SLR March 2018

TOM HALL

Delivering convenient insight

#THINKSMART2 SLR’s gamechanging event

MARCH 2018 | ISSUE 179

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SNOWFALL SUPERSTARS

Extreme weather brings out the best in local retailers

CUT-PRICE CLUB FLYING

New lower RSP Kensitas Club sets sales alight

FORECOURT FURORE

MRH megadeal reshapes market

THE QUIET REVOLUTION Diet Coke was launched 35 years ago and the industry has already made massive strides on reducing sugar – so why the sudden panic, and where’s the recognition?

SLR REWARDS DEADLINE EXTENDED! New deadline: Thursday April 5 SLR March 2018.indd 1

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Quorn dishing up tasty sales Quorn, the delicious, nutritious protein source and UK’s No.1 meat free brand*1, is attracting record numbers of shoppers to the UK’s meat free category. Here’s why now is the right time for you to get involved…

Five reasons you should be stocking Quorn…

1. Meat free shoppers spend up to five times as much in-store as non-meat free shoppers*2 2. Meat free is bought by 10.2 million shoppers*3 3. 80% of category shoppers are meat reducers*2 4. Quorn is worth £175m, growing at 12.8%*1 5. Quorn has unveiled a £14 million, year-long support package which is spearheaded by a 50 week TV campaign, its biggest ever investment in the brand.

What to stock…

Julian Cooke, Quorn’s Head of UK Category Management says: “Retailers need to ensure they are reflecting consumer trends in their ranges as shoppers increasingly expect to find mainstream meat free products in both chilled and frozen fixtures.

“We’ve launched a core range of five chilled and five frozen products specifically for the convenience channel. These address different shopper missions and include our core ready meals, mince and pieces products and family favourites like nuggets, burgers and sausages.

“The frozen range has been launched in price-marked packs for the convenience channel, each providing strong shared margin and competitive RSPs.”

Tapping into consumer trends…

Consumer focus on healthier lifestyles combined with an increased awareness of the benefits of meat reduction will continue to drive the growth of the meat free category in 2018.

“This trend towards meat reduction is reinforced by media focus on the need for 40% less meat consumption per capita by 2030. Quorn Foods is already seeing the evidence of these trends with record sales growth.”

Marketing support…

“By highlighting just how easy it is to make greattasting, affordable dishes with Quorn, we’re attracting new shoppers and encouraging brand loyalists to choose Quorn more often,” says Cooke.

“Quorn is consistently one of the biggest mediaspending brands across all frozen and chilled sectors, and in addition to targeting our current consumer base, the wide-ranging marketing activity will reach out to non-category buyers, with a particular emphasis on families with children who we believe will be particularly receptive to our messages as we promote the benefits of tasty, healthy choices.”

What the retailer says…

Adam Vincent, Director of award-winning ‘Dike and Son’, says it’s not just vegetarians who are looking for meat free products: “There’s been a marked increase in demand for meat free products and importantly it’s not just amongst vegetarians. A lot of meat eaters are looking to cut down their meat intake.

It might be for health or environmental reasons, or just because they want to try something new.”

For POS kits; please contact Gary Routledge, National Account Manager at Quorn Foods. Tel: 07966 053 328

*1 52 w/e 6th Jan 18; IRI & Kantar World Panel *2 Kantar 2017 *3 2/01/2018 Kantar Worldpanel

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March 2018

Contents

Contents ISSUE 179

NEWS p4 p5 p6 p8 p10 p24 p26 p28

Tesco/Booker Industry megadeal finally concludes as shareholders approve merger.

Forecourts Motor Fuel Group buys rival operator MRH in deal worth £1.2bn.

Van Sales Bestway Wholesale unveils branding for its new direct sales vehicles.

Symbols Best-one signs up 60 former Costcutter and Mace retailers supplied by P&H. News Extra SWA Awards United Wholesale (Scotland) crowned Champion of Champions.

Product News Strathmore Water signs up top Scots athlete and Walkers capitalises on The Big Night In. Off-Trade Beefeater is in the pink as Jameson’s extends St. Patrick’s Day into a month-long event.

Newstrade The Sun’s new “Grand Selfie” promotion opens the door to higher sales and footfall.

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INSIDE BUSINESS p30 Research Digest New study shows consumers will share their data – as long as they get something back in return. p32 ThinkSmart Update More speakers are announced for SLR’s groundbreaking retail tech conference. p35 Data Insight Making use of data to drive valuable insight is a concept that makes many local retailers nervous – but it shouldn’t, says Thomas Hall of IRI Worldwide. p36 SLR Rewards 2018 There’s still time to enter the retail industry’s most Rewarding awards. p38 Woodlands Local A new Starburst launch and our ongoing Kensitas Club project make for a busy month in Falkirk. We also saw a bit of snow. p44 Hotlines Mars Wrigley Confectionery bridges the gap between gum and candy. p62 Under The Counter Is the world flat or round? UTC should know – he’s old enough to remember its creation.

FEATURES p46 Price-Marked Packs Getting the most out of PMPs means knowing when to use of them – and when not to. p48 Forecourts The buyout of MRH is just the latest sign that the forecourt sector is going through a massive bout of change and innovation. p58 Frozen This category just keeps growing, so it’s one well worth keeping on top of in-store. p60 Adult Snacking With 93% of people eating between meals, the adult snacking market is a key sales and profit driver.

ON THE COVER p14 Soft Drinks The soft drinks industry is now firmly centred on low and no sugar products – so where are the thanks and congratulations? www.slrmag.co.uk

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News CONSOLIDATION Industry megadeal finally concludes

700 stores and counting for Lidl Lidl breached the 700-store mark in February when five new stores, including one in Edinburgh, opened on the same day. That figure is already receding into the distance, with the discounter launching 19 new stores in 2018 by the end of last month. By the end of the year it plans to have opened 50 new stores and refurbished a further 30 existing premises.

“As the UK’s fastest growing supermarket, surpassing 700 stores is yet further proof of our ambitious rate of expansion across Britain,” said Ingo Fischer, Lidl UK’s Board Director for Expansion and Development.

Co-op trade union NACO agrees move to Usdaw A National Association of Cooperative Officials ballot has resulted in 82% of members voting to transfer into the

No stopping Tesco/Booker as deal is fully approved Tesco’s buyout of Booker cleared its final hurdle last month when shareholders in both companies gave a massive thumbs-up to the takeover.

The deal was valued at £3.7bn when it was announced in January 2017. It is now worth around £4bn.

Over 83% of Booker shareholders voted in favour of the acquisition, comfortably clearing the 75% approval threshold.

At a separate meeting over 85% of Tesco investors gave the nod. Fifty per cent had to say yes for the deal to go through.

The takeover was subsequently completed on March 5.

Tesco boss Dave Lewis said he was delighted that both sets of shareholders backed the deal, which all parties still insist is a merger.

Booker boss Charles Wilson shook on the deal with Tesco opposite number Dave Lewis last year.

“This merger is about growth, bringing together our complementary retail and wholesale skills to create the UK’s leading food business,” he added, saying it opened up new opportunities to provide food

wherever it is prepared or eaten, either ‘in home’ or ‘out of home’.

Booker’s boss Charles Wilson will take over the reins of Tesco’s UK and Irish retail and wholesale operations from outgoing CEO Matt Davies.

shopworkers’ trade union Usdaw.

The result was welcomed by both unions.

John Hannett, Usdaw General Secretary, said: “Usdaw has had a long relationship with the Coop, we understand the business and already represent tens of thousands of their staff. That means we can hit the ground running when NACO members join us in May.” Bob Lister, NACO Interim General Secretary, said the transfers was a “necessary and positive move”.

Scots stores grab grand Two stores from the northeast of Scotland struck lucky in Camelot’s recent retailer competition promoting the new Euromillions Hotpicks game.

Strachan’s in Aboyne and Simpsons Newsagent in Aberdeen both won prizes of £1,000.

The jackpot of £20,000 was bagged by Seelan Poopalasingam, owner of Oldfield Lane Newsagents in Greenford, London. He plans to spend the prize on a family

CRIME Violent incidents reach record high

Retail violence hits highest-ever level The British Retail Consortium’s latest annual Retail Crime Survey has revealed a spike in violence against staff causing injury, with the number of incidents happening at twice the rate of last year’s survey, the previous record.

Overall, this year’s survey presents a mixed picture. There have been noticeable improvements in some areas, such as fraud, where the cost to retailers has fallen by nearly £30m, because of their significant investment in prevention.

Despite that spending, the total direct financial cost of retail crime has climbed to £700m – an increase of 6% from the previous year. Customer theft remains the largest element, now over £500m per year, a 15% increase on the previous results.

The biggest concern comes from the growth in severe violent incidents against staff. BRC members report that career criminals intentionally use violence and abuse when challenged

over stealing. The requirements for retail colleagues to age-check and refuse sales, is also triggering increasing violence and threats.

The rate of these incidents of violence with injury has doubled since the previous year to six per 1000 members of staff.

Commenting on the findings, David Lonsdale, Director of the Scottish Retail Consortium said: “Violent or abusive behaviour towards shop staff in Scotland is wholly and utterly unacceptable.

Worryingly this new data suggests incidents of violence which lead to injury is a growing problem.

“This is a serious issue and we want to see perpetrators dealt with firmly. We also think Daniel Johnson MSP’s legislative proposal offers an opportunity to revisit the law and ensure it is fit for purpose and that the sentences available to the courts are stiff enough and offer a sufficient deterrent.”

CHARITY

Spar springs to action for Marie Curie Spar retailers have sprung into action in support of Marie Curie’s Great Daffodil Appeal.

Following Spar’s first year of backing Marie Curie in 2017 when it raised more than £640,000, stores nationwide are again flowering-up during March to support the charity.

Spar stores are selling daffodil pins with a suggested donation of £1 each and are running a number of fundraising activities including Go Yellow days for employees; donations from the sales of several products; and support from Spar radio.

For every donation given and every daffodil worn, Marie Curie can provide more free care to people living with a terminal illness and their families.

holiday to Sri Lanka. Nice.

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News FORECOURTS Industry consolidation reaches petrol stations

MFG snaps up MRH in £1.2bn forecourt deal Motor Fuel Group (MFG) has taken over rival MRH, currently the UK’s largest petrol station and convenience retail operator.

The £1.2bn deal leapfrogs MFG into Britain’s number one spot by number of sites, and makes it the second-biggest operator by volume of fuel sold.

MFG and MRH combined run over 900 sites, predominantly company-owned and franchiseeoperated, and manage third-party fuel, convenience, and foodservice brands. These include fuel brands BP, Esso, Jet, Murco, Shell and Texaco and retail brands Budgens, Costa Coffee, Greggs, Spar and Subway, as well as the MRH-owned brand, Hursts. On a combined basis, MFG and MRH sold approximately 3.6 billion litres of fuel in 2017.

Alasdair Locke, MFG Chairman, will be Chairman of the combined business. Former Tesco boss Sir Terry Leahy will continue to serve on the board of directors and chair the Executive Committee of the Board.

Sainsbury’s crosses £9 per hour threshold Sainsbury’s has raised the pay rate for its retail staff to £9.20 per hour, making them the highestpaid shopworkers employed by any of the Big Four supermarkets and the first to receive over £9 per hour.

The rate is £1.70 more than the Government’s National Living Wage of £7.50 per hour and 45p in excess of the Living Wage Foundation’s £8.75 per hour Real Living Wage.

Shopworkers union Usdaw, which members of the Co-op’s union NACO recently voted to transfer into, gave the news a cautious welcome.

The deal comes at a time when forecourts are developing an increasingly-sophisticated customer offer with a focus on food-to-go.

For example, Ardeer Service Station, SLR’s current Best New Store of the Year, offers a 2,700sq ft Nisa Local, Subway, Costa, ice cream parlour and launderette alongside an 18-nozzle JET forecourt.

MFG has made a number of key appointments recently to bolster

its retail and food-to-go offers, with Head of Food Services Paul Deary and MD for Business Development Michael O’Loughlin both joining from rival Applegreen. New Retail Director Paul Dennis was also brought on board, after stints with Sainsbury’s, Asda and Conviviality Retail.

The deal is expected to be finalised in the second quarter of 2018, subject to customary regulatory approvals.

Nisa collecting tins raise £20k in first year Almost one year on from their launch, Nisa’s Making a Difference Locally collecting tins have raised over £20,000 for local charities and good causes.

Around 300 Nisa member stores currently have the collecting tins in-store, providing an additional income stream for the charity and allowing retailers to accumulate funds quicker to give even more support to local

GOVERNMENT FUNDING Retailers can claim up to £7,500 for store development

£7,500 food-to-go grants up for grabs A new £250,000 food-to-go grant programme set up by the Scottish Government’s is now open for applications.

The programme aims to support and encourage the capacity of independent convenience store retailers in Scotland to innovate and respond to changing customer demands through the development of a food-to-go offering.

Grants will be awarded for the installation of a new food-to-go station on a 50% match-funding basis, capped at £7,500. The grant programme will be administered by the Scottish Grocers Federation with applications to be received no later than April 30, 2018.

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Pete Cheema, Chief Executive of SGF urged retailers to apply for funding.

“This grant programme will ensure that retailers can respond to the changing needs and expectations of customers by providing a highquality food-to-go offering with a strong focus on healthy eating options,” he said.

“These new food-to-go stations will help retailers remain competitive, increase footfall and generate a new income stream.”

Further details about the grant programme and how to make an application can be found on the SGF website at http://www.scottishshop. org.uk/campaigns.

WHOLESALE

Brand new look for Landmark online Landmark Wholesale has given its website an overhaul and general spring clean.

The new site features an improved design, enhanced functionality, an easy-tonavigate structure and an interactive member depot finder tool.

John Mills, Managing Director of Landmark, said the refreshed site better reflects the wholesaler’s business and future plans.

“The website is more engaging and easier to navigate, highlighting the latest news and updates from across the group,” he said.

causes within their communities.

The charity tins were launched at Nisa’s annual retail exhibition last April and have been a success with retailers and their customers alike.

McColl’s teams up with Bolt Learning Around 22,000 McColl’s employees are set to benefit from a new digital learning platform and training modules, produced by Glasgow-based Bolt Learning.

The training will cover a range of topics from health and safety to customer service.

“Providing excellent customer service is at the core of McColl’s offer,” explained Karyn PsylThomson, Talent & Capability Manager at McColl’s. “In order to deliver this promise, we need to have outstanding colleagues.”

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News WHOLESALE Bestway reveals new vehicle branding

Filshill targets north of England with new hire JW Filshill is ramping up its presence in the north of England with the appointment of Jeanette Gordon as Business Development Manager. She joins the company after 17 years with P&H. Filshill sees the north of England as a key strand of its long-term strategy to grow its KeyStore fascia.

Gordon said there was a “real opportunity” to expand the KeyStore brand south of the Border: “KeyStore has an excellent foothold in the north of England but there are still many retailers who don’t yet know what the fascia has to offer.”

