 NO BITS MULTISEED

CANDY WINNER: TIC TAC COCA-COLA HIGHLY COMMENDED: HARIBO SOUR SPARKS/HARIBO STARBEAMS (VEGETARIAN)

CHOCOLATE CONFECTIONERY WINNER: CADBURY CARAMILK HIGHLY COMMENDED: FERRERO ROCHER BARS, WHITE, MILK AND DARK CHOCOLATE 90G

HARD SELTZERS WINNER: 19 CRIMES SELTZER LIME BITTERS

ICE CREAM WINNER: BEN & JERRY’S COOKIE DOUGH TWISTS ICE CREAM –RAIN-DOUGH/ DOUGH-BLE CHOCOLATE

PROTEIN WINNER: GRENADE GINGERBREAD CARB KILLA HIGHLY COMMENDED: SNICKERS HI PROTEIN WHITE CHOCOLATE SNICKERS HI PROTEIN WHITE CHOCOLATE CARAMEL AND PEANUT

PERSONAL CARE

CRISPS AND SNACKS

WINNER: LIFEBUOY MULTISURFACE RANGE

WINNER: MCCOY’S FIRE PIT RANGE (INCLUDING FLAME ROASTED PERI PERI, FLAME SMOKED CHORIZO AND FLAME SCORCHED BBQ RIBS

HIGHLY COMMENDED: KLEENEX PROTECTIVE CARE RANGE INCLUDING HYGIENE MASK AND ANTIBACTERIAL WIPES

HIGHLY COMMENDED: QUAVERS – PRAWN COCKTAIL/SALT & VINEGAR

FOOD-TO-GO WINNER: QUAKER PORRIDGE TO GO (PMP) HIGHLY COMMENDED: RUSTLERS COOK IN BOX RANGE (THE SUPREME CHEESE MELT BURGER AND SAUSAGE MUFFIN)

SLR | MARCH 2022

HIGHLY COMMENDED: JPS PLAYERS EASY ROLLING TOBACCO

SMOKING ACCESSORIES JOINT WINNER: SWAN FLAVOUR FUSION CARDS FRESH BURST JOINT WINNER: SWAN FLAVOUR FUSION CARDS MENTHOL HIGHLY COMMENDED: GOLD LEAF CARNIVAL EDITION PAPERS

VAPING WINNER: RELX INFINITY DEEP BLUE DEVICE

SOFT DRINKS WINNER: RUBICON RAW – RASPBERRY & BLUEBERRY, ORANGE & MANGO, CHERRY& POMEGRANATE

WINE WINNER: 19 CRIMES REVOLUTIONARY ROSÉ

OWN LABEL WINE WINNER: SPAR SEASHELL BAY SAUVIGNON BLANC

SUSTAINABLE WINNER: ABSOLUTE VODKA (LIMITED EDITION SUSTAINABLE GLASS BOTTLE) HIGHLY COMMENDED: BREWDOG PLANET PALE

CHILLED SPIRITS AND NO OR LOW ALCOHOL SPIRITS WINNER: DEAD MAN’S FINGERS BANANA RUM

HEALTHY SNACKS/ BREAKFAST BARS

HIGHLY COMMENDED: ROBINSONS DOUBLE STRENGTH BLACKCURRANT

WINNER: MÜLLER CORNER CREATIONS DIANA ASHER SMITH

GROCERY WINNER: OLD EL PASO TORTILLA POCKETS SMOKY BBQ

HIGHLY COMMENDED: SMIRNOFF RASPBERRY CRUSH

WINNER: GRAZE OATS BOOST – CHERRY BAKEWELL/CHOCOLATE COOKIE

PET FOOD WINNER: CESAR NATURAL GOODNESS CANS

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Inside Business

SWA Achievers

SCOTLAND’S WHOLESALERS STARS RECOGNISED

The SWA Achievers awards celebrate the resilience and perseverance of the Association’s wholesaler and supplier members in another enormously challenging year.

WINNERS RISING STAR OF WHOLESALE

BY LIZ WELLS

MEGHAN HENDERSON, LOMOND FOODS BEST DELIVERED OPERATION JW FILSHILL BEST LICENSED WHOLESALER SUTHERLAND BROTHERS BEST BUSINESS INITIATIVE UNITED WHOLESALE SCOTLAND GREAT PLACE TO WORK

cotland’s wholesalers have been recognised by the industry at the annual Scottish Wholesale Achievers Awards. More than 400 people attended the Achievers gala dinner and awards presentation, hosted by TV presenter Amy Irons, at the Sheraton Grand, Edinburgh, with the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy, Kate Forbes in attendance. Multiple winners on the night included United Wholesale Scotland, which won Best Cash & Carry for its depot in Queenslie, Glasgow, Best Technology Initiative, and Best Business Initiative. Lomond Foods’ Meghan Henderson won the Rising Star of Wholesale category and the company also claimed the top prize in the Best Delivered Operation – Foodservice. Wick-based Sutherland Brothers collected the Best Licensed Wholesaler accolade, while Green Wholesaler of the Year went to Booker, and 34

SLR | MARCH 2022

FAÍLTE FOODSERVICE

Dundee’s CJ Lang won the Community Service Award. Achievers crowned Hazel Boyd of Heineken UK the Supplier Sales Executive of the Year and soft drinks producer AG Barr won both the Best Overall Service and Best Foodservice Supplier categories. Meanwhile, new category the Outstanding Achievement Award was won by Millers Larder, and Best Advertising Campaign went to Tennent’s Lager for its ‘Don’t Worry England. We Bottle It Too’ campaign. Colin Smith, SWA Chief Executive, said: “At our last Achievers, in 2019, I spoke about how the industry was witnessing unprecedented change – little did I know that the most unprecedented disruption and change was waiting in the wings.” He added: “It is often said that success is hardwon in challenging times and tonight that speaks for itself, and we celebrate and acknowledge the resilience and perseverance of our wholesaler and supplier members.”

COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD CJ LANG & SON BEST DELIVERED OPERATION – FOODSERVICE LOMOND FOODS BEST TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE UNITED WHOLESALE SCOTLAND GREEN WHOLESALER OF THE YEAR BOOKER BEST SYMBOL GROUP JW FILSHILL, KEYSTORE BEST CASH & CARRY UNITED WHOLESALE SCOTLAND, QUEENSLIE

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Inside Business

Home Delivery | Snappy Shopper Roundtable

DELIVERING GROWTH:

DISCUSS

With home delivery the biggest opportunity to hit convenience retailing in decades, SLR invited a panel of top retailers and other industry insiders to Cameron House Hotel on the banks of Loch Lomond to discuss the massive opportunity it presents to the channel. BY FINDLAY STEIN

here have been many consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, some good and some not so good. Probably the biggest opportunity, however, has been the massive upsurge in the popularity of home delivery. And it’s probably fair to say that home delivery presents perhaps the biggest opportunity in living memory for local retailers to turbocharge their businesses and very quickly grow sales and profits. With that in mind, SLR hooked up with Dundee-based home delivery specialists Snappy Shopper las month to invite a select group of top local retailers and other industry insiders to a working lunch to discuss the ins and outs of home delivery. Not every retailer attending the session offers the service and in his introductory remarks SLR Publishing Director Antony Begley pointed out that while providing a home delivery service unquestionably involves hard work, it can have a transformational effect on businesses for remarkably little risk or financial outlay. He cited award-winning Londis retailer Natalie Lightfoot, who frequently says home delivery is the best thing she’s ever done in her store in Baillieston on the outskirts of Glasgow. It’s certainly the case that basket spends tend to be much bigger – typically north of £26 - and with no indication that demand for the service is slowing post-Covid, it’s important to get in there before your competition. Begley said this would be a “big win,” since customers are very reluctant to change suppliers once they have a solution they are happy with. Getting in before the competition, then, is half the battle. 36