Gantry no more for Sycamore JTI has removed its 31st gantry

New Bestway Van Sales operation up and motoring Bestway Wholesale has unveiled its new identity for its recently-launched Van Sales operation.

Bestway Vans Direct fills the void following the demise of P&H’s Snacksdirect and Sweetsdirect business and services over 20,000 customers every two weeks.

Noel Robinson, Director of Van Sales, commented: “Getting the vans back on the road and serving customers was our first priority when we launched the van sales operation in January. Retailers were left without their usual supply route and we wanted to make sure that we filled the gap as quickly as possible. We have now been on the road for almost two months now and

the welcome and support we have had from customers has been truly fantastic. Now, we have a brand and modern identity which will enable us to, over time, get all vans liveried up that will help increase awareness among customers.”

The Van Sales operation consists of two divisions: Bestway Snacks and Bestway Sweets. There are currently 190 vehicles – 120 dedicated to snacks and 70 to sweets – and all

will be given a makeover over the next few weeks.

“The whole ethos of the new operation is for customers to Sell More, Save More and Make More,” said Robinson. “That’s the reason for the two divisions. Although both impulse categories, Snacks and Confectionery are both complex categories and need their own focus.

“Our people in the field have vast experience and are experts dedicated to driving business in their respective categories. They are armed with the latest technology that gives information on each individual’s order history, monthly promotions and incentives to make the sales process as seamless as possible.”

from a retailer convicted of selling counterfeit cigarettes and RYO. Humera Zafar had been fined £250 for offences committed at Sycamore Stores in Burnley.

Charlie Cunningham-Reid, JTI’s UK Head of Corporate Affairs, said: “JTI has demonstrated its commitment to take action against retailers found to be selling illegal tobacco. Our action serves as a warning to any retailer tempted to sell illegal tobacco products.”

Müller cuts sugar by 13.5% Müller’s yogurt range has achieved a 13.5% reduction in total sugar since 2015, according

TRADING McColl’s feels effect of wholesaler’s failure

CHARITY

P&H demise puts a dent in McColl’s sales

Six-month Scotmid stint raises £120k for Samaritans

The impact of the collapse of Palmer & Harvey at the end of last year has been revealed to a certain extent in the latest trading update from McColl’s Retail Group.

Figures for the 11-week period to February 11, 2018 show the Group’s total like-for-like sales down 2.2%, held back by sales in the 700 or so stores formerly supplied by P&H where LFL sales were down 3.6%.

The figures sit in contrast to the 0.1% rise in total like-for-likes McColl’s reported for the 2017 financial year.

However, total sales continued to perform strongly for the start of 2018, up 26.7%.

McColl’s signed a new shortterm supply contract with Nisa on 4 December 2017 for the affected stores. It also began a new supply partnership with Morrisons earlier than scheduled to supply these same stores with tobacco.

The Group intends to refurbish 100 stores in 2018 as part of an ongoing programme, with plans to buy a further 20.

to new data published by the company.

The reduction – equivalent to 1,759 tonnes –is substantially ahead of Public Health England’s voluntary guidelines, which sought a 5% lowering of total sugar by March 2018.

The business has announced the launch of its first ever Müller Corner that is made with unsweetened natural Greek Style yogurt. The Müller Corner Plain range replaces the Müller Greek Corner range and contains, on

WHOLESALE Today’s Group helps customers cut overheads

Today’s expands drop shipment service Today’s Group has expanded its Drop Shipment and Support Services across a wide variety of product and service sectors.

The Group said this was to help its members and their customers reduce overheads and gain preferential terms.

“We’ve brought these services together, using our strong position as the UK’s largest independent buying

group to negotiate preferential terms for independent retailers and our members,” explained Steve Hodson, Today’s Group Trading Controller for Drop Shipment and Support Services.

Hodson said the Group’s “substantial” number of agreements in place had already saved members thousands of pounds on merchant services.

Generous Scotmid customers and staff have raised an incredible £121,000 for suicide prevention charity Samaritans over the last six months.

The amount will fund 24,200 calls from Scots who may be struggling to cope.

Scotmid hopes to raise a further £180,000 to ensure the charity’s 19 Scottish branches can keep their doors open and can to respond to a total of 60,000 appeals for help.

The last six months have seen a number of in-store fundraising activities. Proceeds from sales of limited edition Samaritans bags for life, ‘Brew Monday’ cupcakes and ‘Kid in the Kitchen’ joke books – sold exclusively in Scotmid stores – have all contributed to the total amount raised so far, with more fundraising events in the pipeline.

average, 27% less total sugar.

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News SYMBOLS Best-one has a fruitful February

Supermarket regulator investigates Co-op The Groceries Code Adjudicator has launched an inquiry into the Co-op’s treatment of its suppliers.

The watchdog will examine the supermarket’s “de-listing” of suppliers, as well as charges it made for assessing products – a practice known as benchmarking.

Around £500,000 in benchmarking fees has already been repaid to 110 suppliers.

Co-op Food boss Jo Whitfield said the company was “very sorry” that it hadn’t lived up to its usual high standards.

Frozen food sales head towards £10bn The Chief Executive of the British Frozen Food Federation, John Hyman, has set his sights on annual UK sales of £10bn for the sector.

Retail sales for the last 12 months topped the £6bn mark for the first time, giving the frozen food market a total value of £8.3bn when added to foodservice sales.

Speaking at the Federation’s annual conference, Hyman said: “We are getting closer to reaching the £10bn target and I expect great things from frozen as many of the factors driving

Recruitment drive was the best-one ever Best-one signed up 60 ex-Costcutter and Mace stores in February during its most successful recruitment drive ever.

Bestway Wholesale said retailers switched their stores to its symbol group after receiving “fantastic support” from its depots and field sales staff following the collapse of P&H last November.

Tony Holmes, Sales Director for Bestway Wholesale said he was overwhelmed by the feedback received from former Costcutter and Mace members.

Tony Holmes: “overwhelmed”

“They were badly let down in the supply chain, but the vast majority were disillusioned that they received no communication or support.

Retailers need wholesale partners who want to provide great service, not just lip service,” he said.

“The new members appreciated the effort our sales team put in and that gave them an insight in to how we work with best-one members and the scale and scope of the business.

For many it was a real eye opener on how Bestway could add value to their business and drive sales.”

SYMBOLS Call goes out for product reviewers

Nisa carries on blogging Nisa is to continue its blogging ambassador programme following a positive response to last year’s trial.

Almost 70 food lovers applied to blog about Nisa’s own-label range when the initiative launched in November, with a chosen five reviewing the Heritage pizza collection and wines.

Plans are now afoot to continue the scheme and invite bloggers to taste more Heritage products and share their views.

Heritage Brand Manager Tracey Redfearn said: “This was a first for Nisa and so we were initially unsure whether it would take off, but we received 68 entries overall which is a good indication of how many people are interested in blogging about Nisa’s Heritage products.

“There were a lot of very positive comments on social media about the blogger activity and the entries were all very enthusiastic – it was clear that people were excited about trying our

products and the blogs were all very favourable.”

New Heritage products as well as current lines that have been refreshed and re-launched will now be sent out to the blogging ambassadors for further reviews to be carried out and shared online.

“There is no better testimonial for a product than that of someone who has tried and tested it themselves and then recommends it to others,” Redfearn concluded.

retail and foodservice markets are favourable to frozen food.”

First regional food groups summit Scotland Food & Drink has hosted its inaugural gathering of regional food groups from across the country. The two-day event saw 16 different groups discuss how they could work together to strengthen regional food and drink, as well as share common ambitions and challenges.

Key discussions highlighted the common issues faced by the groups which focused on marketing, resources (both funding and people) and logistics. The groups will now work to create an action plan to increase the consumption of

SERVICES Up to £1,500 on offer

PayPoint extends ATM cashback offer PayPoint has extended its cashback offer to retailers who switch to a PayPoint ATM. The offer gives retailers the opportunity to earn £300 cashback (per annum) for up to five years (totalling £1,500) when they take a PayPoint ATM. To qualify, retailers must have an existing non-PayPoint ATM that has a high volume of cash withdrawals per month.

PayPoint’s ATMs are now in over 4,000 stores across the UK, providing retailers with significant savings on their cash-banking costs, with some saving more than £600 per month by self-filling the cash machine. Retailers also benefit from PayPoint’s net settlement process that improves cash-flow.

Retailers can find out more about the offer via their Territory Development Manager or by visiting paypoint.com/ atmcashback.

SYMBOLS

New planogram guide from Lifestyle Express Lifestyle Express has launched a fully updated planogram guide for its retailers.

The planogram pulls together information from Landmark Wholesale’s own sales insight and category-focussed data from key suppliers.

Stuart Johnson, Retail Controller at Landmark Wholesale, said: “This catalogue will be a retailer’s secret weapon when it comes to maximising their store’s turnover and profit potential. By following these plans, retailers can be confident that they will be stocking the bestselling products their customers want and making the most out of their available space.”

regional food.

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News Extra

Scottish Wholesale Achievers

NewsExtra TO PRICE-MARK OR NOT? THAT IS THE QUESTION – P46 SWA AWARDS A good night for Filshill, a great one for UWS

Convenience Matters with the SGF Since 2015 SGF has been heavily involved in a highly successful campaign to combat the proxy purchase of alcohol. Local retailers have been at the forefront of the campaign and practical help is now being put in place to enable a national roll out.

Following a successful local authority-wide roll out in North Lanarkshire of ‘You’re Asking For It’, campaign partners have developed an online resource to support local authorities and other partners across Scotland that hope to replicate it.

The online resource was launched at an event in Motherwell and was attended by over 100 key stakeholders.

Attendees included representatives from 17 local authorities, police from across Scotland, the retail sector, alcohol producers, health workers and many more. Over 300 retail outlets supported the North Lanarkshire campaign.

Police Scotland analysts report that youth disorder incidents reduced by 10% in North Lanarkshire during the activity. The campaign also contributed to a 51% reduction of reports of children drinking on the street. This in addition to 38 adults being reported for buying alcohol for children.

The resource is designed to educate and support. It provides step-by-step advice, a useful case study example, as well as artwork files for a wide range of assets plus evaluations from the pilot campaigns and roll out in North Lanarkshire. SGF has also produced a highly innovative training video for retailers. These can all be used to promote buy-in if you would like to see this campaign in your area.

We would encourage retailers to get fully involved in the campaign as it rolls out in their local area. Just go to www.youreaskingforit.com.

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United Wholesale (Scotland) named Scotland’s top wholesale business UWS was named Champion of Champions.

JW Filshill was named best Delivered Operation (Retail)

United Wholesale (Scotland), the Glasgow-based delivered wholesaler and cash & carry, has been named the best wholesale business in Scotland at this year’s Scottish Wholesale Achievers awards. Achievers, now in its 16th year and organised by the Scottish Wholesale Association, recognises professionalism and excellence across all sectors of the wholesale industry in Scotland.

UWS, which operates depots at Queenslie in the east end of Glasgow, Maxwell Road in the city’s southside and M9 Cash & Carry near Grangemouth, fought off stiff competition from businesses across Scotland to win the sought-after Champion of Champions accolade.

It also won three other categories: Best Cash & Carry, for its Queenslie depot; Best Licensed Operation; and Best Symbol Group, for Day-Today.

Another big winner was

Glasgow-based JW Filshill. The wholesaler, supplier to KeyStore outlets across Scotland and the north of England, won Best Delivered Operation (Retail) and Best Marketing Initiative for its ‘Leading the Way’ video series to encourage best-in-class behaviours and drive staff and customer loyalty.

In the suppliers’ award categories it was another great night for AG Barr with the firm’s Lee Gibson, Regional Business Development Manager, named Supplier Sales Executive of the Year. Gibson, who has over 25 years’ experience working in the industry, was described by the judges as “often going above and beyond his set duties”.

AG Barr also won Project Scotland, which highlights suppliers’ understanding of the Scottish wholesale industry and their commitment to the sector – its campaign behind the launch of Irn-Bru Xtra struck a chord with the judges who awarded it full marks in the closely-contested category.

Finally, AG Barr came out on top in the fiercely-contested category for Best Overall Service

by Suppliers, judged by members of the SWA voting each month for the shortlisted suppliers over a four-month period.

Best Advertising Campaign, meanwhile, saw wholesalers vote for their favourite advert with Tennent’s ‘The Night Bus’ coming out on top.

Kate Salmon, Executive Director SWA, commented: “The marketplace is seeing unprecedented change but despite the challenges, wholesalers and suppliers continue to raise their game – there is plenty of evidence of this as we recognise the very best in our industry in Achievers and I can say with absolute confidence that standards are higher than ever.”

Almost 500 people attended the Achievers gala dinner and awards presentation at the Sheraton Grand in Edinburgh, hosted by TV presenter Jennifer Reoch. www.slrmag.co.uk

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Comment

FOOD-TO-GO GRANT IS A NO-BRAINER The recent announcement that the Scottish Government’s new £250,000 food-to-go grant programme is now live should be welcome news for many local retailers across Scotland. Announced at last year’s SGF Conference and administered by SGF, the grant programme is the first significant reflection of the Government’s desire to invest in the vital local retailing sector in Scotland since the launch of the Healthy Living programme.

I would encourage all retailers who could make use of a £7,500 grant to take advantage – because why wouldn’t you? Aside from the fact that a solid foodto-go offering is generally accepted as a core element of most modern stores’ offering, it would also do the industry no harm to show that it appreciates the interest from the Government.

To put it bluntly, if we manage to spend the £250k on offer between us as an industry, they should be more inclined to consider further substantial investment in future. And the more interest the Government has in our sector the better, frankly.

We get enough unwanted attention that costs the sector a fortune as it is – alcohol, tobacco, fat, sugar – so it’s about time we had some positive interest and some sort of sign that the Government actually does value the massive convenience trade in Scotland. Every politician that has ever spoken about our industry hails as it as vital to communities up and down Scotland, without fail, but that moral support is rarely backed up substantial action, or monetary investment.

The programme aims to support and encourage the capacity of independent local retailers in Scotland to innovate and respond to changing customer demands through the development of a food-to-go offering. Grants will be awarded for the installation of a new food-to-go station on a 50% match-funding basis, capped at £7,500.

In other words, if you are prepared to invest £7,500 then the programme will match it for you, turning your investment into a £15k spend.

Applications must to be received no later than April 30, 2018.

You don’t get offered £7.5k very often so it looks like a no-brainer to me.

We all know that food-to-go is a proven way of helping remain competitive, increasing footfall and generating new income streams.

So, if you are thinking about it at all, now is the time to make the move. You’ll also indirectly be doing the industry a favour while you do one for yourself and your customers.

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

ADVERTISING Advertising Manager Susan Dignon 0141 222 5384 | sdignon@55north.com

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

EVENTS Events & Operations Manager Cara Begley 0141 222 5381 | cbegley@55north.com

CIRCULATION & SUBSCRIPTIONS Scottish Local Retailer is distributed free to qualifying readers. For a registration card, call 0141 222 5381. Other readers may 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.

ANTONY BEGLEY, PUBLISHING DIRECTOR © 55 North Ltd. 2018 ISSN 1740-2409.

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Soft Drinks Revolution

THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE TELEVISED I It’s a revolution that arguably first began in earnest decades ago with the launch of Diet Coke but the transformation of the soft drinks industry is almost complete with low and no sugar drinks now the focus of all marketing and NPD activity – so where are the thanks and congratulations?

BY ANTONY BEGLEY

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f you’ve been a local retailer in Scotland for the last decade, you’ll be familiar with the drill: the Scottish Government selects a product category or an issue and decides that it’s the root of all evil.

Alcohol, tobacco, fat, sugar. Take your pick.

Then it realises that fixing the root causes of abuse of said category or product would take generations to solve – and the Government doesn’t have that amount of time to play with, so it goes for the easiest solution: restrict supply.

Let’s be honest, alcohol abuse, obesity and tobacco consumption are problems that have developed over generations and are going to take generations to solve. The reasons why adults over-consume has very little to do with price and availability and everything to do with wider societal issues.

When the government then decides to act to further its progressive agenda, more often than not this then involves local retailers and the whole convenience and grocery trade supply chains making massive and invariably very costly changes to the way they operate in order to comply – and all based on evidence that is often poor quality at best.

As far as I can see, there’s very little analysis going on of whether all the tobacco and alcohol legislation actually achieved the goals set out for it. We appear to live under an ‘on to the next thing’ government with little thought for whether previous attempts at legislation worked or not.

So now we have a dark tobacco market with plain packs, we have some of the most draconian drinks legislation in the western world, we have minimum unit pricing, we have the threat of bans on certain promotions and bans on where products can be sited instore. And soon we will have a sugar tax on soft drinks.

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Soft Drinks Revolution

legislation is sensible – or indeed legal – the manufacturers involved, and the local retailers involved, have shown very willing to comply with rules and regulations that frankly make it much harder for them to run sustainable businesses.

With hastily drafted legislation comes badly worded laws – and if you want to go looking for loopholes in tobacco and alcohol legislation in particular, you could fill your notepad in double quick time.

As the most obvious example, consider the fact that Scotland’s 32 councils can’t even agree on how to interpret the current licensing legislation themselves – and receive no support from the Government on how to do so.

Yet despite this, the industry has uniformly decided to play it straight, ignore the loopholes and carry on with the “spirit” of the legislation, rather than picking holes in the wording and seeking to exploit loopholes to get around the laws. That deserves some credit, surely. But you’ll wait a long time on anyone thanking the local retailing industry and supply chain for doing their bit, even though they often fundamentally disagree with many aspects of the legislation.

The Government seems to overlook the fact that local retailers have long had their customers’ interests at heart and have strong bonds with the communities they serve.

The reason this happens? Look no further than last year’s SGF Conference when the Government’s position was made clear: “When left to their own devices, people make bad decisions,” was the Government’s statement, made on stage in front of the audience. So there you have it. The Government knows better than the people that voted it in.

So, to the latest industry to get it in the neck: soft drinks. Next month’s sugar tax is another heavy-handed tool to force the industry down the road of removing sugar from its drinks. www.slrmag.co.uk

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Cover Story

CASE STUDY: AG BARR AG Barr’s commitment to reducing sugar across its portfolio led the company to make the landmark move of taking 50% of the sugar out of its iconic classic Irn-Bru recipe, a move that generated much debate. The company’s commitment to low and no sugar lines, particularly its Irn-Bru Xtra product is clear and its portfolio of healthier carbonates, energy drinks, juice lines and waters is now very extensive.

The company recently unveiled its new, edgy ‘Don’t Be A Can’t’ £2m support package for the Irn-Bru brand.

“Irn-Bru advertising is always eagerly anticipated by Scottish consumers, driving consistent shopper awareness and demand and increasing retailer sales,” says Adrian Troy, Marketing Director for Barr Soft Drinks.

“The new campaign continues to reflect the cheeky, maverick attitude for which Irn-Bru is wellloved and will move the brand on from the popular ‘Gets You Through’ advertising campaign.”

Irn-Bru will also continue to invest in its partnerships with the SPFL, the Football League and Sky Sports’ flagship Saturday football programme, Soccer AM, bringing the brand’s unique personality to the fans at grass roots level and building on the success of Irn-Bru Xtra.

In January, the company announced that it was bringing the authentic taste of Italy to UK shoppers with San Benedetto – the premium Italian soft drinks brand that’s high in taste and contains less than 70 calories per can.

“San Benedetto contains 12% juice and is made with the first squeeze of the fruit which ensures only the highest quality juice is used, delivering a completely unforgettable taste,” says Troy. “And with less than 5g of sugar per 100ml and a suggested RSP of 85p, the new SKUs are an indulgence that UK consumers can enjoy every day.”

Originally formulated by a small local producer in Venice, San Benedetto has over 100 years of rich Italian heritage. Nowadays, the San Benedetto group is active in over 100 countries and is the biggest all-Italian soft drinks group in Italy. The range includes two flavours – Limone (Lemon) and Clementina (Orange).

Most recently, the company has launched a new, first-of-its-kind product for the water category: Strathmore Botanics, made with spring water infused with natural botanicals and fruit flavours, with zero calories and no added sugar.

Available in three flavours – Orange & Mandarin; Apple & Elderflower; and Pear & Elderberry, and presented in a bespoke 500ml PET bottle – the new range taps into the growing popularity of natural botanical tastes that consumers are increasingly enjoying across other categories.

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CASE STUDY: CCEP CCEP’s recent annual major trade press event was remarkable for a number of reasons but two in particular stood out: the first was the sheer volume of NPD activity and the second was the fact that the NPD activity focused without exception on low and no sugar products.

Sales Director Gary Black highlighted that since just 2014, an amazing 20% of sugar has been taken out of soft drinks in the UK market and predicted that by the end of 2018 Great Britain would be the only country in the world where more than 50% of all Coke lines sold would be low or zero sugar.

The company is focusing on a “grow the core, and add more” strategy that centres on getting the core range right and in growth, while also offering consumers more choice – and it’s on the “more choice” front that CCEP is working very hard in terms of NPD. The event saw the launch of, among other things, Fuze Tea, new variants of Diet Coke and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar and a new variant of Sprite.

FUZE TEA CCEP has announced the launch of the globally-successful, premium iced tea brand Fuze Tea in Great Britain – a fusion of the flavours of fruits, botanicals and tea extracts, with two low sugar variants.

Already established in 40 countries and one of the fastest-growing brands in The Coca-Cola Company portfolio, Fuze Tea initially launched in 2012 in 14 international markets and saw accelerated growth to billion-dollar status in less than three years.

Blends include Black Tea Peach with a touch of hibiscus and Green Tea Mango with a hint of chamomile. The tea extracts in Fuze Tea come from 100% sustainably sourced tea leaves, contributing to Coca-Cola’s global aim to sustainably source 100% of its key agricultural ingredients and raw materials by 2020. Fuze Tea is also low in calories – between 14 and 19 calories per 100ml depending on the flavour – and sweetened with stevia.

The two variants are available in 400ml PET on-the-go bottles and 4 x 400ml PET bottle multipacks. At approximately 4g of sugar per 100ml Fuze will be Soft Drinks Tax exempt. The launch is supported by a £4m marketing campaign across TV, print, and digital and social channels. In-store sampling activity will target millennials – the largest iced tea consumer group.

DIET COKE / COCA-COLA ZERO SUGAR CCEP is launching two new variants of Diet Coke and one for Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, in a move to build on the growing consumer demand for light colas and flavour options. Diet Coke, the number two soft drinks brand in GB [Nielsen, Aug 2017], sees the addition of Exotic Mango and Feisty Cherry. This is the first time the brand has introduced new flavours since 2003 and the variants will be the first in the Diet Coke portfolio to feature a new contemporary design.

Coca-Cola Zero Sugar Peach will also be available following the success of the brand’s Cherry and Vanilla variants in 2017. It will feature a new, sophisticated red can design to celebrate the iconicity of the Coca-Cola brand.

The new flavours will be available in a range of pack formats, including 500ml PET and 330ml cans in both price-marked and plain packs, 1.25ltr and 8x330ml can multipacks.

A £10m marketing campaign will support the launch and will include sampling, POS, out of home, digital and social media activity to help drive consumer awareness.

SPRITE Also launched is a Sprite brand refresh and a new Sprite Lemon Lime and Cucumber No Sugar variant as part of the brand’s biggest investment in over five years.

Introducing a new bottle and brand re-design across the entire Sprite portfolio, the new look will retain the iconic green colour Sprite has used since 1961, whilst up-weighting refreshment cues with lemon and lime imagery on all can and bottle formats.

The dimples that currently feature on existing 500ml bottles of Sprite will for the first time form part of the 2ltr bottle design, representing the drink’s refreshing, citrus bubbles.

In addition to the new look, Sprite Lemon Lime and Cucumber No Sugar has been launched to help retailers tap into demand for light flavoured carbonates. Made from 100% natural flavours and available in 330ml cans, 500ml and 2ltr PET bottles, Sprite Lemon Lime and Cucumber No Sugar contains zero calories and is free of caffeine and preservatives.

Sprite will be backed by a £3.3m marketing campaign, spanning digital and print advertising channels. Over 400,000 consumers will also have the opportunity to taste the new variant through in-store sampling. The whole Sprite portfolio will be Soft Drinks Tax exempt.

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The issue that stands out like a sore thumb here is the fact that the soft drinks industry has been migrating towards low and no sugar for a long, long time without any encouragement from the Government – and usually in response to changing consumption patterns.

Diet Coke has been on sale in the UK for about 30 years! Additionally, Coca-Cola European Partners has launched no fewer than 29 drinks since 2005 with no or less sugar.

What’s more, in the last couple of years pretty much every penny of marketing spend from the major soft drinks manufacturers has gone on drinks that are low or no sugar. IrnBru Xtra, Diet Coke, Coke Zero Sugar, Pepsi Max and Diet Pepsi have been soaking up all the marketing dollars in recent years, to all intents and purposes.

The same story plays out when it comes to NPD. Very few soft drinks launched into the UK market by the major players in the last few years have been high in sugar.

But does the industry get praise for helping move the national diet issue forward? No, it gets harsh legislation and a combative

approach that portrays them as soulless purveyors of obesity and the reason behind our nation’s admittedly poor general standard of health.

Once again, the Government has largely refused to engage with the industry on the issue in any meaningful way. It hasn’t been quite as bad as the situation during the tobacco years, when the Government point-blank refused to even talk to the tobacco manufacturers, but the conversations that have happened have not led to any significant change in the way Government has approached the sugar tax.

The Government’s apparent fascination with creating a “them and us” situation on every key debate is baffling. Surely it would be wiser to engage enthusiastically with interested parties, hear all the arguments then make an informed choice? Instead, it looks for all the world that the Government makes up its mind then digs its heels in regardless of what it subsequently learns on any given issue.

The result is yet more impractical and very costly changes to an industry already suffering badly. What’s more galling in this particular instance is that the direction of travel for the

WANT TO BENEFIT FROM ONE OF THE FASTEST GROWING SOFT DRINKS SECTORS? THIS WILL SUIT YOU TO A TEA. • Two delicious variants will tap into the

growing ice tea sector, worth £48m and up 13%*

• Low in sugar and Soft Drinks Tax exempt • Supported by a £4million marketing campaign that includes TV advertising Get in contact to find out more at connect@ccep.com or call 0808 1 000 000

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convenience retailers and the second-highest bought category in Scottish convenience, after newspapers [HIM, 2017].

And the fact remains that the soft drinks industry is on board with shifting consumption patterns and is working exceptionally hard to accelerate that shift to low and no sugar drinks.

Adrian Troy, Marketing Director at Barr Soft Drinks, comments: “As the market has evolved, more and more people are looking for low and no-sugar options that deliver all the taste of their favourite soft drinks, for fewer calories. Barr Soft Drinks is encouraging retailers to ensure that their soft drinks range includes a wide variety of regular, low and zero sugar variants.”

As well as reducing sugar in its iconic Irn-Bru core product, AG Barr now offers a whole array of low and no-sugar drinks, including Irn-Bru Sugar Free (Scotland’s No.1 low-calorie flavoured carbonate [IRI, Dec 2017]), Irn-Bru Xtra (which has delivered £11m of sales since launch), Rubicon Spring (sparkling spring water with fruit juice and only 15 calories or less per bottle), Rockstar Revolt (zero sugar energy drinks), Snapple

© 2018 DP Beverages. All rights reserved. *Nielsen MAT 29.09.17

soft drinks industry was towards low and no sugar anyway. And the argument that the travel wasn’t quite going quick enough just doesn’t stack up.

As local retailers are aware, the current soft drinks market is increasingly becoming unrecognisable from the way it was just five ago. It is a vitally important category for local retailers and that fact should not be lost in the debate. A partnership approach is needed now more than ever between Government and industry if the very future of the local retailing industry is not to be thrown into doubt.

Let’s not forget that retailers and industry are not the bad guys. We’ve been working for years on improving the health of our customers and we receive virtually no thanks or praise for being there at the coal face, helping to change consumer habits – but we need support and what we do not need is constant castigation and dismissal of our legitimate commercial interests. No profits means no convenience stores – and where would that leave Scotland?

Scotland’s soft drinks market is now worth around £848m [IRI, Dec 2017] and continues to be one of the most profitable categories for

Cover Story

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Soft Drinks Revolution

Iced Tea (no added sugar range and just 10 calories per bottle), San Benedetto (12% juice soft drink, less than 5g of sugar per 100ml) and Strathmore water.

It hardly looks like the company has been resisting the shift to low and no sugar, and it’s the same story at the other giant of the soft drinks industry in Scotland, Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP).

While CCEP has chosen to go down a different route with its full sugar Classic Coke variant, retaining it as a special occasion treat option for customers, the vast majority of marketing spend and NPD is on low and no sugar lines, and long has been.

Amy Burgess, Trade Communications Manager at Coca-Cola European Partners, says: “For retailers, offering a wide choice of different products, including a range of flavours and variants, as well as pack formats, is the key to making the most of soft drinks sales.

CASE STUDY: HIGHLAND SPRING Scottish water giant Highland Spring has long benefitted from its naturally sugar-free status but is now highlighting to retailers that the advent of the sugar tax may encourage more consumers to consider what they are drinking.

Carol Saunders, Head of Customer Marketing, Highland Spring Group, comments: “Consumers are drinking more water than ever before and the sub-category is outperforming the wider soft drinks market, which declined by 0.1% in volume in the 12 weeks prior to January 2018 [IRI, Jan 2018]. Of the sub-categories that showed growth, Bottled Water contributed 41%, with overall volume sales of Plain Water increasing by 5.6%. This growth is also seen in the convenience sector with Plain Water volume sales increasing by 2.3% [IRI, Feb 2018]. We largely attribute this to the rise in consumer demand for healthy hydration options.