SLR | MARCH 2022

CATCHING THE WAVE Snappy Shopper is the major player in home delivery in Scotland and the business has grown in tandem with the explosion of the market, as David Thomson, the company’s UK Independent Sales Controller explained. Industry veteran Thomson joined Snappy in January 2020, just two months before the start of the first national lockdown. At that point he was employee number nine. The company now employs more than 170 people. Thomson highlighted that home delivery “isn’t for everyone”. “It’s a jump, a step out of the norm, but it doesn’t need to be a big hassle,” he

AROUND THE TABLE Q Irfan Bashir, Premier Group NJ Q Antony Begley, SLR Q Jim Carroll, One Stop Q David Fair, Snappy Shopper Q Barry Hanif, Nisa Q Matthew Howie, Nisa Retail Q Jay Javid, Premier Group NJ Q Saj Javid, Premier Group NJ Q Phil Knox, Best One Q Dael Links, Snappy Shopper Q Stephen McIndoe, Premier Group NJ Q Daniall Nadeem, Nisa Bellshill Q Saleem Sadiq, Spar Renfrew Q Waseem Sadiq, Spar Renfrew Q Faisal Sattar, MHouse Solutions Q David Thomson, Snappy Shopper

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Snappy Shopper Roundtable | Home Delivery

said. A small investment at the outset makes “all the difference”. Conversely, home delivery “is not rocket science,” said Thomson. Get the basics right and do it well and you will be well on the way to growing your business, he said, referring in particular to one Dundee retailer who is bringing in an additional £1.5m annually for following two golden rules: deliver what’s ordered, and deliver it when you say. “Do that and you’ll keep your customers”, he explained. For Jim Carroll, Franchise Business Development Manager Scotland for One Stop, the three key factors are availability, accuracy of picking and price. In that order. He said Snappy dovetails into the symbol group’s franchise stores really well. The beauty of home delivery for Carroll is its simplicity. It’s “just a product and a price”, he said. Snappy Shopper users, he explained, don’t see any possible negative aspects of stores like poor service, cold shopfloors, faulty equipment or bad lighting. Another veteran of the industry, Carroll likened the impact of home delivery to the impact longer opening hours had back in the 1980s. “Convenience didn’t exist at that point with stores closed on Saturday afternoons and Sundays,” he explained. “Eight till late created the biggest opportunity independent retailers had ever seen – and they grasped it. Home delivery is today’s equivalent of that gamechanging shift.” Why isn’t everyone doing it? So then, if home delivery offers big rewards and is bang on the zeitgeist, why isn’t everyone doing it? For Jay Javid, Director of PGNJ which operates a chain of stores in and around Glasgow, it’s because of concerns he has as a multi-site operator over setting up and managing price files centrally for nine stores. His mind was quickly put at ease by retailer Saleem Sadiq who has five Spar stores and offers home delivery through Snappy: “There’s no need for a central operation,” is how Saleem put it. Saleem and his family’s stores all work independently of each other and it works just fine, thank you very much. Rather than diving right in with nine stores, however, Thomson advised multi-site operators

to err on the side of caution and start with stores they know are going to do well. Learn as you go with the stores that are likely to be successful quickly, then use those learnings to roll the offer out to other stores. Unsurprisingly, the lack of easy (or any) integration between EPoS systems and home delivery platforms was also an issue for some of our retailers. In an ideal world, delivery apps would update in tandem with in-store prices via a simple API with the EPoS system - but this is rarely if ever the case. EPoS houses are notoriously reluctant to integrate with third party software. “Whichever EPoS provider hits that nail on the head will end up smiling,” said Jay Javid, adding that it was hard enough do run

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matching the Snappy menu to his product file but the results make it worth his while. Thomson said Snappy was very much aware of the integration problem and are making significant progress on that front – although the problems invariably occur with the intransigence of the EPoS providers and that’s proven a very tough nut to crack right across the UK. Begley suggested integration was 90% of the problem and asked attendees to imagine a world where the EPoS fully integrated with the home delivery app and the store also had digital shelf edge labels (SELs): “The three or four-weekly nightmare of changing promotion cycles would be gone. No more replacing hundreds of price tickets in-store, no more replacing boxes and

KEY FINDINGS Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

Get in before the competition A small initial investment pays dividends It’s better to charge for delivery Deliver what’s ordered, when you say you’ll deliver it Call your customers if there’s a problem Be prepared to invest in a driver and van Challenge 25 training for drivers is crucial A strong social media presence is vital Don’t go overboard with promotions

promotions in-store without having to manually upload them to an app. Saleem highlighted that he did have to manually update the Snappy Shopper app, but it wasn’t “a major headache”. Daniall Nadeem’s Nisa Bellshill store handles upwards of 50 deliveries per day through Snappy and Daniall admitted: “It’s time. It’s effort. But it’s worth it.” He spends two to three hours

“If you want to get to five figures, you’ll need Facebook.” DAVID THOMSON ON THE POWER OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Inside Business

boxes of POS, no more uploading promotions into the Snappy app. Hit the button and literally everything updates instantly.” For Jay Javid, “integration is the only thing” stopping him.

DRIVER DILEMMA Saleem biggest problem is not integration but getting hold of drivers. Saleem is “fighting with Uber” to get drivers and would prefer to piggyback off third-party drivers. Snappy is “dabbling” with ‘last-mile’ delivery itself, which Thomson said could work in established areas. He said it was very difficult for retailers to engage with last-mile suppliers because of their business model, citing the high commission MARCH 2022 | SLR

Inside Business

Home Delivery | Snappy Shopper Roundtable

taken by the likes of Uber Eats as proof of this – typically 30% or 35%. Despite many concerns, however, getting home delivery up and running is actually very inexpensive with no long-term commitments. Give it a go and it’s working you’ll see the results in the till. Thomson explained that, essentially, once a retailer hits the £2,000 a week mark from home delivery then they could start thinking about investing £400 to £500 of that in a driver and van. Even doing just £2,000 a week is enough to make a small financial contribution to the business. And, he added, “when retailers hit two grand, they’re on their way to five”. Saleem also wondered aloud about using taxi companies. Thomson’s advice was to engage with a taxi driver and not a taxi firm, as it’s individual drivers and not companies who must perform due diligence around age-restricted purchases. This issue of underage sales was a concern for retailer and EPoS supplier Faisal Sattar of MHouse Solutions. Thomson highlighted that sales of age-restricted products is a very important issue but said that retailers simply have to have the same processes in place for deliveries as they have in the store itself. He also stressed the importance of training drivers around Challenge 25. Thomson warned that he also expects local authorities to start test purchasing at some point, something Snappy already does internally. Drivers must hit a “customer looks over 25” button before they can complete a delivery of 38

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age-restricted products made through Snappy Shopper. Furthermore, the Snappy retailer dashboard also has a digital refusal log.