“The increasing consumer and media focus on health, as well as the imposition of the sugar tax, continues to be a major driver of product choice and is a significant consideration for consumers when choosing between drinks. Therefore, retailers need to make sure their range appeals to health-conscious consumers by offering options low in or free from sugar and calories.”

The company has unveiled its latest campaign, titled ‘H2Oomph’ which encourages consumers to enjoy life “with added value”. The activity kicked off with a bold new on-pack promotion running from February through to June and forms part of the brand’s ongoing ‘Brave By Nature’ positioning.

Reinforcing the message that Highland Spring consumers are naturally driven to do more each day, ‘H2Oomph’ shows consumers how being hydrated can allow them to make the most of their everyday moments. Consumers will be given the opportunity to shake up the norm by winning experiences with added “oomph” – familiar activities that have been maximised to their fullest. From a weekend break in an unusual location, to 4D cinema tickets and aqua assault courses, winners will be given the chance to do something a bit different.

The instant win mechanic will appear on Highland Spring’s Still 500ml flat cap and 750ml sports cap on-the-go single bottles and multipacks in stores nationwide until June and will give shoppers the chance to win one of 10,000 prizes on offer.

The on-pack promotion will be supported by a fully integrated communications plan that will include in-store activation, out of home and digital advertising, alongside PR and social media activity – all implemented from April 2018.

The news also comes as the brand unveils a packaging refresh for its 1ltr, 750ml and 330ml glass bottles. Launching in March 2018, the design mirrors the fresh new look introduced to the PET range, updated in 2017, and highlights the brand’s provenance and heritage messaging with a modern, sleek design.

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“Especially important is keeping a wide selection of low or zero sugar drinks, and retailers should constantly review their soft drinks range as manufacturers innovate new lighter options to meet rising consumer demand for healthier options.

“Throughout 2017 we have continued to focus on innovation in response to shifting consumer trends like health and wellness, premiumisation and convenience.”

Note once more that CCEP has launched no fewer than 29 drinks since 2005 with no or less sugar, helping people make informed choices whilst reducing their sugar intake.

A great example is Coca-Cola Zero Sugar which launched in summer 2016 and was supported by a £10m marketing campaign, the company’s biggest brand investment for a decade.

Burgess again: “Since then we have distributed 15.4m samples nationwide to drive trial of Coca-Cola Zero Sugar and have launched two new flavour variants – CocaCola Zero Sugar Vanilla and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar Cherry. As a result, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar has become the fastest growing cola brand in Great Britain, up +41% [Nielsen, Sep 2017]. Now worth £136m in value in Grocery, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar is the fourth-biggest cola brand in the country.”

What that means is that Zero has attracted 1.6m more households so far – and the company has just unveiled a £10m rebrand of Diet Coke and launched two new Diet Coke variants and one for Coca-Cola Zero Sugar.

Does that sound like a company not trying hard enough to convert shoppers to low and no sugar?

Lucozade Ribena Suntory has likewise reformulated all its products to fall into the “less than 5g of sugar per 100ml” band of the Soft Drinks Tax and means the manufacturer’s core portfolio is entirely “sugar tax-free” as well as offering shoppers a low or zero sugar brand alongside the reformulated ranges of each core brand.

These are only some examples from three of the largest soft drinks companies operating in the UK, but the trend is repeated more or less across the board for drinks companies large and small. It is abundantly clear that while some of these moves to focus on low www.slrmag.co.uk

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highlandspring.com/H2Oomph UK/ROI/IoM/CI 18+. Open 01/02/18 – 30/06/18. Enter online “instant” win at www.highlandspring.com/H2Oomph & enter details, bottle batch code & time stamp. Prizes: 50 3-night stays for 4 (2 adults, 2 children 2-11yrs) in an unusual location, 50 train journey experiences (2 adults). 9,900 experiences for 2 – 4D cinema, aqua assault course or Segway. Restrictions apply. Not all prizes may be won. Retain bottle to claim. No purchase necessary, NI and ROI only. Bonus Draw: 01/07/18 – 31/12/18. T&Cs on website.

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Soft Drinks Revolution

and no sugar were undoubtedly driven by the impending sugar tax, many of them have been in the pipeline for years and reflect a natural shift in consumption patterns.

Has the Government’s intervention been strictly necessary? Is it just jumping on a politically risk-free bandwagon and hoping to make some political capital from a trend that was well underway on its own anyway? And has it potentially caused significant damage as manufacturers shift investment into complying with the sugar tax and away from other areas where there would arguably be more benefit for all stakeholders – wholesalers, retailers and shoppers included?

The truth is that we will never know but the sugar tax is just the latest example of the Government acting with what many see as a wilful disregard for industry and for local retailers. This approach cannot go on forever.

The future must be more collaborative if the local retailing trade is to enjoy a sustainable future and remain able to serve communities across Scotland that rely on their local store, as the recent snow-fuelled chaos demonstrated only too clearly.

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CASE STUDY: LRS In November 2016, Lucozade Ribena Suntory (LRS) publicly committed to making its entire range Soft Drinks Tax exempt, a major commitment for a company of that size with some huge brands.

Scott Meredith, UK Sales Director, LRS, comments: “As part of our overall commitment to health and wellbeing, we outlined our plan to reformulate all drinks to be under 5g of sugar per 100ml in November 2016. This means the core portfolio is entirely ‘sugar tax-free’. We have invested heavily in fine-tuning the reformulation of our range to ensure it’s business as usual for retailers when the levy comes into force.

“We also offer customers a low or zero sugar brand alongside the reformulated ranges of each our core brands. This enables retailers to offer their consumers a full range of choice. Lucozade Zero, for example, was launched in 2016 to help retailers tap into the growing trend for low sugar soft drinks and has gone from strength to strength since it first hit shelves. The most popular soft drinks launch of 2016 [IRI, Nov 2016], Lucozade Zero is still growing at 39% [IRI, Dec 2017] year-onyear, illustrating the popularity and importance of lower-sugar soft drink options.”

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Safe area doesn’t work with flash and Logo. 6mm from top. noted with Jon

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*Units, IRI Total Scotland – Year to 14/10/17

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News

Products

Quorn plates up with Fogle and Defoe Quorn has partnered with Ben

ProductNews

Fogle and Jermain Defoe for a short film that shows how eating less meat is better for both consumers and the planet. It is part of Plate Up, a three-part series, in which Fogle discovers how relevant eating less meat is to modern-day living. The activity forms part of Quorn’s £14m brand support package for 2018 and follows record sales growth of £19m last year.

Spar Brand sandwiches get makeover Spar has brought a modern look and a new bread recipe to its range of Spar Brand sandwiches.

The new design features a clean and simple look, a larger window, a modern background with differentiation by flavour, and icons showing provenance.

Spar has also reformulated eight of the sandwich lines with softer, better-quality bread and improved the provenance of ingredients with free-range eggs and pole-and-line-caught tuna.

FILL UP ON FORECOURTS – P48 CRISPS AND SNACKS Walkers kicks-off groundbreaking new TV promotion

It’s Saturday night live with Walkers Walkers has launched a new promotion with ITV to capitalise on the ‘Big Night In’ occasion.

The promotion gives consumers the chance to grab prizes live on Saturday night TV, with the big winners announced in the ad breaks of shows such as Saturday Night Takeaway and Britain’s Got Talent.

It runs across Bugles, Mix Ups and Walkers sharing packs.

Walkers is hosting three advert spots every Saturday night, the first showcasing the headline prize of the week. The second reminds consumers to enter their on-pack codes. The final spot announces the week’s top prize winner live on ITV.

Prizes include £5,000 cash or a holiday for four people, in addition to thousands of others including days out, movie downloads and gift vouchers.

“Our TV adverts every Saturday night will be unmissable and the prizes will mean people won’t want to miss out,” commented Rachel Holms, Senior Marketing Director at PepsiCo. SKUs carrying the promo include Walkers core 175g sharing packs (Cheese & Onion, Salt & Vinegar, Ready Salted, Prawn Cocktail), Bugles 110g packs (Cheese, Sour Cream & Black Pepper and Southern Style BBQ) and 120g Mix Ups (Cheese, Spicy and Meaty).

Highland Spring’s H2Oomph Highland Spring’s new

SPORTS AND ENERGY DRINKS

‘H2Oomph’ on-pack promotion

Make some tomb in the chiller for Lucozade

gives consumers the chance to instantly win one of 10,000 prizes that are a bit different, including a weekend break in an unusual location, 4D cinema tickets and the chance to tackle an aqua assault course. It runs on Highland Spring’s Still 500ml flat cap and 750ml sports cap on-the-go single bottles and multipack in stores until June.

Perfect Fit launches pet chatbot Mars Petcare brand Perfect Fit has launched an online programme to help shoppers keep their pets in peak health.

The Perfect Fit Plus Programme provides weekly tips for pet owners and can be accessed through a chatbot on Facebook Messenger. The chatbot gathers information from the user to

Lucozade Energy has launched a joint campaign with the new Tomb Raider movie, which opens in cinemas on March 15th.

The £6m ‘Energy Beats Everything’ campaign kicked off with a new TV commercial. The advert is supported by a nationwide out-of-home blitz and in-store activity.

Lucozade expects the campaign to reach 84% of adults through the new ad and additional supporting activity, which also includes spots on YouTube and social media channels.

Claire Keaveny, Senior Brand Manager at Lucozade Ribena Suntory, said: “With Lucozade Energy already driving almost £2,600 worth of sales per store each year, retailers should absolutely stock up now to ensure their chillers are ready for the extra sales opportunities this campaign will present.”

create personalised tips and insights for their cat or dog.

KEEP UP WITH THE LATEST NEWS AS IT HAPPENS – FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @SLRMAG

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Products

News

McCoy’s £10,000 golden crisp returns McCoy’s has relaunched its ‘Win Gold’ campaign for 2018, offering a prize of £10,000 to the finder of one of five gold crisps

WATER AG Barr brand teams up with athlete and launches new flavoured range

The Muir the merrier for Team Strathmore

hidden in packs. Ending in May,

Strathmore Water has joined forces with Team GB athlete and last year’s European Indoor 1500m and 3000m champion, Laura Muir, as the brand continues to strengthen its commitment to world-class athletics.

The 24-year-old middle to long distance runner, who hails from Milnathort, joins World Champion T53 wheelchair racer Samantha Kinghorn and Commonwealth Gold Medal swimmer Ross Murdoch on Team Strathmore. She will help the brand to deliver its ongoing Do More campaign which aims to inspire more people of all ages and ability to take up entry level exercise.

89p McCoy’s Grab Bags.

The campaign includes athlete advice and inspiration, tips and techniques for all levels, and some once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to inspire and motivate active participation.

“I am really pleased to be teaming up with Strathmore water and their existing sports ambassadors to help encourage more people to enjoy the benefits of running,” said Muir.

“Our aim is to get more people on the move – to just try to be more active and see what benefits it can bring to your life. A water brand is such a natural partner for me as hydration is so important for athletes – I am really looking forward to getting involved in the Do More campaign.”

The news came just as Strathmore launched a new range of spring water infused with natural botanicals and fruit flavours, with zero calories and no added sugar.

The Strathmore Botanics range offers three flavours – Orange & Mandarin, Apple & Elderflower, and Pear & Elderberry – all of which will be available later in

the promo runs alongside a £1.5m campaign that sees the ‘When Flavour Calls’ ad back on TV. It features on McCoy’s £1.70 multipacks in both Classic and Mighty Meat flavours, and the

Nestlé shrinks outers Nestlé has introduced a new smaller 24-count outer across a range of its singles, including all ‘2 for £1’ PMPs. The core lines affected include KitKat 4 Finger, KitKat Chunky, Aero Peppermint Medium, Aero Milk Medium, Toffee Crisp, Yorkie Original and Yorkie Raisin and Biscuit, whilst Rowntree’s Fruit Pastilles and Polo Original, Sugar Free and Spearmint will all move to a 32-count outer. Smarties will also be moving to the 24-count outer, at a date yet to be confirmed.

No added sugar in Müller’s Fruitopolis Müller has reformulated its Müllerlight Fruitopolis range, so that it now includes no added sugar. Following a similar change to the brand’s Greek Style range, the new Fruitopolis recipe now contains over 30% less total sugar. The new recipe

March in outers of 12 x 500ml PET bottles at an introductory RSP of 75p.

A range of POS materials will be available to retailers.

CRISPS AND SNACKS

Seabrook launches hot new Alton Towers on-pack promo Seabrook Crisps has unveiled a new partnership with Alton Towers Resort to celebrate the theme park’s new wooden Wicker Man rollercoaster.

A new limited-edition flavour, Fiery Woodsmoked BBQ, which ties in to the rollercoaster’s wood and fire theme, will be available from April.

An on-pack promotion across all Seabrook Crinkle Cut crisps and pack formats will give shoppers two for one entry to Alton Towers theme park worth up to £55 per pack.

A large-scale marketing campaign is planned, and in-store POS materials including FSDUs, dump bins, shelf wobblers and posters will be available from the end of March.

is available now in three flavours: Strawberry; Cherry; and Peach & Passionfruit, in 130g single flavour four-packs at an RSP is £2.69.

Brussels snuffs out traditional matches Republic Technologies is to remove all Strike Anywhere match formats from its range.

This includes products available under Swan Vestas and Cook’s Matches brands, which will switch to Safety Matches from the end of March/early April.

Changes to EU legislation mean the chemicals required to make Strike Anywhere matches won’t be available after May 31.

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News

Off-Trade

Coke unveils alcopop Coca-Cola is set to launch its first alcoholic drink in the

Off-TradeNews

company’s 126-year history – a type of alcopop that will only see the light of day in Japan.

The market for the socalled ‘Chu-Hi’ drinks – cans of flavoured sparkling water reinforced with Japanese spirit shochu – is huge and has grown between 5% and 25% every year since 2013. Thirsty consumers, mostly female, already have hundreds of flavours to choose from, so it will be interesting to see how Coke’s offering fares.

Coca-Cola Japan’s boss Jorge Garduno said the launch was a “modest experiment for a specific slice of our market”.

Rosie’s Pig gives birth to Raspberry Roller Westons Cider is extending its Rosie’s Pig range of cloudy ciders with new Rosie’s Pig Raspberry Roller Cloudy Cider.

The Raspberry and Cucumber flavoured cider taps into the huge growth of berry-flavoured ciders, which now account for

THINK FROZEN ISN’T COOL? THINK AGAIN – P58 VODKA Smirnoff looks to rectify music industry’s gender imbalance

Smirnoff and Spotify level out your playlist Smirnoff has extended its ‘Equalising Music’ global campaign through a new partnership with Spotify that promotes equality for women musicians around the world.

According to Spotify, none of the top 10 moststreamed tracks were performed by women artists or bands in 2017. To help redress the balance, Smirnoff and Spotify have unveiled the Smirnoff Equaliser.

Running throughout the summer, the Smirnoff Equaliser analyses Spotify users’ listening habits and gives a percentage breakdown of the number of men versus women artists they have listened to in the previous six months. It then offers a bespoke playlist, where artists of both genders are equally represented. The Equaliser further supports women musicians by offering a personalised slider, where the user can increase the number of women artists in their playlists.

“The Smirnoff Equaliser not only drives awareness, but also allows Spotify users to take direct action by increasing the number of tracks from women artists in their playlists,” said Neil Shah, Smirnoff Global Senior Brand Manager.

87% of all fruit ciders sold.

The new variant joins existing Rosie’s Pig cloudy cider flavours

GIN

Flat Tyre Cloudy Cider with

Beefeater is in the pink

Rhubarb, Handbrake Cloudy Cider with Damson and Rusted Wheel Cloudy Cider with Cherry.

The range is available in 330ml cans (4% ABV).

Loch Lomond Whiskies sponsors The Open Loch Lomond Group has signed a five-year deal with golf’s governing body The R&A, for its Loch Lomond Whiskies brand.

The partnership includes support of both The Open and the Ricoh Women’s British Open tournaments. It also means the distiller’s range of single malts will become ‘The Spirit of The Open’.

As part of the arrangement, Loch Lomond will create a variety of limited editions, aimed at both golf fans and whisky aficionados alike.

Pernod Ricard has joined the pink gin party with the launch of Beefeater Pink.

The premium gin is the first product to be launched by The Gin Hub, a new, stand-alone entity that brings together three of Pernod Ricard’s gin brands under one roof: Beefeater, Plymouth and Seagram’s.

Available from April at an RSP of £18.99, Beefeater Pink (70cl, ABV 37.5%) is described as “fusing natural strawberry flavour, citrus and classic juniper botanicals” to create “a delicate and refreshing gin and one that is visually vibrant with its statement-making shade”.

Eric Sampers, Brand Director for Beefeater Gin, commented: “Beefeater Pink really captures what gin has become, a modern, vibrant, colourful and innovative category. Distilled in London, Beefeater Pink represents the spirit of the city where convention and modernity coexist with each other.”

BEER

Amstel sees red

Amstel has unveiled a new pack design as part of increased overall investment in the Heineken-owned brand.

The revamp, which aims for a more premium look and feel, includes a new red design and a modernised logo.

The range-wide change to red gives greater consistency with Amstel’s wider brand identity across Europe.

The re-design comes as part of increased investment into the brand, which will see £7m spent across TV, cinema and social media.

The partnership is effective immediately and runs until 2022.

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Products

News

WHISKEY Jameson doubles down on this year’s Paddy’s Day

Happy St. Patrick’s Month from Jameson Irish whiskey Jameson has launched a multi-million-pound campaign to capitalise on St. Patrick’s Day. The campaign includes outof-home, digital and social advertising, as well as a mobile app that offers games and augmented reality ‘how-to’ recipe demonstrations.

As the big day falls on a Saturday this year (March 17), James Middleton, Channel Director for Impulse at Pernod Ricard said there was potential for the festivities to be bigger than ever.

“Our campaign this year is simple, get more people into store for a longer period and we are supporting retailers do this by investing heavily in the promotion of a ‘Happy St. Patrick’s Month’, as well as our lead serve the Jameson, Ginger and Lime,” he said.

“The Jameson, Ginger and Lime is a great way to increase basket spend as it’s an incredibly simple drink to make at home.

With over 60,000 ready-todrink cans of the serve sampled last summer, we have seen how

Q. I’m trying to get ready for minimum unit pricing – how will MUP affect deals which combine alcohol and non-alcohol? I want to do a deal on fresh pizza, crisps and four beers for the World Cup A. Firstly, the Government have yet to confirm that the MUP will be 50p. That will be announced in the next month, ahead of the “go live” date May 1, 2018. So hold off ordering your POS until we are sure it will be 50p! Under MUP, if you are doing a deal the starting point is to calculate the minimum price for the alcohol element. Obviously, the deal can’t be sold for less than the MUP but you can sell the whole deal for the MUP. No account is taken of the food / non-alcohol element – they can be zero.

popular they are and how well they work to encourage people to try Jameson in a different format.”

Jameson is available to convenience retailers in the following formats, which cater for a range of price-points: Jameson Original 35cl (RSP £12.29), 70cl (RSP £22.95), Jameson Crested

ULTRA-PREMIUM SPIRITS

Club together for a bottle?

Havana Club has launched what it’s described as “the first ever prestige Cuban rum to be finished in smoky whisky casks”.

Havana Club Tributo 2018 is the third instalment in the brand’s Tributo collection and has a worldwide limited release of 2,500 bottles.

The ultra-super-premium rum is presented in a luxury wooden box, crafted in white wood that reinforces the role of oak in the 2018 edition.

Tributo 2018 (70cl, 40% ABV) is available now with an RSP of €400 although retailers can, of course, set their own price.

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(RSP £30.45), Jameson Black Barrel (RSP £37.69), Jameson Redbreast Tubed (RSP £44.19) and Jameson ready-to-drink cans (RSP £2).

POS materials are available to boost sales, including dummy boxes and clip strips promoting the Jameson, Ginger and Lime serve.

Q. I run a small chain of licensed shops. An LSO pulled me up for not having my actual personal licence with me when working in my second shop. I had a photo of it on my phone, but he said it wasn’t good enough and gave me an informal warning. Is that correct?

A. The law can be impractical and frustrating at times, but your LSO is right. Personal licence holders must have their principal (original) personal licence with them so it is available on request.

Q. I’ve bought a c-store and it is licensed 10am–10pm but the licence also says “open at 8am for general retail”. I want to open most days at 6.30am as a lot of builders in the area start early. It would be for rolls and papers – obviously not booze. Can I just do it?

A. The licence is principally there to authorise the sale of alcohol but it also covers other activities. If it states an 8am opening time for retail, then that forms part of the conditions/terms of the licence. It is an offence to trade other than in accordance with your premises licence so you will have to apply for a variation to amend the section on general retail times. Speak to a licensing lawyer and get a “health check” done as there may be other things you could apply for at the same time.

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News

Newstrade

News& Magazines USE MEAL DEALS TO DRIVE ADULT SNACKING SALES – P60 PROMOTIONS News UK initiative opens door to increased sales

The Times rolls out new display units The Times Scotland and The Sunday Times Scotland has introduced impactful new exterior display units for forecourts across Scotland to help drive sales of the entire news category.

Spar Ardrossan Manager Margo Patterson said: “I started using the unit last month and it’s already making an impact and I love the display. It’s simple but effective and people are already noticing and commenting on it. There’s nice depth in the individual holders so large volumes can be stored outside.”

Time Inc titles deliver Time Inc UK has announced its ABC results for the Jul-Dec 2017 period with a number of highlights. CEO Marcus Rich said: “Our brands have an enduring ability to connect with their audiences in print. We remain focused on evolving this

Sun Savers supports retailers with new ‘Grand Selfie’ competition The Sun’s loyalty club Sun Savers has launched a new initiative to support local retailers by driving print sales and footfall into store.

The “Grand Selfie” promotion sees 300 branded blue doors placed at retailers across the UK, giving customers the chance to win a £1,000 prize for simply uploading a selfie in front of the door onto their social media.

There is a £1,000 prize every week for four weeks with five £200 runners-up prizes up for grabs.

Retailers can also win themselves a digital screen worth £2,000 for the most selfies taken in their store.

The innovative new promotion is designed to further raise awareness of the Sun Savers scheme across Scotland and to encourage repeat newspaper purchases and incentivise more customers into stores.

Awareness of the four-week initiative is being driven by News UK’s Social & Field Team as well as targeting the 500,000 Sun Savers members, with further promotions across The Sun’s digital platforms.

The initiative follows News UK’s announcement

last month that Sun Savers has reached 500,000 members since its launch in June and paid out more than £2m to readers.

hugely important part of our business, where we continue to deliver a trusted environment

CARRIAGE CHARGES

and effective platform for our

Menzies unveils its latest carriage charge rise

advertising partners to target engaged readers. At the same time, 2017 saw traffic to our sites grow by 29% on the year and we also saw growth in our digital advertising revenues.”

Country Life delivered another trend-bucking performance, celebrating its eighth consecutive annual increase.

During its 120th anniversary year, the weekly title achieved a combined ABC of 41,314, a 3% increase. Weeklies Soaplife and What’s on TV also delivered strong sales, with Soaplife up 9% year-on-year while What’s

Less than a week after NFRN members laid bare their concerns about spiralling carriage charges in parliament, Menzies Distribution announced an average increase of 2.7% to them. These increases are set to take effect from April 1, 2018.

NFRN National President Linda Sood said: “On Tuesday February 20 our members made clear to MPs the financial burdens that ever increasing carriage charges and employment costs were piling onto their businesses, putting jobs and even shops at risk. Within a week, one of the only two main news wholesalers has confirmed that it is to pile on yet more pressure, increasing its delivery charges by nearly 3%. This news is unwelcome and disheartening.

“As our Independent Retail Report for 2018 makes clear the charges for receiving a supply from news wholesalers have increased by a whopping 25.85% over just seven years yet the service our members receive has deteriorated with a massive 87,819 complaints to our helpline service NFRN Connect in the same period.

“Over that time members have had to contend with rising employment costs, too. Yet Menzies conveniently ignores the difficult trading conditions that many news retailers find themselves in. Enforced carriage charges deny retailers a large slice of the margin they should receive from selling newspapers and magazines. That’s why the NFRN wants the whole system reviewed.”

on TV outsold competitors over Christmas and the New Year.

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16/03/2018 12:31:35

Inside Business

Research Digest

SHOPPERS PUT OFF ETHICAL BUYING DUE TO COST

Almost half of shoppers in Scotland (48%) are put off buying ethical products because they’re too expensive, new research has revealed. The survey, commissioned by the Fairtrade Foundation, also found that 13% of consumers don’t buy ethical products because they “don’t trust claims” made about ethicallysourced products.

The new research has shown that 88.8% of shoppers in the Scotland think quality of products is an important factor when considering where to shop. This is followed by the price (86.4%), the location (70.2%) and then the ethical credentials of the store (48.5%).

More than half (50.3%) were unaware of exploitation in the food chain while almost a quarter (24.2%) of consumers in Scotland admit to never thinking about who produces their food and drink. Only 9.3% of the survey admitted to ‘always’ thinking about who produces their food and drink.

When it comes to the Fairtrade products that we consume, the top most-purchased is coffee with 46.6% of us buying it. Second is bananas at 46% and third is sugar at 29.8%.

FOOD SALES CONTINUE TO LEAD GROWTH IN SCOTLAND In January, Scottish sales decreased by 0.7% on a like-for-like basis compared to January 2017 but food continued to buck the downward trend with Total Food sales in January increasing by 4.2% versus January 2017, when they had decreased by 2.6%. This is in line with the three-month average of 4.3% and brings the 12-month average growth to 4.1%, the highest since July 2011.

Ewan MacDonald-Russell, Head of Policy and External Affairs at the Scottish Retail Consortium, said January was always a challenging month for retailers: “As with previous months, the rise in food sales is the driving force behind this growth, with the 4.2% rise bringing the 12-month average to the highest point in over six years. That rise is still being lifted by food price inflation, but traditional Scottish products did well.

“All the evidence is that consumers continue to be careful with their spending at a time of uncertainty. With income and council tax rises coming in later this spring, along with inflation and potential interest rate rises, retailers will have to continue to work hard to encourage consumer spending in the months ahead.”

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OVER 50% OF UK CONSUMERS ‘WILL SHARE DATA FOR REWARDS’ With new personal data rules coming into force on May 25, new research shows that consumers are willing to provide their data – as long as they receive something of value in return.

The new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) rules are set to come into force in the UK on May 25 and retailers need to be prepared for that date if they store any personal information whatsoever about their customers. This is particularly important for the many retailers who operate loyalty schemes. The reality is that we live in a highly connected society, where consumers have a plethora of devices at their disposal. Every time consumers use their smartphones, tablets and computers to engage in activities online they are either consciously or subconsciously increasing their digital/data footprint.

As consumers share more about their location, what they are doing at specific moments in time and what interests them – they are enabling brands to capture more information about them.

From May 25 it will be increasingly difficult for retailers to obtain, store and use personal data, particularly as the data handling governing body, the Information Commissioner’s Office, says that its studies show only one in five UK consumers has trust or confidence in how companies store and use their personal data.

Online deals business Onbuy.com has analysed findings from a Mindshare survey of more than 6,000 people from across the UK to better understand their attitudes towards sharing personal data and has made some interesting discoveries.

OnBuy found that 60% of UK consumers would be most uncomfortable sharing their private conversations from the messaging platforms they are active on. Thereafter, a consumer’s search history from their web browser was the next most citied source of data that consumers would refrain from wanting to share at 51%.

In contrast to what customers would feel most uncomfortable with sharing, OnBuy found that consumers would be least uncomfortable with sharing their fitness

tracker data (36%).

However, the research also revealed that there are moments when UK consumers would be willing to exchange their personal data. OnBuy found that customers would most do so for reward points at 54%. Closely behind was financial incentives/cash rewards, which 53% of UK consumers would be willing to trade their personal data for.

Conversely, personalised rewards or recommendations is the incentive that UK consumers would be least enthusiastic about exchanging their personal data for at only 16%.

Personalised rewards or recommendations ranking last was very surprising, given that many companies want to primarily utilise personal data to give their customers a more tailored experience in accordance to their needs and wants.

Oddly enough, despite the forthcoming tightening of data protection laws, 61% of UK consumers believe they will inevitably be giving data to more companies for the foreseeable future.

Cas Paton, Managing Director of OnBuy.com commented: “With multiple organisations suffering from high-profile breaches, data now more than ever is a major consideration for consumers. As consumers comprehend what their data can reveal about them, organisations have a key role in alleviating any concerns they may have. All organisations should store consumer data safely and use it only when they truly feel it will improve the experience as well as the interaction with their brand.” www.slrmag.co.uk

16/03/2018 12:31:35

Research Digest

Inside Business

HALF OF ALL RETAIL JOB CANDIDATES ‘LIE ON THEIR CVS’ JUST GETTING AHEAD?

A new survey reveals that almost half of all retail and wholesale job applicants lied on their CV when applying for a new role.

Most job hunters are no strangers to slight exaggeration on their CVs. Whilst it is always good to be self-promotional when looking for new employment, there is clearly a difference between stretching the truth and telling an outright lie. Yet, a recent survey by job site Adzuna. co.uk has revealed that as many as 48% of job hunters in the retail and wholesale industries are doing just that.

The company conducted a survey of 3,587 participants either in, or looking for, employment. When asked if they had lied on their CV, a whopping 37%, or just over a third, admitted to doing so at some stage in their professional career. Of those that had lied on their CV, 83% said they still got the job, with 43% stating that their lie directly contributed to them bagging the role.

Of all the 23 sectors studied, it was discovered that retail employees are the second most likely to have lied on their job applications, second only to marketing and advertising workers.