RIVAL FEARS Retailers also expressed concerns about rival stores signing up for Snappy Shopper. Snappy looks at a model of one store per 10,000 people, which is enough for that store to build a “great business,” Thomson said, adding that social media was “absolutely key” to success. He quoted the case of two Dundee stores roughly three miles apart which are both doing well because they’re both very vocal about offering home delivery. Thomson explained that experience shows that when two good retailers operate home delivery in some sort of proximity to one another, the result is a net gain for both stores. If anything, Thomson said, it was harder to start up in isolation, where there weren’t any other Snappy Shopper stores around. Jay commented that “everyone wants to be exclusive” and compared home delivery to the Lottery and PayPoint, which have mushroomed to a point where “everyone’s got them”. But exclusivity is no guarantee of success. Doing the job well is likely to deliver growth under most circumstances.

SWAP SHOP Concerns around range and substitutions were another worry for Jay. Thomson’s advice was to keep ranges as tight as possible on the app,

especially at the outset, to help avoid having to substitute. “And if you must substitute,” he advised, “then get the customer’s consent first, and don’t charge more”. Begley backed this up. “Several retailers have told me that customers will put up with anything if they know in advance,” he said. “Phone them. It’s the same if the delivery’s going to be late. Ninety-nine per cent of the time they won’t have a problem if you give them a call and say you’re going to be 10 minutes late.”

GET VOCAL ON SOCIAL The importance of social media was a recurring theme throughout the session. Thomson put it bluntly: “If you want to get to five figures, you’ll need Facebook. We talk endlessly to retailers who don’t have a good Facebook page about the importance of having one.” He said stores with a significant amount of ‘likes’ on their Facebook page - over 1,000 for example - were those with the highest home delivery sales, and that you must take customers with you on your journey. “If it’s as simple as giving someone a lollipop for liking your Facebook page then that’s the sort of stuff you need to do at the start of your journey,” he advised. Nisa Business Development Manager Matthew Howie made a good point that TikTok and Instagram were probably growing quicker than Facebook, citing Nisa retailer Daniall Nadeem who generates a lot of hype around pre-sales on these apps which are more popular www.slrmag.co.uk

Snappy Shopper Roundtable | Home Delivery

among many younger shoppers. Daniall puts products on Snappy with a ‘coming soon’ logo and when they become active “it just blows up”. Daniall said his TikTok content, which focuses on in-store displays, new products and, of course, dancing, was “just a bit of fun”. Fun maybe, but it does engage with a totally different audience from Facebook. This struck a chord with Saleem’s son Waseem, who labelled Facebook “a dying platform”. Dying it may possibly be but it remains by some clear distance the most important platform for home delivery retailers for the time being. Dael Links of Snappy suggested setting up a Facebook community group as a great way to target customers wth an active interest in your business, rather than just everyone on Facebook. Multi-site retailer Barry Hanif added

sales, not planned purchases. And most customers don’t open the Snappy app looking for deals; they open it to buy something they want or need and pricing is of secondary importance. David Thomson suggested that in his experience the top performing home delivery retailers make great use of promotions on the Snappy app. “Customers like promotions,” he said, and they also can be used tactically to help manage fresh and other short-coded stock. Time and effort are also major considerations. Daniall Nadeem used to upload Nisa’s full promotional leaflet to the Snappy app but stopped due to the time it took. Without an API to automatically upload the promotions, he has to manually upload each promotion individually. He now focuses instead on ‘Wow!’ deals and freezer promotions. He schedules

“Keep footfall drivers to drive footfall into stores.” DAVID THOMSON ON PROMOTIONS

that the social meda wasn’t necessarily about promotions but “reminding customers the shop is there”. Begley agreed. “Social media should be about establishing and building relationships, not just selling stuff,” he said. There was broad agreement that the vast majority of posts should be about community engagement in some sense. Faisal Sattar advised retailers unsure about social media to get younger staff to help: “Just give them a work phone to make content for you and you’ll soon see much bigger engagement.”

PROMOTION PUZZLE Opinion was split over offering promotions on the app for home delivery. At this point, it’s simply not practical to offer every single in-store promotion on the app too – and many retailers around the table suggested that it’s not even a good idea to offer promotions at all. Saleem Sadiq, for instance, made the valid point that promotions tend to drive impulse www.slrmag.co.uk

posts to run every couple of hours and says that these scheduled posts on Facebook, TikTok and Instragram see “two or three sales come in on Snappy that I wouldn’t pick up in-store”. Begley suggested that getting the first order from a customer is the hardest one. Data shows that three-quarters of the time, customers will order again after making that first purchase. He suggested a strong initial incentive would soon pay for itself in repeat business, citing one retailer who actually offers a £40 bottle of champagne to new customers, getting the £40 back inside a couple of orders.

BIG BASKETS Of course, the great attraction of home delivery is the bigger baskets. It doesn’t take too many £200 spends, which is not unusual, to claw back the cost of that bottle of bubbly. There are several reasons for this. Antony Begley discussed the psychology of spending

Inside Business

money, quoting research which found that handing over cash in stores has been shown to trigger the same reaction in the brain as occurs when physical pain is felt. In other words, spending cash hurts. The same research found that spending on credit cards or apps, conversely, didn’t trigger those some responses in the brain. By extension, using a smartphone for a home delivery order is further divorced from the reality of parting with your hard-earned. There are of course many fairly obvious reasons why home delivery order values tend to be higher. David Thomson suggested baskets were bigger because shoppers didn’t have the same distractions they faced in-store and could take time to check their cupboards to see what needed replenished. Theorising aside, one very concrete reason is linked to delivery charges. While it might be tempting to offer free delivery to attract business, this can quickly become a problem, with customers ordering little and often. The consensus around the table was that sales in fact increase when a delivery charge is added. The number of deliveries will fall but basket size will increase dramatically as shoppers seek to make the most of that £3 delivery fee. The impact that pressures from higher fuel costs and rising wages might have on delivery charges in future was also discussed. With rising costs across the board, it will surprise no one if retailers feel the need to increase delivery charges in future. Snappy’s £3 delivery fee is only ‘advisory’ and Thomson stressed that it’s entirely up to retailers, although he did warn retailers to tread carefully around deliver fees, particularly where retailers are considering charging more than a rival store. And so, as the session ended, talk of the soaring costs of doing business turned to the emergence of dark store operators like Getir and Gorillaz, which Thomson sees as a threat to not only the delivery market but also the traditional convenience model. Dark operators are thankfully thin on the ground in Scotland but they are huge in major cities down south, so it’s probably only a matter of time before they start targeting Scotland, particularly major cities like Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee and Aberdeen. The best form of defence against this? Attack. And the conversation came full circle, reinforcing the idea once more that getting started now is the best way of protecting your business from dark stores in the future. With that in mind then, should any local retailer asking themselves, “Can I afford to offer home delivery?” instead be asking: “Can I afford not to?” MARCH 2022 | SLR

Inside Business

In-Store Technology

HENDERSON CELEBRATES 50TH ESEL INSTALLATION The milestone installation was at The Wall Group’s Landscape Filling Station Crumlin Road in Belfast.

enderson Technology has made its 50th installation of its Electronic Shelf Edge Labels (ESELs) system. The system, which features display modules fixed to the front edge of retail shelving, reduces time and cost for pricing management, improves pricing accuracy, and allows dynamic pricing. The system, which integrates into Henderson Technology’s EDGEPoS, was first launched in January 2020. The milestone EDGEPoS ESELs installation was at Landscape Filling Station Crumlin Road in Belfast, which is owned by Spar retailers Helen and Gavan Wall. The couple operate as The Wall Group and own four Spar stores around the Belfast area. Helen Wall, Co-Owner of The Wall Group, said: “When we were researching ESELs for our newly refurbished store, we visited a local EuroSpar and immediately we were struck by how professional, modern and smart the ESELs looked. 40