Looking specifically at the retail employees that responded to the survey, 48% have lied on their CVs at some point. What’s more 56% would be prepared to tell a “big lie” if it meant getting their dream job, and a further 44% would continue telling “small lies” on their CV.

Q 48% of Retail job candidates have told a lie on their CV Q The most common lie is about educational background Q 56% would be prepared to tell a “big lie” to bag their dream job Q 78% revealed that their lie was never uncovered by a boss or colleague

More than half (56%) of the retail staff who admitted to telling a lie on their job applications were female. This is in contrast to your average CV fibber, who is more likely to be male.

They are also more likely to be aged 25 to 34, and their favourite lie to tell is about their educational background, with 67% admitting to stretching the truth about this. This was followed by lies about work experience (representing 56% of lies), tied with lying about their skillset (56%). Candidates also lied about their references (44%) and even the languages they speak (33%).

It would seem that cheaters do prosper, as 89% of fibbing retail candidates admit that they got the job, with 55% stating that the lie directly contributed to this success. What’s more 78% revealed that their lie was never uncovered by a boss or colleague.

Retail workers were also the most likely of all sectors to lie about their references.

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Inside Business

#ThinkSmart2 |19 March 2018, Glasgow Science Centre

# Thi n kSm ar t 2 It’s time to book your slot at the UK’s only tech, data and digital conference!

A hugely impressive roster of speakers as well as a fascinating array of exhibitors make #ThinkSmart2 conference a unique event in the UK local retailing sector.

Tom Fender

Katie Jenkins

Director, Bolt Learning

Head of Customer Proposition, Bolt Learning

CHAIRMAN: Tom has over 25 years’ experience in the UK convenience and wholesale sector and is former co-owner of HIM shopper research consultancy. He returns as Chair having presided over #ThinkSmart1.

Tom has travelled the world, working with both regional and international retailers, wholesalers and suppliers to help improve their business. His travels have exposed him to many ways that technology is used in different countries to better service the shopper, improve customer experience and drive efficiencies.

He is passionate about the convenience sector and his role at Bolt has shifted his focus from the shopper to the people that serve them, and how technology can drive their performance.

Katie is responsible for developing the customer proposition at online training provider Bolt Learning. Bolt’s mission is to help retailers and wholesalers improve their business by leveraging technology to grow their people.

She has worked in UK convenience and wholesale for over 15 years. Her expertise spans from shopper research and in-store experience through to people development.

Bolt’s smarter training solutions offer an extensive range of online modules containing realistic scenarios, immersive stories and engaging graphics, combined with trainee and performance analytics, to inspire behavioural change, ensure compliance and drive productivity.

Gerry Hooper CEO, Zapper UK

Paul Mercieca Chairman, Hi Street Digital Media

The Retail Data Partnership Ltd

32

Paul is best known as Founder Chairman of multi-award winning London integrated communications agency Mercieca which was founded in 1995. Mercieca was voted The Grocer’s best agency in a number of categories for 15 successive years as well as The Drum’s best integrated agency in 2015.

Integrated in-store digital screen business Hi Street Digital Media was launched by Paul at the beginning of 2017 after testing the concept in independent convenience stores across the UK. Following the year long test, not a single retailer opted to withddraw from using the screens and the concept was rolled out nationally.

Gerry Hooper joined Zapper in 2014 with over 20 years’ experience and has brought all of that expertise to Zapper, one of the fastest growing businesses in the industry. His presentation will offer a vision of the future where technology and data combine to enhance the customer experience, drive loyalty and improve footfall, revenues and profits.

He has worked in many sectors including Entertainment, Payments, Food, and Retail. He has helped transform Zapper from tech start-up to thriving commercial business.

Using his experience, knowledge and tactical sales capability, Hooper has developed and implemented Zapper’s strategic, fast-moving and scalable plans for a ubiquitous mobile payment and marketing insight solution aimed at different UK verticals.

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Inside Business

19 March 2018, Glasgow Science Centre | #ThinkSmart2

fo

# Thi n kSm ar t 2 Tom Hall

Stephen Burnett

Mike Callachan

Retail Analytics Expert, IRI Worldwide

MD and Founder, Retail Data Partnership

Founder, Snappy Shopper

Tom Hall is a recognised global thought leader in the world of retail analytics and heads up the Retail Analytics and Consulting team at research and data giants IRI Worldwide.

Tom has worked across the globe in both developed and developing markets dedicated to helping retailers and manufacturers optimise their price, media, promotion and ranging strategies. He has a wealth of experience and has specialised in rolling out data analytics to new markets worldwide.

At the moment, Tom is developing several tailored business optimisation packages for the UK convenience sector. This follows IRI’s launch of a new ‘supermarket-style’ analytics solution that offers local retailers the same insights the supermarkets have had access to for years.

Harris Aslam Managing Director, Eros Retail

Harris Aslam runs Eros Retail, a fast growing family-owned chain of seven stores. He believes innovation is a fundamental driving force behind their mission to ‘redefine convenience retail.’ . Harris recently visited the famous Amazon Go store in Seattle and will be sharing his first-hand experience of the trip from a retailer’s point of view. He was also be discussing what local retailers in Scotland can learn from this unique store and considering whether this is a model that that could be replicated, at least in parts.

Twenty years in the independent retail sector has confirmed Stephen’s belief that independent retailers have a hugely important role to play in the UK, and need to use technology and their personal service to defend their livelihoods against ever-growing competition.

Stephen’s presentation will highlight just what can be achieved by leveraging the power of data to drive better, smarter decision-making in a convenience store.

The Retail Data Partnership is one of the largest suppliers of EPoS to the convenience retail sector in the UK.

Steve O’Neill Group Marketing Director, PayPoint

Steve leads the development of PayPoint’s strategic marketing, consumer insight, media relations and brand agendas.

Prior to joining PayPoint, Steve gained extensive experience as a marketing leader in the financial services, telecoms and retail sectors, holding senior roles at HSBC, Carphone Warehouse, Orange and John Lewis.

He is passionate about technology, retail and shopper behaviour.

PayPoint is a retail technology and payment services provider, present in over 29,000 convenience stores across the UK, with a further 10,000 in Romania.

Its new PayPoint One platform, which combines EPoS, card payments and PayPoint services, is now live in over 7,000 UK stores.

Mike Callachan has been building web technology for nearly two decades.

Mike holds a First Class Honours Degree in Internet Computer Science from the University of St Andrews, and is the founder of one of Scotland’s largest digital companies, mtc. The business currently employs over 100 web experts in its offices in Edinburgh and Dundee.

Enda McShane CEO, Velocity Worldwide

New York-based Irishman Enda McShane, CEO and founder of Velocity Worldwide, will be flying across the Atlantic to talk about the role that customer engagement can – and must – play in modern convenience retailing.

A renowned tech visionary, he will also discuss some ground-breaking work that Velocity is undertaking on both sides of the Atlantic, including some next-generation huge scale projects in NFL stadiums.

Exhibitors include: Q Bolt Learning Q GS1 UK Q Hi Street Digital Media Q IRI Worldwide Q M House Solutions Q Navarra Retail Systems Q PayPoint Q The Retail Data Partnership Q Snappy Shopper Q Velocity Worldwide Q Zapper

Visit thinksmart.slrmag.co.uk to book – FREE FOR RETAILERS www.slrmag.co.uk

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16/03/2018 12:31:36 19/02/2018 16:07

Virtual Reality in Retail |#ThinkSmart2

# Thi n kSm ar t

Inside Business

2

Delivering convenient insight for the convenience channel Making use of data to drive valuable insight is a concept that makes many local retailers nervous – but it shouldn’t, says Thomas Hall, Analytics Programme Director at IRI Worldwide.

W

hen convenience retailers think about starting the journey to harness the power of so-called ‘Big Data’, it’s normally met with fear and trepidation – and more often than not, the question: “What is big data?”

The problem with the term big data is that it is loaded with all sorts of connotations, and is commonly used by vendors to talk about data processing speeds or data storage capabilities. For most in the convenience channel, it’s all a bit “so what”.

I prefer to replace big data with “big impact”, as ultimately this is the end result. It’s about helping convenience retailers to minimise wastage, stock the right products, spend more time with customers and create a better working environment. The bottom line is that retailers want to add value to their business and make more profit.

RECOGNISING THE CHALLENGES But when we talk to convenience retailers, they typically raise three challenges when talking about how they can use big data to drive business growth: Q We are concerned with the quality of our data Q We do not have the people Q We are not sophisticated enough Q In reality, these are just excuses for fear of getting things wrong.

CONCERNS ABOUT DATA QUALITY

Retailers have access to much more data than they think. They have PoS data, barcode level sales data, plus intelligence on things like store location and proximity to amenities (bus or train station, city centre, etc), as well as staffing details. The point is that c-stores have all the information they need, but just need to be using it in the right way.

Even in parts of the developing world, where they have few tills, the location of stores are not mapped and pricing compliance is non-existent, store owners go through the painstaking process of counting stock, recording invoices and checking shelf prices. Even this basic level of data lets

them collect sales and price measures that are used to make pivotal decisions on product range, optimal pricing and the most effective promotions to help drive sales.

WE DO NOT HAVE THE PEOPLE

Fear of failure is the main barrier to not investing in an insight capability or working with third parties to help support your business.

Typically, any investment in good quality data insight will provide a return many times over. Many of the big retailers operate insight operations, supplying vital recommendations to the business on changes with an associated return on investment. For example, “if you put the price up by X we can make Y”.

In 90% of cases, if backed with solid mathematics, these recommendations will hold true. Customers are by nature habitual and behaviour can be predicted and acted upon.

But choose a partner to support you with this; one that has the right experience, FMCG knowledge and people who will challenge the status quo.

UNSOPHISTICATED The final concern I hear is “we lack the sophistication” to generate big insight. But how sophisticated you are is irrelevant when it comes to maximising the value of the data you have available – just look at what those stores in Africa and Asia are doing with the insight from their data to run and grow their businesses.

The outcomes from insight programmes are simple – convenient insight for the convenience channel.

Programs can be put in place to do all of the hard work for you. Real time changes to price, un-scripted promotions and prompts to minimise out of stock issues can be served up to staff and acted upon immediately. The underlying models sit on the retailer’s system reading the data in real time and making smart decisions to enable shopkeepers to focus on the most important thing, spending time with customers and being the face of a thriving c-store.

It’s easier than you think.

Thomas Hall is a speaker at SLR’s #ThinkSmart 2 Conference at the Glasgow Science Centre. www.slrmag.co.uk

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MARCH 2018 | SLR

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16/03/2018 12:31:36

DON’T MISS OUT ON THE MOST REWARDING EVENT IN RETAIL!

! d e d n e t x e e n li d a e d y Entr

l ri p A 5 y a d rs u h T n o m p 5 y Enter b

The entry deadline for the the SLR Rewards has been extended due to popular demand.

Make sure you get your entries in for the chance to win a host of exceptional Rewards and the opportunity to win a car that someone in the room must win on the evening!

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16/03/2018 12:31:38

CATEGORIES

Category Rewards

Q Beer Retailer of the Year Q Biscuits Retailer of the Year Q Confectionery Retailer of the Year Q Crisps & Snacks Retailer of the Year Q E-cigs Retailer of the Year Q Forecourt Retailer of the Year Q Newstrade Retailer of the Year Q Soft Drinks Retailer of the Year Q Spirits Retailer of the Year

Special Rewards

Q Best Refit of the Year Q New Store of the Year Q Community Involvement Retailer of the Year Q Food to Go Retailer of the Year Q Fresh & Chilled Retailer of the Year Q Responsible Retailer of the Year Q National Lottery Retailer of the Year Q ThinkSmart Innovation Reward Q Team of the Year To download your full entry kit, visit www.slrawards.com or email events@55north.com

There is no other awards programme in the UK convenience retailing industry rewards industry quite like the SLR Rewards – and we have just extended the entry deadline in response to significant demand, so you still have plenty of time to get your entries in!

The new entry deadline is Thursday April 5 – so don’t miss out on the chance to win one of a mountain of highly valuable and money-can’t-buy Rewards.

And if you are really lucky and have had a great year in your store, you could even end up flying to Las Vegas in October to visit the NACS Convention, the largest c-store event on earth.

That’s the Reward that awaits the Scottish Local Retailer of the Year! Where else can you win a prize like that?

We will be moving to the plush Radisson Blu Hotel in Glasgow for this year’s event on June 20.

The new venue offers us more space for some amazing activities and a new feel for what will be the highlight of the 2018 retailing calendar in Scotland.

And, we will be giving away a car on the evening! A special raffle, sponsored by JET, will see someone in the room collect the keys that evening! All profits from the raffle will be donated to a Scottish charity, so you’ll be helping a great cause into the bargain.

Make sure you don’t miss out by entering as soon as possible. To register your interest or download the official entry kit and entry forms, simply visit www.slrawards.com or email events@55north.com

To enter, visit: www.slrwards.com New entry deadline: Thursday 5 April at 5pm

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16/03/2018 12:31:39

WOODLANDSlocal

Inside Business

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Woodlands Local | Monthly Update

LEARNING SOME COOL LESSONS IN THE SNOW

Last month was dominated by the Beast from the East as the snow threw Woodlands Local into chaos – but the terrible weather brought out the best in our team and the store was one of the few businesses in the area to remain trading throughout.

BY ANTONY BEGLEY

T

he only predictable thing about running a store is that it’s going to be unpredictable. With a reasonably solid and encouraging start to the year under our belt and at last a full team that has gelled well and is delivering consistently, the Beast from the East arrived and created problems the likes of which we’ve never seen before in our four years at Woodlands Local.

The final week of February was, frankly, astonishing, as it seems to have been for all local retailers across Scotland. We knew it was going to be bad – but the reality that we must accept is that we didn’t know it was going to be that bad. And it’s little consolation to realise that we weren’t the only ones who hadn’t under-prepared for the heaviest snowfall I can remember in my lifetime.

The experiences of last month should serve as a real lesson for our industry because the main thing that we all learned is that, as an industry, we don’t have anything like the support mechanisms in place to cope with extreme weather. And I don’t just mean local retailing; I mean grocery too. I’m sure everyone made a trip to their local supermarket at some point during the week of snow, for one reason or another, and it was very clear indeed that the mults were no better prepared than the rest of us.

I walked down to the local Tesco on the Friday just to see how they were coping and it was crystal clear that the answer was: “not at all”. Even the atmosphere in the supermarket was strange with an eerie, end-of-the-world feel. No bread, no milk, no fresh produce. And customers behaving like they were set to be holed up for the next six months, panic buying and rushing around like there was no tomorrow.

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In fact, having spoken to a lot of retailers since and having followed Facebook and Twitter closely during the week, it was evident that local retailers had done a far better job of doing whatever it took to keep the store trading and keep stock on the shelves.

MONUMENTAL EFFORTS Thankfully, that was also my experience at Woodlands and I have to say that I can’t thank the team enough for their monumental efforts in keeping the store open against all the odds.

We had staff walk to the store on foot in kneedeep snow then shovel snowdrifts away from the front of the shop just to be able to get the shutters open at 5.30am. We had staff more or less disobey my instructions to head home

It wasn’t only at Woodlands where retailers got creative in the snow. Robert Kirkwood of Premier Stores in Crossgates took matters into his own hands when milk supplies ran out! www.slrmag.co.uk

16/03/2018 12:31:39

Monthly Update | Woodlands Local

early each night as darkness fell because they didn’t want our customers to be left stranded as we were the only shop in the area still open.

One of our team members, Lynn, summed it up brilliantly: “The shop is right across from the hospital and if the staff can make it to their work to treat people who are ill, then the least we can do is make it to the shop to make sure they can get a hot roll and a coffee and a bowl of soup to warm them up.” It’s the sort of attitude that makes you genuinely proud to be a local retailer and, as I say, I can’t praise the team highly enough.

Unfortunately, we did suffer just like everyone else from a lack of deliveries from most of our suppliers but it was largely understandable, given that there was two or three feet of snow on the roads in the area and the Council just couldn’t keep up with the onslaught of snowfall. But again the staff demonstrated creativity and resilience, particularly when it came to the vital hot food element of the store that was so important to so many of our customers.

With no foodservice deliveries for over a week and supplies running out the team mucked in by making soup using retail veg; they took everything they could from the retail chillers that could be heated up in the oven for hungry, cold customers; and they basically did whatever it took to get the job done.

Astonishingly, the sales figures for the week were only around 5% down on a typical week. An analysis of the sales for the week is also very revealing. While footfall was understandably down significantly – by around 18% – basket spend was actually up around 32%. Having made the effort to get to the shop, our customers were clearly intent on making the visit worthwhile.

STUCK IN CARSTAIRS And if you’re wondering where I was all week when the team were making such a sterling job of holding the fort, I was basically stranded. Having attended a Coca-Cola event in London on the Tuesday I had to get the sleeper train back up and should have been back in Glasgow by 7am. Unfortunately, the train sat near Carstairs in the snow for nearly five hours and I finally got into Glasgow around midday, only to find Glasgow almost literally deserted and the office closed as no one could make it in.

With no trains or buses available I called a cab which wouldn’t get to me for three hours.

As I live around nine miles from Glasgow, I had no option but to wait. Four hours later with the no cab having turned up, I called the cab company and was told that they wouldn’t be able to get into town to collect me after all because the snow was getting worse. A night in the Premier Inn beckoned and the next www.slrmag.co.uk

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Dan Brown at Pinkie Farm in Musselburgh visited his local supermarket to drive a bit of footfall for his store!

Inside Business

morning, with the snow even higher, I had no option but to walk home nine miles – in a suit and dress shoes in knee-deep snow. Several hours later I arrived home blue with the cold and very much in need of a stiff dram.

But the show must go on and indeed it did. By the weekend, the store was running extremely low on stock in several key categories but even the local Booker was having delivery issues and had next to nothing on offer to alleviate the situation. Again, an analysis of the sales figures for the weekend makes for interesting reading, with record sales of products that are normally very slow as customers simply snapped up whatever they could find.

Needless to say, the feedback from our customers was fantastic with so many of them thanking the staff for keeping the store open and for helping them get through a horrendous week. Interestingly, the sales for the following week showed a significant increase and we’re clearly hoping that our efforts in adversity have won us a few more friends and some more loyalty from existing customers.

Normal service was more or less resumed the following week with deliveries beginning to arrive once more and a huge effort ensuring that the bulk of the snow was cleared from the front of the shop and the parking spaces out front. Thanks must also go to the local Council workers who kindly agreed to clear much of the snow for us – in return from a few rolls and bacon and a few cups of coffee.

Little gestures like that can be very heartening when times are tough, and you could do with a helping hand. Thanks lads!

BIG THAW Mo Razzaq of Family Shopper Blantyre, like many retailers, used social media to keep his customers updated on the bread situation.

If the stock won’t come to you, go and collect it yourself was Faraz Iqbal of Premier Linktown Local’s answer!

But it wasn’t all plain sailing after that. Just a few days after the snows departed, four of our freezers – two retail and two foodservice – mysteriously decided to switch themselves off during the night. The problem turned out to be a simple electrical fault, but we lost a lot of stock and – worse – had very little left for the foodservice side of the business. It was back to Booker to grab enough catering stock to make ends meet until our next delivery.

Back in the day a problem like this would have been the end of the world but after the week we’d had, we just viewed it as another wee challenge to overcome, and overcome it we did. We even managed to convince ourselves that it was a good thing because the freezers were needing defrosted anyway.

Every cloud, and all that...

In and among the chaos, we also managed to get some more productive stuff done with a sampling session for new Starburst Chewing Gum (read more on p42) and a long session with Diageo to get our spirits and beers offer tidied up in-store.

MARCH 2018 | SLR

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WOODLANDSlocal

Inside Business

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Woodlands Local | Kensitas Club Relaunch

NEW RSP SETS KENSITAS CLUB SALES ALIGHT

The recent relaunch of Kensitas Club with a vastly reduced RSP of £7.65 and a new Superkings variant has had smokers flocking to the brand in the last month at Woodlands Local.

BY ANTONY BEGLEY

T

he recent relaunch of the Kensitas Club brand at a new significantly lower RSP of just £7.65 and the addition of a Superkings variant was an unprecedented step for a major cigarette manufacturer and one that took the local retailing trade in Scotland completely by surprise.

The brand has long been among the icons of the category in Scotland but recent years have not been kind to Kensitas Club as the long-standing and relentless customer migration towards more economy products took its toll. Kensitas Club retained a very loyal following, but one that had increasingly become a niche one – although awareness of the brand has remained high among adult smokers as most retailers will be aware.

At Woodlands Local we had a few die-hards but when we examined the Epos data in detail, the reality was that we were lucky if we were selling a pack of Kensitas Club a day. We always retained the line however, as the product did sell and the customers who bought it would buy nothing else.

A basket spend analysis also revealed that our small but loyal Kensitas Club customers typically spent in excess of £5.40 on incremental purchases alongside their cigarettes.

So, just like other retailers across Scotland, it was with a mixture of excitement and nervousness that we overnight slashed the price of the brand from £10.55 all the way down

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to £7.65. We also added in the new Superkings variant on the same day, immediately making both lines the cheapest available on the gantry.

OFF AND RUNNING Woodlands was lucky enough to get the new lines a little earlier than everyone else as brand owner JTI was keen to find out what the impact of the radical new strategy would be in-store. And at the end of the day, it’s for exploratory projects like this that SLR first bought the store, so we were more than happy to give the relaunched products a go.

Naturally, we shared the same concerns around the move as other retailers. Would the change in RSP simply wipe out cash margins? Or would the move drive greater sales

volumes and generate a net increase in cash profit? Would the change simply lead to customers switching from the previous cheapest brand to Kensitas Club and have no effect whatsoever?

Well, while the lines have only been in the store for a month, we are already able to discern some early trends – and the great news, from our point of view as retailers, is that those trends are uniformly positive.

THE RESULTS First up, sales volumes of Kensitas Club King Size grew from week one, as you might expect from the cheapest product on the gantry. Comparing sales with the previous month, the total uplift in unit sales was 76 packs, a 316.6% increase. More interestingly,

KENSITAS CLUB IN WOODLANDS: The first four weeks KING SIZE UNIT SALES Week 1: 16 (6)* week 2: 23 (5) Week 3: 28 (7) Week 4: 33 (6) TOTAL: 100 (24) CHANGE: +316.6% SUPERKINGS UNIT SALES Week 1: 11 Week 2: 16 Week 3: 18 Week 4: 18 TOTAL: 63 *Same week previous month in brackets

www.slrmag.co.uk

16/03/2018 12:31:40

Kensitas Club Relaunch | Woodlands Local

Inside Business

317%

Monthly increase in sales grew week-on-week for all four weeks of the sales of King Size first month – so it will be interesting to see where they finally level out. variant The new Superkings variant also grew reasonably quickly from a standing start and now sits at around 18 packs a week, which doesn’t seem bad at all for a brandnew product.

This all sounds like great news, but what was the impact on the rest of the category? While there are many factors at play, our unit sales for the entire cigarette category grew by 111 last month. It’s not an enormous leap in the great scheme of things – Units sold of new around 30 packs a week – and we certainly can’t put Superkings variant all of the growth down to Kensitas Club, but selling an extra 30 packs a week is not something we’re about to sniff at, particularly when incremental spend is added on top.

Ultimately the figure we are interested in is cash profit and the very encouraging news is that in a declining category, we added just under £50 to our cash profit from cigarette sales last month. Again, we can’t put all that down to sales of Kensitas Club but there’s no question that the brand played its part.

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SALES SUPPORT It’s worth noting that under current legislation there is very little that we could do in-store to communicate the relaunch of Kensitas Club and the introduction of the new Superkings variants to our customers, short of updating the price list on the gantry. There’s no question however that many customers did notice the price unaided by our staff.

It’s also certainly true that the fact that the lines are the cheapest on the gantry helped drive trial and sales. “What’s the cheapest fags you’ve got?” must be the commonest question we get from customers buying cigarettes.

Kerry Holstead, one of the team at Woodlands Local, commented: “We obviously get a lot of people asking www.slrmag.co.uk

SLR March 2018.indd 41

111 Unit increase in monthly sales of cigarettes

£50 Increase in cash margin from category

what our cheapest cigarettes are so that gave us the chance to highlight the change in RSP for Kensitas Club. I was surprised though by the amount of people who then asked if it was ‘the same Kensitas Club’ as they were clearly surprised that a pack of cigarettes that used to be the best part of £11 was now just £7.65. After I reassured them, they invariably bought them.”

And what about our existing Kensitas Club customers? Kerry again: “Well, the customers that were already buying the brand were obviously delighted to hear that they had been cut in price so much. Some of them even made a point of buying other things as well because they expected to be spending £11 anyway!”

WHAT’S NEXT? The success of the relaunch in the store and current sales figures mean that we will definitely retain the two lines.

What is likely to be most interesting is where sales go over the next few months once things settle down. We will report back in subsequent issues of SLR and share the longer-term impact on the wider tobacco category of the rebirth of Kensitas Club – but the report card so far must read “so far, so good”.

The results also made enjoyable reading for Andy Stevens, JTI Head of Sales, who said: “Kensitas Club is an iconic brand and most existing adult smokers will be aware of its incredible heritage and superior quality.

We were confident that the new lower RSP offers existing adult smokers a unique combination of a premium tobacco experience and a great value price – so we’re naturally pleased to see that borne out in Woodlands Local.

“We remain dedicated to providing retailers with a competitive product range, in line with market trends, and are confident that the drop in RSP along with the introduction of Superkings to the Kensitas Club portfolio will help retailers drive incremental sales, just as it has done in Woodlands Local.”

MARCH 2018 | SLR

16/03/2018 12:31:41

Inside Business

Woodlands Local | Starburst Gum Launch

STARBURST ENTERS GUM MARKET

WOODLANDSlocal

As part of the latest project with our gum and sugar confectionery partners Mars Wrigley Confectionery, Woodlands Local hosted a launch event recently where customers tried out new Starburst Chewing Gum, a launch that could add £15m to the category.

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BY ANTONY BEGLEY

W

hen it comes to gum, Mars Wrigley Confectionery (as the formally merged company is now known) is by far and away the biggest player in the marketplace.

Being so dominant does, however, come with a responsibly to lead from the front and help develop the category, so it was great news recently to hear that the company has decided to bring its gum and candy expertise together in the shape of new Starburst Chewing Gum. Even better news for retailers is that Mars Wrigley estimates the launch will grow the category by around £15m over the next three years.

Available now, the sugarfree range bridges the gap between gum and candy and includes Starburst Fruity Mixies, Starburst Strawberry Cubes and Starburst Red Berry Sticks.

Woodlands Local was lucky enough to get its hands on a few outers to try out some sampling instore among our shoppers to see what they made of what Mars Wrigley is calling an innovative “candy-like experience”. The response, as you can see, was extremely positive and bodes well for future sales.

Designed to tap into a new chewing consumption occasion, Starburst Chewing Gum is available in three traditionally popular flavours: Strawberry, Apple and Bubblegum. Starburst Fruity Mixies recreates tastes that consumers are already familiar with from the confectionery category. It is available in a 24 Fruity Mixies small pack, a 48 Fruity Mixies handybox and 100 Fruity Mixies bottles.

Launched alongside these are soft gum Starburst Red Berry Sticks (5s) and Starburst Strawberry Cubes (30s).

Driving the launches is TGI research showing that over the last 10 years the gum category has seen a 20% decline in penetration from the younger generation. Starburst Chewing Gum has been created to appeal to the 15–24 year old segment, where fruit gum significantly over indexes. Mars Wrigley expects the launches to increase gum penetration by 3%.

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What Woodlands’ customers thought (clockwise from top): Liam: “I don’t often use chewing gum because I’m not really into minty flavours but I really like these. They’re nice and strong flavoured and are really lively in your mouth. Yes, I’d definitely buy them” Callum: “They’re not what I was expecting – although I’m not sure what I was expecting! They’re really sort of zingy in your mouth and they do actually remind me of Starburst. I think they make a nice change from minty gum, although I do buy Extra quite a lot. It’s nice to see something new coming out.”

Craig: “I love Starburst so these are right up my street. I take it you’re meant to mix the different flavours in the tub up to create new ‘cocktails’? I really like them and they’re a bit different, so why not?”

STARBURST CHEWING GUM: THE FULL RANGE Q Starburst Chewing Gum Fruity Mixes: 49p RSP (24 pellets per pack) Q Starburst Chewing Gum Fruity Mixes Handybox: £1 RSP (48 pellets per pack) Q Starburst Chewing Gum Fruity Mixes Bottle: £2 RSP (100 pellets per pack) Q Starburst Chewing Gum Red Berry Sticks: 49p RSP (5 sticks per pack)

www.slrmag.co.uk

16/03/2018 12:31:43

For greater openness, face-to-face lobbying must be registered.

If you lobby MSPs, members of the Scottish Government, Special Advisers or Permanent Secretary then you need to know more before 12 March 2018.

LOBBYING REGISTER | CLÀR-COITEACHAIDH

www.lobbying.scot SLR March 2018.indd 43

16/03/2018 12:31:43

Hotlines

Product News & Media Watch

Galaxy Chocolate Mousse Cake Coppenrath & Wiese Mars Chocolate Drinks and Treats has added Galaxy Chocolate Mousse Cake to its frozen desserts range. The cake, which serves six, has a chocolate biscuit base which is layered with two flavours of chocolate mousse and topped with Galaxy milk chocolate drops. It is available this month with an RSP of £3. The range frozen desserts range also includes Mars Mud Pie, Maltesers Pavlova and Twix Cheesecake.

Starburst gives fans something to chew over

Snickers/M&M’s Milk Drinks SHS Mars Chocolate Drinks and Treats has extended its Milk Drinks range with the addition of M&M’s Peanut and Snickers 350ml variants. Both are available now from SHS in £1.29 price-marked packs. The flavoured milks category is worth more than £320m, and increasing at 6% year-on-year.