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“We wanted to keep everything as high tech as possible in our new store and decided to install EDGEPoS ESELs from Henderson Technology in Landscape Filling Station. We were initially concerned by the cost of the ESELs, but learned that Henderson Technology offered the product on a seven year rental agreement. “When we were looking at ideas for the store, we were also focused on sustainability. There is lots of waste from paper SELs and we wanted to reduce the amount of paper and ink we were using instore.” Colin Cunningham, The Wall Group Manager, said: “The results have been immediate. We already completed two promotion changeovers and it has been so straight forward. Just a click of a button and the ESELs are updated instantly. This means that we have been able to free staff up to concentrate on other tasks. “With the ability to change ESELs on the shop through the handset within seconds, this has saved us many personnel hours. Previously an

employee had to scan the product, get access to the back office and print out SELs – which could be time consuming and laborious. Our employees no longer need to leave the shop floor.” He added: “With all the retail technology that we have introduced instore including ESELs and two Self-Checkouts and the investment that we have made into these innovative products, we aim to increase sales, see a growth in our margin and utilise staff activity and productivity instore.” Darren Nickels, Retail Technology Operations Director at Henderson Technology, added: “We are very proud to work with Helen, Gavan and the team onsite in all four of the Wall’s stores in Belfast.” He added: “They are a shining example of introducing innovative, forward-thinking retailers, adding retail technology products to their EDGEPoS system and future proofing their business.” www.slrmag.co.uk

S E L A S R U O Y P U R E W PO

HIGH CAFFEINE ENERGY DRINK WITH THE INDESC

RIBABLE TASTE OF IRN-BRU

FROM THE N0.1 SCOTTISH GROCERY BRAND *

*Source: Kantar World Panel, Value Sales, Take Home Non-Alcohol Brands, MAT to 06.09.21, Total Scotland

Local Sourcing | Research

Inside Business

THE LOCAL FACTOR

Stocking more locally sourced and branded products could provide Scottish local retailers with a competitive advantage over the major supermarkets. BY JIM ECCLESTON

he pandemic has seen many changes in shopper behaviours when it comes to their everyday grocery shopping. Many discovered the convenience of home delivery from the major multiples during lockdown and have continued with this means of getting their weekly shopping since then. This obviously presents a threat to local convenience stores, but a nationally representative survey of the Scottish population we undertook on behalf of the Scottish Retail Food & Drink Awards during the final quarter of last year illustrated a number of other key trends in behaviours which offer opportunities to local retailers in Scotland. When asked what might drive greater footfall in local convenience stores, four different elements emerged: more competitive prices (56%), better product ranges (42%), more deals and offers (38%) and more locally produced food and drink (30%). Whilst the calls for cheaper prices and more deals and offers are inevitable, especially as the cost of living crisis takes hold, 30% would be more likely to shop locally if there was a greater range of locally produced food and drink on offer. This represents a real opportunity for local producers and retailers to work together to ensure that locally produced products are made available in convenience stores.

WHAT IS LOCAL? But what does ‘local’ mean to Scots – and what types of product are especially appealing? The survey discovered that for 52% of Scots, ‘local’ means ‘Scottish’ – though for a sizeable minority it is more local than this: regional or even their town or city (39%). So, for convenience stores to entice Scottish buyers, stocking products which clearly display their origins to the most local of levels will appeal. Illustrating this, when we asked Scots about their preferences for either ‘Scottish’ or ‘British’ branding, there was little doubt that a Scottish identity was important for the overwhelming majority: all things being equal (price, quality etc.), 65% would select a product labelled Scottish and displaying the Saltire over one that carried British branding such as a Union Jack – only 10% would prefer this type of branding.

These findings become a bit of a hot potato recently and gained some coverage in the Scottish media, particularly after this specific finding was discussed by an MSP as part of a political debate in the Scottish Parliament. Our research, however, was strictly nonpolitical and focused on the appeal, purely from a product/branding appeal perspective. There is no doubt that emphasising the Scottish origin and provenance of food and drink products will attract interest – a real opportunity for convenience stores who are better placed to source and stock smaller, locally sourced food and drink items than most of the supermarket and discounter chains.

HYPER LOCAL The research also discovered that moving beyond ‘Scottish’ branding and stocking products which are as local as possible could yield even greater returns: 22% of Scots describe local provenance as ‘very important’ and another 41% describe it as ‘quite important’ when it comes to decisions on what they might purchase. This demonstrates a clear desire for locally produced food and drink. But what particular types of ‘local product’ have the greatest appeal? Four categories stand out with the highest importance attributed to local varieties being readily available: fresh meat; poultry and fish; fruit and vegetables; dairy products; and bakery goods. In each case two-thirds or more of Scots describe locally produced/reared/grown versions being readily available as important to them. That said, there was clear support for locally produced food and drink across all categories. This means that if convenience stores took the lead in sourcing such products, it would provide them with clear ammunition to fight back against the major supermarkets and gain a competitive advantage in an area that really seems to matter to many Scots.

Jim Eccleston is Managing Partner of Edinburgh-based research and insight specialists 56 Degree Insight, the official research partners of the Scottish Retail Food & Drink Awards.

“65% would select a product labelled as Scottish and displaying the Saltire over one that carried British branding such as a Union Jack.” www.slrmag.co.uk

MARCH 2022 | SLR

Hotlines

Product News & Media Watch

Buzzed Buzzed Energy Buzzed is described as “the world’s first energy tonic water.” Unlike most leading energy drinks, it is made with 100% natural caffeine sourced from plants. It still boasts more caffeine per 100ml than the UK’s leading energy brand. Buzzed is available now in boxes of eight 150ml cans with an RSP of £5.50. Email sales@buzzedenergy.co.uk to discuss stocking the product.

Ben & Jerry’s Salted Caramel Brownie Peace Pop Unilever This latest Peace Pop frozen snacking flavour consists of a sweet cream ice cream with a thick brownie sauce centre and is covered in a gooey Salted Caramel coating and popped on a stick. It is available now, with an RSP of £4, and joins existing variant Cookie Dough Peace Pop.

Monster Ultra Watermelon Coca-Cola Europacific Partners Available now, Monster Ultra Watermelon combines a juicy watermelon flavour with Monster’s energy blend, for a refreshing energy boost with no calories and no sugar. It is available in both plain and pricemarked 500ml packs, as well as four-can multipacks. The Monster Ultra range is growing at a rate of more than 57%. For more information, retailers can call 0808 1 000 000 or email connect@ccep.com.

SLR | MARCH 2022

Magnum supercharges classics

Magnum has unveiled remixed versions of its best-selling Classic, Almond, and White Chocolate flavours, which combine a twice-dipped experience of two flavours of ice cream. The range includes Magnum Classic Remix (3 pack), which feature chocolate ice cream swirled with Madagascan vanilla ice cream, fully dipped in a layer of classic milk chocolate and then half-dipped in milk chocolate with crunchy cocoa pieces. Magnum Almond Remix (3 pack) and Magnum Almond Mini (6 pack), features double swirled rich Almond flavoured ice cream and Madagascan vanilla ice cream encased in a full layer of white chocolate with chopped almond pieces, then halfdipped in cracking milk chocolate to “amplify” the almond experience.

McVitie’s Club Salted Caramel pladis The Club range’s first new flavour in over 10 years is available now in packs of seven or eight individuallywrapped bars, with an RSP of £1 to £1.70. It consists of a light, goldenbaked biscuit bar, layered with a salted caramel-flavoured cream and coated in chunky milk chocolate. The new product joins the brand’s established line-up of Club Mint and Club Orange,. Packaging is recyclable through Terracycle.

Magnum White Chocolate and Berry Remix (3 pack) is a velvety berry ice cream paired with rich Madagascan vanilla ice cream, coated in white chocolate, and then half-dipped in classic milk chocolate. The brand has also introduced Magnum Sweet and Salty Almond Remix tub (440ml), a new take on the signature Magnum Almond tub, now with sweet and salty flavours. The roasted almond ice cream contains rich swirls of gooey salted caramel sauce and crisp golden honeycomb pieces, in-tensified with caramelised almond pieces and encased in cracking milk chocolate. Each Remix three pack is priced at £3.99, the Remix Mini six pack is priced at £3.99, and Remix tub is priced at £4.

Sour Patch Kids Watermelon Mondelez The fourth variant in the Sour Patch Kids range is available now in shelfready cases of 10 with an RSP of £1.32 per 140g bag. Each individual jelly sweet is watermelon-flavoured with a coating of sour sugar. Like the other variants, the flavour changes from sour to sweet. The taste is mirrored with a fun watermelon shape. The sweets contain no gelatine and have been certified vegan by the Vegan Society.

Aqua Libra Blood Orange & Mango Britvic Britvic has added a Blood Orange & Mango flavour to its Aqua Libra range of infused sparkling waters, available now in 330ml cans with a £1 RSP, and containing no sugar, no calories and nothing artificial. It joins Raspberry & Blackcurrant and Cucumber, Mint & Lime in the existing line up. The infused sparkling water brand said the new launch caters to a growing number of health-conscious consumers.

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Product News & Media Watch Shisha Disposable Vapes Geek Bar



Hoppy Easter Pun Box World of Sweets

Geek Bar has launched its firstever range of shisha vapes. The device includes 575 puffs and uses the same battery technology as previous Geek Bar products. The range, which comes with 2ml e-liquid capacity and contains 20mg/ml nicotine, is available in several flavours including Watermelon Berries Shisha, Hawaii Sunshine Shisha, Pineapple Guava Shisha, Mixed Fruit with Rose Shisha, and Strawberry Kiwi Shisha.

World of Sweets has unveiled its latest Bonds pun box in time for Easter. ‘Hoppy Easter’ is the first pun box with a gummy sweet and chocolate combination. Each box is packed with fruit flavoured gummy bunnies and milk chocolate eggs coated in a candy shell. The eyecatching box has a fun Easter design, making it an ideal seasonal gift. The 160g boxes (RSP £2) are available in cases of 12 from Hancocks.

Heinz Pasta Sauces Kraft Heinz

Wotsits Crunchy PepsiCo

Kraft Heinz has introduced a range of ready to use Heinz Pasta Sauces, available now in cases of six with an RSP of £2.50 per jar. The sevenstrong range is made using 100% natural ingredients and no added sugar, and delivers one of your five a day. The launch is supported across TV, digital and out-of-home with the tagline “Ridiculously Late, Ridiculously Good.”

The new crunchy snacks will be available in Really Cheesy and Flamin’ Hot flavour from 11 April. PepsiCo is driving awareness of the Wotsits Crunchy range through a supporting £1.5m marketing campaign throughout April, which includes digital, social advertising, and shopper marketing activity. Wotsits Crunchy rolls out to the convenience channel in 60g £1 pricemarked packs.

Hotlines

Widen the Circle Jameson Irish Whiskey has launched a major new international campaign, in time for key seasonal events including St Patrick’s Day. The Widen the Circle promotion includes a TV ad called ‘That Spark’ featuring Irish actor, writer and comedian Aisling Bea. The campaign also includes influencer, PR and social media outreach.

Broken biscuits 3D billboards appeared at sites across the country, including Glasgow, last month as part of Oreo’s collaboration with Warner Bros for the new Batman movie, which opens on 4 March. To promote limited-edition packs of Oreo embossed with a Batman image, a special build featured an Oreo cookie split in half by a huge Batarang.

Flying wolf Treasury Wine Estates has launched ‘Why Settle When You Can Soar,’ a new campaign for its Wolf Blass premium wine brand. The campaign is expected reach millions of consumers across the country, through a burst of video-on-demand advertising and a continuation of the brand’s partnership with luxury travel deals company, Secret Escapes.

Find Your Fresh Look Rubicon Still Pineapple Barr Soft Drinks Barr Soft Drinks is launching a new Still Pineapple flavour into its Rubicon still juice drink portfolio in time for retailers to maximise sales this spring. The new variant is available now in a 1L plain pack and PMP (£1.29) and a 288ml plain pack. Pineapple is already the third-biggest flavour within 1-litre juices and Barr says more than 90% of consumers asked said that they would buy Rubicon Pineapple having seen the concept.

Mystery Fanta CCEP Coca-Cola Europacific Partners has brought back #WhatTheFanta, after the success last year’s campaign. A new, bright pink mystery Fanta variant is rolling out in 500ml and 2-ltr packs now. The liquid inside the bottle could be one of several exotic zero sugar flavours. New for 2022, there are subtle differences on packs to help shoppers find different ones or repeat buy their favourite. Visit My.CCEP.com to request POS materials.

Mars Wrigley’s first global campaign for Extra, ‘Find Your Fresh Look’, has made its worldwide debut in the UK. The campaign has been designed to grow the brand’s penetration by targeting under-25s. It supports a rebrand for all Extra chewing gum and includes UK partnerships with ISAWITFIRST and BadHero.

It’s Great To Be A Cat The £3.7m ‘Felix – It’s Great To Be A Cat’ campaign is spearheaded by a playful TV advert with a catchy jingle that celebrates the moments that make it great to be a cat, like being warm and cosy on a rainy day. Set to reach more than 30 million households, the campaign also includes video-on-demand, radio, shopper and social media activity.

For all the latest product news, head to www.slrmag.co.uk/category/product-news www.slrmag.co.uk

MARCH 2022 | SLR

Feature

Bottled Water

GOT SOME BOTTLE Local retailers in Scotland have a refreshing opportunity to soak up bottled water sales in 2022. BY GAELLE WALKER

or Scottish local convenience retailer Dennis Williams, bottled water is a “massive” category, accounting for well over 10% of category sales in the winter months and rising to just shy of 20% in the summer when sales peak. Hardly surprising then that he and wife Linda maintain a razor-sharp focus on the category all year round in a bid to squeeze every last drop out of its potential. And Dennis is certainly not alone. In fact, according to Nestlé Waters, the water segment continues to be a “valuable source of sales” for convenience retailers across the country – making up the biggest segment in the soft drinks category and accounting for 26% of all soft drink volume sales.

HEALTHIER LIVING Health has long-since been a key driver of bottled water sales and looks set to remain a motivating force in 2022, as shoppers keep a tight hold of many of the healthier habits

SCOTLAND’S DRS TO GO LIVE IN 2023 Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) is now set to go live on 16 August 2023. The scheme previously had an implementation date of July 2022 however this was postponed due to Covid-19. However, despite the delay to the start of implementation, the Scottish Government still wants the scheme to meet its original target of achieving 90% collection rates by 2024. The target will now come in the scheme’s second year of operation, not the third, as had originally been stated, giving the industry far less time to achieve the goal. The Scottish Government also said it hoped to work “work with retailers” on a phased introduction to the scheme starting from this summer. Welcoming the delay to the scheme’s implementation, the Scottish Grocers Federation said: “We are concerned about the minister’s statement that retailers will begin to roll out a phased approach to DRS in the summer of 2022. We need urgent clarity on what this will involve, how the Scottish government will support it, and what the objectives of this approach will be.”

SLR | MARCH 2022

adopted during the pandemic, with drinking more water chief among these according to Barr. And despite the general trend towards healthier living, bottled water sales see their second biggest peak in the early part of the year, buoyed by New Year’s Resolutions to drink less alcohol, consume less sugar and exercise more. Adrian Troy, Marketing Director at Barr Soft Drinks elaborates: “With 6.5 million people participating in Dry January, the demand for both bottled water and lower and no sugar soft drinks increases in the early part of the year. “In-fact drinking more water is currently the number one healthy change that shoppers are looking to make,” he says. And, judging by the fact that 62% of the population admit to still not drinking the recommended two litres of water per day according to Nestlé Waters, it’s an ambition that clearly spells a fluid opportunity for local retailers who can facilitate them doing so.

GREEN GOALS With sustainability also set to remain a key priority for shoppers in 2022, bottled water brands which clearly demonstrate their environmental credentials are likely to win a greater share of sales says Severine Hemms, Shopper Marketing Manager at Nestlé Waters. “Sustainability has remained at the forefront of shoppers’ minds throughout the pandemic, with 77% of UK consumers saying that they try to act in a way that is not harmful to the environment. With consumers demanding products that can help limit their environmental impact, it’s more important than ever for retailers to consider the green credentials of the products they have on offer.” Buxton’s on-the-go range is now completely made from 100% recycled plastic and is also fully recyclable. It also features the additional “I am made from other bottles” messaging – key to helping it communicate its sustainability street cred, Hemms adds. And Buxton is not the only brand out there that is seeking to quash the use of virgin plastic. Highland Spring’s ‘Eco Bottle’ is also made from 100% recycled plastic, with the bottle, label and cap also all 100% recyclable.

KEY NUMBERS Q The water segment accounts for 26% of all soft drink volume sales (Nestlé Waters) Q 59% of people say they are now considering their health more when they shop (Britvic) Q 67% of shoppers say it’s “important” to buy products with recyclable packaging (Trivium Packaging 2021 Global Buying Green Report) Q Buxton has removed almost 12,000 tonnes of plastic by making its lightest-ever bottles of Buxton Water. Q 69% of total plain water value sales come from on-the-go formats (Nestlé Waters) Q 37% of shoppers purchasing soft drinks impulsively (Nestlé Waters)

Available across still and sparkling variants and in 50cl, 75cl and kids’ formats, the bottle design was helping the brand inch closer and closer to its goal of creating a “closed loop” in which no plastic was wasted and no new plastic was created, Highland Spring said.

FORMATS With spring and the promise of warmer weather on the way, demand for on-the-go natural mineral water formats is also expected to make a concerted comeback in 2022. “While Covid-19 has impacted how people shop for smaller water formats, we’re confident that on-the-go formats will recover,” Hemms adds. “69% of total plain water value sales come from on-the-go formats, so it’s essential that retailers stock the right products and brands to meet the needs of on-the-go consumption.”

FLAVOUR And while healthy mindsets look set to deliver a fresh rush of bottled water sales in 2022, retailers should overlook flavoured variants at their peril, Barr’s Troy warns. While upping their water consumption remains the biggest healthy change that shoppers want to make, almost half of Brits say they prefer the taste of flavoured drinks to plain water, he adds. “These trends lead to a massive incremental opportunity for retailers, where shoppers are looking for lower calorie soft drinks that don’t compromise on taste and give them a fruity flavour hit.” With its “high taste, low calorie” proposition, Barr’s Rubicon Spring offered the “perfect bridge” between the healthiness of water and the taste of carbonated fruit drinks, he adds. The brand, which combines sparkling spring water and fruit juice, with 15 calories or less per bottle, saw a 66% increase in Drink Now sales within its 500ml range after restrictions eased in 2021, while its Take Home sales grew by 139% over the course of 2021 as more shoppers consumed the brand at home. www.slrmag.co.uk

Bottled Water

RETAILER VIEW “Bottled water is a hugely important category to our store, especially since we have invested so heavily in our food-to-go offer and have now become a real destination for this. Bottled water sales are strong all year round but they do obviously peak on warm and sunny days. We offer a wide range of formats, and all – aside from our six-pack multi-packs – are chilled, which is absolutely essential. Our 750ml and 500ml formats are our biggest sellers and in that order but 1.5l bottles are a close third. These larger formats tend to be bought by workmen who need a larger format to see them through most of the day and often they will buy a large 1.5l bottle of water plus an energy drink too. As far as flavours are concerned, there’s now a fairly even split between plain bottled water and flavoured variants proving that flavour really is key. Promotions do help to drive sales too and fortunately there do tend to be quite a few promotions in the bottled water category, especially at the start of the year when many shoppers seek to eat and drink more healthily. Sustainability is also a growing concern for shoppers though and shoppers are clearly interested in brands that highlight their environmental credentials such as bottles made for recycled plastic that are also recyclable.” Dennis Williams, Premier Broadway Convenience Store, Edinburgh

Feature

TOP TIPS TO HELP BOTTLED WATER SALES FLOW (Source Nestlé Waters)

Q Natural mineral water is the largest segment of the soft drinks’ category (accounting for 26% of total soft drinks volume sales), so it is vital that retailers dedicate enough space in their chillers for water. Q Retailers should allocate a quarter of their chiller space to natural mineral water, before grouping by still, sparkling and flavoured to make the fixture easy to shop. Q Temperatures start to rise from April and last until September, so retailers should take the time now to prepare their soft drink and natural mineral water offering ahead of the warmer weather. Q Driving the visibility of water in store outside of the chiller is crucial to ensuring strong water sales throughout Spring and Summer. Q With 37% of shoppers purchasing soft drinks impulsively, secondary displays help drive visibility and prompt shoppers to purchase as they journey around stores. Q To drive incremental natural mineral water sales, merchandise water next to other impulse and on-the-go categories to boost cross-category sales. Q There’s a great sales opportunity for retailers to upsell by placing natural mineral water near chilled food-to-go, confectionery and snacks or coffee machines. The top products that are bought alongside water include energy drinks, and crisps and snacks.

THE NATURAL SOLUTION FOR HYDRATION EVERYWHERE NOW AVAILABLE IN 5 & 10 LITRE NEW FRIDGE PACK

BE YOUR NATURAL SELF

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MARCH 2022 | SLR

Feature

Sports & Energy

FUEL FOR THOUGHT New formats and sugar-free variants continue to fuel the sports and energy market. BY GAELLE WALKER

THE MULTIPACK OPPORTUNITY

Multipacks are currently driving 85% incremental growth according to Red Bull, while 56% of impulse shoppers also indicate that they would be “more likely” to buy a price marked pack, significantly overindexing within the 33–44-yearold age demographic. Multipacks were “crucial” to driving category growth over 2021’s festive season, while in the six months to November 2021, Red Bull sold 21.4% more Sugarfree volume through multipacks, while one 4-pack was bought every 2.3 seconds over the course of the year.

SLR | MARCH 2022

urrently worth £1.6bn and growing at 14.2% year on year, according to IRI Marketplace data, energy drinks are the biggest and most profitable drink-now segment in the UK. And with more than one in three soft drinks sold in convenience stores now an energy drink, sports and energy is a market which local retailers can’t afford to lose sight of, especially given the breakneck speed of NPD. Larger sizes and flavours continue to drive growth and developments in the sector, according to Barr Soft Drinks, with Big Can Energy “driving the growth” at 22%. Flavours also continue to pack a punch with flavoured energy now accounting for over half of all volume sold. Interestingly, much of this growth is now being driven by more mature energy drinkers on the lookout for products which better meet their tastes as they age, Barr Marketing Director Adrian Troy says. “Consumers are increasingly opting for flavoured variants when choosing an energy drink, with flavoured energy now accounting for 34% of the mainstream energy market and growing faster than original energy, he adds. The trend gave rise to a myriad of new product launches in 2021, including the arrival of Rubicon RAW which is made with 20% real fruit juice, caffeine from green coffee beans and B-vitamins to provide “a big energy hit” that is also “full of flavour.” The levy-free 500ml Rubicon RAW range is currently available in plain pack and £1.29 PMP plus a new 4x500ml multipack. With the advent of HFSS legislation looming large south of the border, sugar, or more precisely the lack of it, also continues to shape

innovation and fuel shopper demand, as the number of consumers actively seeking healthier energy boosts on-the-go continues to climb. “Sugar is an important component of energy for the majority of consumers, but a growing number are looking for a lower calorie or even sugar free option,” Troy adds. “Some energy drinkers may want zero sugar energy, but they don’t want it to look, feel, perform or taste different to regular energy drinks.” Barr’s recently launched 500ml Irn-Bru Energy format is available in both full sugar and no sugar formats to appeal to both camps. Red Bull also recently extended its multipack offering with the launch of a new Sugarfree Price Marked Multipack, exclusively in symbol and independent convenience stores. “We’re dedicated to offering consumers more choice when it comes to their soft drink options in-store,” a spokesman for Red Bull said. “Thirty per cent of our impulse customers only purchase sugar free sports and energy drinks, and with a record number of shoppers – 1.4 million Red Bull sugarfree buyers in the last 12 months – it’s evident the demand is there for our latest pack-format.” “With insight showing that sugar-free products are integral to recruitment of lost shoppers within the convenience channel, the latest multipack launch will increase the presence of no sugar variants on shelf, driving more users, more often and on more occasions,” he added.

THE SHIFTING NEEDS OF UK ENERGY DRINKERS No longer the reserve of young male gamers, today’s fast-paced energy drinks market now appeals to an increasingly diverse and constantly shifting customer base according to Barr Soft Drinks. There are 13.9 million people in the UK consuming energy drinks – 36.4% of those are between 15-29 years old while 42.8% are female. This shift in demographic means that brands and retailers need to appeal to and cater for an increasingly wide range of consumers with a broad range of interests, Barr adds. In fact, TGI research highlighted that energy drinkers have interests ranging from music, theatre, photography and experimenting with food. “Whilst some are gamers, they’re also adventurous and career driven.”

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IN A ST O HT

BOU G

MORE MULTIPACKS. MORE SALES.

3 SEC

SOURCE: ¹NIELSEN SCANTRACK, SPORTS AND ENERGY, TOTAL GB COVERAGE, UNIT SALES, RED BULL MULTIPACKS, 52 W/E 14.11.2020; *NIELSEN SCANTRACK, SPORTS AND ENERGY, TOTAL GB COVERAGE, VALUE SALES, RED BULL MULTIPACKS, 52 W/E 14.11.2020.

Feature

Vaping

FLAVOUR OF THE MOMENT

Flavour-packed convenient pod mod and disposable products are continuing to sweeten vape sales. BY GAELLE WALKER

UK VAPER PROFILE Q The peak ages for e-cigarette use in 2021 are among 35 to 44-year-olds (10.1%) followed by 45 to 54-year-olds (8.6%), and then 25 to 34-year-olds (8.1%). Q The lowest vaping rates by age are 5% for young adults aged 18-24, followed by those over 55 at 5.4%. Q A slightly higher proportion of those identifying as male (8.1% ) say that they currently use e-cigarettes than those identifying as female (6.2%). Q Of the 3.6 million vapers in the UK in 2021, just under 2.4 million are exsmokers; 1.1 million are current smokers; and just under 200,000 have never smoked. Q Nine out of 10 ex-smokers who currently use e-cigarettes vape every day, with 97% vaping at least weekly. Q Satisfaction levels are growing, with 68% of vapers who no longer smoke now saying that they find vaping “more or equally” satisfying as smoking. This compares to 65% in 2020. Source: YouGov

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ith a current estimated value of more than £1.2bn in the UK and 30% of sales currently ringing through the tills of traditional retail stores, according to Imperial Tobacco, it’s pretty clear to see why vape is front of mind for a growing number of local retailers in 2022. With the Covid-19 pandemic having driven footfall into local stores, retailers across Scotland currently have a key opportunity to retain the custom of shoppers who might previously have bought through specialist stores – a fact which is driving take-up of dedicated shop floor vape displays and increasingly diverse ranges, complete with the latest most on-trend products and flavours. When it comes to trends, devices which offer ease of use and convenience continue to drive sales according to Imperial, with pod mod products such as its myblu device and associated Liquidpods, now accounting for a quarter of sales.

DISPOSABLES However, for the ultimate in convenience, there’s nothing quite like disposables, which look set to make deeper inroads into the category in 2022.

Disposable brands such as Geek Bar and Elf Bar are being given a growing share of space in stores as their appeal among younger vapers and adult smokers who dual between vape and cigarettes continues to grow. Earlier this year Geek Bar launched a new zero nicotine vape range in a bid to offer greater choice to adult smokers seeking to quit tobacco. “Nicotine vapes of varying strengths are hugely important in ex-smokers’ quitting journey, and for those smokers coming towards the end of their smoking cessation journey, the zero-nicotine vape is an important milestone,” explains Geek Bar Chief Executive Allen Yang. The launch was the first of two range extensions from Geek Bar, which also unveiled a new shisha vape. The Geek Bar shisha vape includes 575 puffs and comes with 2ml e-liquid capacity and 20mg/ml nicotine. It’s also available in several fruity flavours including Watermelon Berries Shisha, Hawaii Sunshine Shisha, Pineapple Guava Shisha, Mixed Fruit with Rose Shisha, and Strawberry Kiwi Shisha. The new shisha range also features Geek Bar’s new anti-illicit trade packaging which allows both retailers and consumers to confirm the authenticity of the product via new security code checking technology.

BRITS SHOW SUPPORT FOR NHS VAPES Over one in three Brits think vaping should be made available on the NHS a new survey by GoSmokeFree.co.uk recently found. The survey of 1,200 Brits also revealed that 24% said that vaping was “far cheaper” than smoking while 8% of former smokers who now vape said they found the variety of vape products the biggest benefit of quitting tobacco, and 7% said they personally enjoy the fewer after-effects associated with e-cigarettes.

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A VAPE YOU CAN TRUST QUALITY TESTED BY EXPERTS. LOVED BY VAPERS. DISCOVER MORE AT VUSE.COM VUSE CHARGE BEYOND This product contains nicotine and is addictive. For adult nicotine consumers only. For trade use only.

New ePod 2

Feature

Tobacco

MORE BANG FOR THEIR BUCK Adult smokers are increasingly switching between formats to suit different occasions and keep spending in check. BY GAELLE WALKER

here is no disputing that, despite its many challenges, the tobacco category remains an important footfall and sales driver within local stores. At the last count, tobacco was worth an estimated £14bn before tax a year according to Imperial Tobacco data. Changes to the category’s constitution however are continuing apace with an almost 50/50 market share split between Factory Made Cigarettes (FMC) and Roll Your Own (RYO), as adult smokers increasingly switch between formats to suit different occasions and keep spending in check. With the well-documented rise in the cost of living, it certainly comes as no surprise that the value for money trend continues to win out, with products offering the best possible bang for smokers’ buck expected to continue fuelling sales well into 2022. “This transition towards lower-priced tobacco offerings is a key trend that retailers should be prepared to cater for,” Imperial Tobacco’s

FIGHTING THE DARK Efforts to reign in the illicit trade have continued in recent weeks with a number of illicit seizures reported and sentences handed down. Kilmarnock construction worker Thomas Donnelly, who was caught with 324,000 illicit cigarettes was sentenced to 12 months in prison on 31 January 2022. The sentencing came in the same week that Scottish Trading Standards, in partnership with Sheffield Trading Standards seized more than £275,000-worth of illicit tobacco following a raid on a criminal gang. The multi-agency operation involved a series of searches on gang-members’ homes, vehicles and storage locations and followed anonymous tips. It resulted in over 2,000 packets of hand rolling tobacco, worth £32,000, and 500 illicit cigarettes also being seized.

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Valuepriced SKUs now account for a 53.6% share of rollyour-own sales according to JTI

Corporate Affairs Director Duncan Cunningham says. “Tobacco shoppers have an average basket spend worth £19.60 vs non-tobacco at £11.40, and they also visit more frequently. “Convenience retailers are in a strong position to benefit from these increased visits and basket spend in the years to come, with figures forecasting almost 13% growth in Convenience over the next five years.” JTI’s UK Sales Vice President Ross Hennessy agrees. “Price remains a key factor for existing adult smokers,” he says and particularly in the RYO segment where value priced products account for a 53.6% share of sales and growing. “Retailers should therefore stock up on Value RYO products, such as Kensitas Club RYO and Sterling Rolling Tobacco Essential. “Kensitas Club RYO 50g sells approximately 184 packs an hour, presenting a profitable

opportunity for Scottish retailers,” Hennessy says. With no papers and filters and an RSP of £13.65 for 30g, JTI’s Sterling Rolling Tobacco Essential also offered a “great value tobacco option for customers” he adds. While switching between tobacco categories helps adult smokers manage their budgets, it also presents retailers with additional challenges. A keen focus on availability and local trends will be critical in 2022, Hennessy adds, as will “having up-to-date knowledge on the latest products” and being able to discuss them. “Through stocking a full range and maintaining good availability of products, retailers and their staff can provide a successful offering and service to their customers without them having to shop around.”

JTI OVERHAULS SALES FORCE

ACS SHORES UP CHALLENGE25

JTI has vowed new and “unparalleled support” for its trade partners following a shake-up of its sales force. The move, which has led to the creation of a new in-house sales force of JTI Business Advisers, has also resulted in 58 new jobs. JTI Business Advisers are now being allocated to smaller, dedicated catchment areas where they will be responsible for every trading channel within it. The evolution will enable JTI to increase its “speed, agility, and efficiency in the field,” JTI UK said. It would also allow JTI Business Advisers to “provide a more bespoke, personal service,” and identify further commercial opportunities with their trade partners Sales Vice President Ross Hennsessy commented.

The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has launched a new campaign to boost shopper awareness of the Challenge25 policy on age restricted products and better support local retailers. The enhanced campaign aims to widen the use of Challenge25 beyond alcohol and highlight the policy to customers earlier in their store journey and not just at till points. The ACS has also worked with the Retail of Alcohol Standards Group to provide a range of new materials which remind customers that they’re likely to be asked for proof of age if they look under 25 and are purchasing age-restricted products. The new materials include posters, shelf edge labels and online assets. Visit acs.org.uk/challenge25 to download the assets.

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STERLING

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UTC

THE AGONY AND THE ECSTASY Under The Counter knows a thing or two about the German discounters. You could say he’s been to Aldi and bought the T-shirt. He’s also bought garden furniture, power tools, colouring books, dumbbells, a couple of children’s wetsuits and a rubber dinghy. However, the Auld Boy was forced to remove his bunnet (also a Specialbuy) to scratch his head at Aldi Scotland’s latest offering: relationship advice. Customers don’t even need to root about in the middle aisle to patch up their foundering love lives. They just need to share their receipt on Aldi’s social channels and “up and coming” agony aunt Dear Ashleigh will offer dating tips based on their purchases. After spending 10 years asking, “Are you getting your make-up done for anything special?”, Glaswegian beautician Dear Ashleigh branched out during lockdown and started offering relationship advice to clients as a side hustle. As she explained: “It’s the small things that they themselves haven’t noticed which reveals the most.” UTC imagined that Dear Ashleigh could spot some extremely small things, considering “her glasses look more powerful than the Hubble telescope”. Which is rich, considering the two milk bottles he peers through. “I’m looking forward to helping Aldi shoppers find out a bit more about themselves and where they should be looking for love,” Dear Ashleigh concluded. Hopefully that’s not in the inflatable hot tub UTC’s just brought back from Aldi.

IT’S THE THOUGHT THAT COUNTS Regular readers of this column won’t be surprised to learn that UTC is no fan of Valentine’s Day. As far as he’s concerned, it is nothing but an elaborate con foisted upon an unsuspecting world by a shady cabal of greetings card manufacturers, and a bigger waste of money than the entire Hamilton Accies starting 11. Not that he’s bitter. So he felt more than vindicated when new data from PayPoint painted an interesting picture of the annual love fest. Apparently a whopping 74,080 parcels were picked up from Collect+ stores in the run-up to Valentine’s Day, between 11 and 14 February. The Auld Boy could imagine what they contained, and if batteries were included. However, he found this a fairly reasonable indicator that Cupid was keeping busy. The good news for UTC’s conspiracy theory – but not so brilliant for the nation’s Romeos – is that Valentine’s Day itself saw a total of 55,875 parcel returns, a sobering 158% increase on the previous Monday, 7 February, which saw a paltry 21,630 take-backs. However, the Auld Boy had to doff his bunnet to Nick Williams, Head of Strategic Partners & Product, Parcels at PayPoint, who tactfully pointed out: “It’s the thought that counts.”

SLR | MARCH 2022

SWAP FLOP

UTC has never been one for home delivery. As long as his aging legs are able to carry him, he is more than happy to walk to his local shop and buy six cans of Tennent’s and a half-bottle of Grouse in person. And so it was that his feeble ticker beat a little bit faster when he discovered home delivery pickers were starting to go rogue. Consumer group Which? has apparently found that almost two-in-five (39%) shoppers were given an alternative product in their most recent home delivery. Aldi topped the list for substitutions, with 49% of respondents saying they’d been given a sub. The majority of these were probably fine. However, UTC had nothing but pity for the poor customer who asked for breaded fish fillets but was given a tub of Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food ice cream instead. It gets better. A bright spark at Sainsbury’s thought a Victoria sponge was a suitable replacement for sponge scourers. “That’s someone who’s never used cake to clean a pot before,” quipped the Auld Boy. The mults were all as bad as each other. The list of shame was longer than UTC’s repeat prescription and ran the gamut from hen’s eggs for Creme Eggs to sausage rolls for toilet rolls. The Auld Boy had a word of consolation for the fishless Aldi shopper though. He knows for a fact that ice cream and chips tastes delicious.