Mars said its PMP range continued to prove popular with both retailers and consumers.

Fruit Shoot Juiced Britvic Juiced is a 50:50 blend of juice and water, sweetened only with real fruit, and school-approved. The range includes three variants – Apple & Pear, Strawberry & Raspberry and Orange & Pineapple – all available now in multipacks of six 200ml bottles. A £3.5m Fruit Shoot marketing campaign kicks-off at the end of March.

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Bridging the gap between Gum and Confectionery, Mars Wrigley Confectionery has unveiled sugarfee Starburst Chewing Gum. Starburst Fruity Mixies, Starburst Strawberry Cubes and Starburst Red Berry Sticks are all sugar-free and available now.

The launch is aimed at the 15 to 24-year-old audience, where fruit gum significantly over-indexes.

Hero SKU Starburst Fruity Mixies offers three different flavours in each pack: Strawberry, Apple and Bubblegum. Available in 24-pellet small pack, 48-pellet handybox and 100-pellet bottle formats, the

McVitie’s Digestives Banoffee Slices pladis The latest addition to the McVitie’s Digestives Slices range taps into Britain’s love of cakes based on classic desserts, apparently.

Available now, a pack of five McVities Digestives Banoffee Slices RSPs at £1.50, while a snack-size five-pack has an RSP of £1. A pladis spokesperson said: “We’re confident this sweet treat will be a winner with consumers everywhere!”

range hits three key price points – 49p RSP, £1 RSP and £2 RSP respectively.

Packs of 30 Strawberry Cubes also RSP at £2, while a five-pack of Red Berry Sticks weighs in at 49p RSP. These give Starburst fans the opportunity to taste two of the brand’s top-performing flavours in a sugar-free format.

The launch is supported by a comprehensive marketing campaign. A wide range of POS material is available to retailers including till point, at fixture and front of store branding. In-store product trials and social media activity are also taking place.

Kinder superhero eggs Ferrero Ferrero’s latest Kinder Surprise ‘heroic-coloured’ eggs contain DC Superhero Girls and Justice League toys. The 20g eggs are available until the end of April and carry an RSP of 92p. A range of POS including FSDUs is available from www.yourperfectstore.co.uk.

The launch is backed by a £1.7m marketing campaign.

McVitie’s Jaffa Cakes Pocket Packs pladis This new format caters to the increasing demand from young adults for on-the-go consumption.

Individual pocket packs contain three cakes in easy-to-carry packaging and are sold in multipacks of six with an RSP of £1.79. Kerry Owens, pladis UK & Ireland Marketing Director for Sweet, said the new product “provided a convenient solution for portion control, portability as well as long-lasting freshness.”

www.slrmag.co.uk

16/03/2018 12:31:45

Product News & Media Watch M&M’s Crispy Spread SHS

Wine Gums Mocktails Mondelez

Mars Chocolate Drinks and Treats has added M&M’s Crispy Spread to its ever-increasing chocolate spreads line-up. The new product, which features M&M’s Crispy inclusions, is available to retailers now in a 350g glass jar format. It forms part of a new familysized range which also includes Galaxy and Maltesers Spreads. All three carry an RSP of £2.79.

Maynards Bassetts has shaken up its Wine Gums range with new non-alcoholic Wine Gums Mocktails, available now in a 130g hanging bag (RSP £1.32), as well as a 165g £1 price-marked pack. Both contain Strawberry Daiquiri, Pina Colada and Cuba Libre jelly sweets.

Mondelez hopes to drive incremental sales within the Younger Adults segment of the market with the launch.

Big Hoops Spicy Chilli KP Snacks The latest Big Hoops variant capitalises on the growing popularity of hot and spicy flavours among consumers. Spicy Chilli flavour is available as an 87.4g sharing-sized £1 PMP and a 50g grab bag. The launch follows a strong year for Hula Hoops. Following KP’s £4m investment into the brand in 2017, it has seen 14% growth, with Big Hoops up 63% yearon-year.

Pot Pasta Tomatoey Mozzarella Unilever The launch of Pot Pasta Tomatoey Mozzarella (RSP £1.39) forms part of a £2m marketing investment in the Pot Noodle brand. The new variant is backed by a media campaign that includes 75 million social media impressions including a Snapchat lens, 40 million out-of-home views, proximity mobile alerts around target stores, and the brand’s largest-ever sampling campaign.

MEDIAwatch

Hotlines



Irn-Bru in soapy bubble?

The Advertising Standards Authority has already received complaints about the two new Irn-Bru adverts, which advise viewers “Don’t be a can’t, be a can”, making what appears to be a provocative play on the c-word. The ads were made by Barr’s longterm partners-in-crime the Leith Agency, which was also behind 2012’s ‘Fanny’ campaign.

Flavour calls. Again.

The McCoy’s Chips ‘When Flavour Calls’ advert is back on TV in a £1.5m campaign.

The ad is supported by digital and shopper activity. Set in a seaside fish and chip shop, the advert’s protagonist attracts some unwelcome attention from a gang of seagulls after trying McCoy’s Chips. This, after getting a phone call from the mysterious ‘Flavour’.

Another Absurdly Good Tyrrells ad The second advert in Tyrrells’ Absurdly Good campaign showcases the brand’s Best Ever recipes and runs until May on TV and video-on-demand as part of a £2m marketing spend. Centred around Tyrrell’s most popular flavours, the ad features the brand’s on-pack characters hunting the cheese used in the crisps’ production.

Egg hunt bunny back on box KitKat Senses Nestlé

Rubicon Stills Barr Soft Drinks

KitKat Senses offers 20 individuallywrapped bite-size chocolates in three different flavours: hazelnut, double chocolate and salted caramel. A mixed box, which contains all three flavours, and a hazelnut-only box are both available now, RSP £3.99. The launch is supported by a £7m campaign across 2018, including a new TV ad as well as sampling to drive trial and social media activity.

The relaunch of Barr’s exotic juice drink brand, sees reformulated Regular flavours and NAS Light & Fruity Mango sit beside a new Deluxe range. A £5m marketing campaign includes outdoor advertising, nationwide sampling, on-pack promotions and social media activity.

The Cadbury Easter bunny has returned to TV screens in the run-up to Easter, encouraging the nation to take part in egg hunts. Running until April 1, the ad sees the bunny haring across the country, hiding Cadbury eggs everywhere. The 30-second advert will feature during primetime shows like Coronation Street and Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway.

McCain chases couples McCain’s latest advert in its ‘We Are Family’ campaign follows eight couples during everyday moments and highlights how they interact with one another over meal-time.

It is particularly targeted at two-person adult households and is the first time McCain’s chilled range has featured on TV. The £3.2m multi-channel campaign airs for six weeks.

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

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Feature

Price-Marked Packs

MAKING SURE THE PRICE IS RIGHT Making the very best use of price-marked packs to drive cash profit means understanding when to make use of them – and when to avoid them.

BY ANTONY BEGLEY

P

rice-marked packs (PMPs) have a major role to play in retail these days, of that there is little doubt. But it’s wrong to flatly assume that the more PMP lines you can cram into your store the better. Losing control of pricing means losing control of cash margin and losing control of cash margin is something that all local retailers want to avoid.

Our experience in Woodlands Local tells us that PMPs invariably come at a cost. All those £1 bags of crisps and £1 hanging bags of confectionery are all well and good, but when the cost price rises, the only loser is the retailer. The manufacturer tends to maintain its margin, as does the wholesaler, while the customer still benefits from that falselycapped price at the till. The only one taking a hit is the retailer.

So making best use of PMPs relies on understanding when they are most effective – and when they are best avoided. Remember, the principle here is that the PMP mechanism should drive up sales volumes (compared with plain packs) and those increased volumes should more than compensate for the lost cash margin per unit sold. So, if volumes don’t rise sufficiently then the retailer loses out.

One valid use of PMPs is to drive up impulse sales – sales that were unplanned and wouldn’t have happened otherwise – and two of the key impulse categories are Gum and Sugar Confectionery.

Dan Newell, Confections Marketing Manager at Wrigley, says: “More than twothirds of shoppers buy price-marked packs in convenience stores [HIM, 2015] as competitive pricing will encourage impulse sales. As well as offering good value, PMPs help retailers build a sense of confidence and trust with shoppers, with half saying PMPs

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KEY PMP INSIGHTS FROM KP SNACKS Q 82% of retailers say they must stock PMPs to stay competitive Q 83% of retailers say PMPs sell faster than non-PMPs Q 59% of retailers say they are more likely to stock NPD with a PMP Q One-third of shoppers believe PMPs are cheaper Q 57% of shoppers want PMPs on crisps and snacks [Source: HIM, 2016]

TETLEY’S ADVICE ON WHEN TO USE PMPS Q To assess the benefit of price-marked packs retailers should ask: Q Do I need to offer this product as a PMP? Q Does the price mark give me a cost advantage at all?

Q Could my customer profile be charged more than the price mark?

Q Would a PMP erode the sense of a “treat” buy that comes from a higher value item like a premium tea?

reassure them that they are not being overcharged [HIM, 2013].

Following the successful launch of £1 PMP hanging bags and a new range of PMPs across its Skittles (55g) and Starburst (45g) singles formats, Wrigley is looking to continue to grow the gum category with the launch of its £2 PMP Extra sugarfree gum 46 pellet bottle across its best-selling core flavours, Peppermint and Spearmint.

An exclusive format for convenience, the PMP bottle will help to improve rate of sale, as purchase intent in the gum

category has been shown to significantly decline when priced above £2.

Another category where PMPs have a clear role to play in driving significant volume growth is crisps and snacks. Matt Collins, Sales Director for Convenience and Wholesale at KP Snacks, the company behind McCoy’s, says: “Crisps and Snacks remains a vital category within the convenience sector, with 82% of shoppers buying them on impulse [HIM, 2016]. £1 PMP ranges are growing at +15.3% versus non-PMP formats at -2.9% [Nielsen, Nov 2017].”

Collins notes that KP Snacks is seeing demand for PMP formats remain strong as they provide shoppers with value, while highlighting that the company also continues to offer a comprehensive range of non-PMPs to give retailers choice.

He adds: “Our £1 PMP range is outperforming the category (+24%) and this success can be attributed to the strength of our brands as well as the right format [Nielsen, Nov 2017]. Our 39p PMP singles range is also growing ahead of the overall format at +22% and includes all-time favourites: Discos, Wheat Crunchies, Frisps and Skips.”

One less obvious category where PMPs can build sales and profits is Tea. Brett Grimshaw, Business Sector Controller Convenience and Out of Home for Tetley, comments: “PMPs are most important in high volume segments like every day teas and decaf where they help retailers demonstrate that they offer value, so help drive volume sales. A carefully chosen PMP like Tetley 160s at £3.99 can help retailers compete with larger stores in their area.”

Grimshaw also highlights that it’s vital PMPs are used carefully and considered as part of a wider mix of activity.

He says: “It’s about getting the balance right between offering the right price mark to encourage higher volume sales of essential products, and still leaving space for higher value lines which deliver greater margin sales and don’t necessarily need to be sold as a price mark.” www.slrmag.co.uk

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Forecourts

Feature

FORECOURT SECTOR FULL SPEED AHEAD The pace of innovation and change within the forecourt sector in recent years has been phenomenal, with the recent £1.2bn acquisition of MRH the latest signal that the sector is in the midst of rapid evolution.

PAUL DEARY

Head of Food Services, MFG

PAUL DENNIS Retail Director, MFG

MICHAEL O’LOUGHLIN

Managing Director, Business Development, MFG

PAUL YATES

Regional Accounts Manager Scotland, JET

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I

f proof was needed that the forecourt sector is in a transformational period, then the recent £1.2bn monster takeover of MRH by Motor Fuel Group (MFG) should provide it. MRH was, up until that point, the UK’s largest petrol station and convenience retail operator and the move saw MFG leapfrog into top spot (by number of sites) and second spot in terms of fuel volumes sold.

Combined, the enlarged company will run over 900 sites, predominantly companyowned and franchisee-operated, and manage third-party fuel, convenience, and foodservice brands. These include household name fuel brands like BP, Esso, JET, Murco, Shell and Texaco as well as retail brands such as Budgens, Costa Coffee, Greggs, Spar and Subway, as well as the MRH-owned brand, Hursts.

On a combined basis, MFG and MRH sold approximately 3.6 billion litres of fuel in 2017.

The deal is expected to be finalised in the second quarter of 2018, subject to customary regulatory approvals.

The acquisition is potentially more good news too for Booker, the company who currently can do no wrong, as it signed a

wholesale supply agreement to supply 370 MRH outlets in December.

Alasdair Locke, Chairman of MFG, will remain Chairman of the combined business while former Tesco boss Sir Terry Leahy will continue to serve on the board of directors and chair the Executive Committee of the Board.

Locke comments: “This is a transformational milestone for both companies that we believe will make us an even stronger partner for fuel brands and retail customers seeking convenient foodservice options.

“We are excited to welcome the MRH team, who share a commitment to growth and innovation, as we work together to consolidate a highly-fragmented market and continue our expansion of retail offerings across the combined estate.”

MFG had perhaps been signalling its future intentions over recent months with a number of high level appointments to bolster its retail and food-to-go offers, with Head of Food Services Paul Deary and MD for Business Development Michael O’Loughlin both joining from rival operator Applegreen.

New Retail Director Paul Dennis was also brought on board, after stints with Sainsbury’s, Asda and Conviviality Retail. www.slrmag.co.uk

16/03/2018 12:31:52

Forecourts

Feature

One thing that was made clear during the acquisition was an acceptance that the keys to success in the forecourt sector today are, firstly, providing customer-focused convenience and, secondly but not less importantly, creating food-to-go hubs for local communities. MRH had made a habit of getting both of these areas of their business right which clearly made them an attractive target.

Indeed, Locke explicitly referred to his desire to create “a unified offering from both estates that will offer customers the best forecourt, shop and ‘food to go’ experience in the market today”. Whether or not MFG achieves those aims, only time will tell, but the acquisition reflects a new dynamism and energy that is evident throughout the forecourt sector in Scotland and across the UK. And MFG is not the only company showing itself keen to grow the market. A guaranteed footfall driver, fuel sales are now viewed more as a way of bringing shoppers into the store than as the core revenue maker of the business. Shoppers are increasingly expectant of finding a full convenience offering when they visit a forecourt.

Managed well, a good forecourt offers the best of both worlds, as indeed Locke alludes to www.slrmag.co.uk

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Feature

Forecourts

above. In today’s market, the goal is no longer simply to meet modern shopper expectations – it is to exceed them through creativity, innovation, technology, great service, world class convenience and a deep understanding of consumers’ needs.

IN GOOD HEALTH In another indication of the health of the forecourt sector, Christie & Co’s annual overview of the marketplace reported in upbeat fashion that the forecourt market “continues to evolve and bloom”. The report states that of the 8,459 UK petrol stations, 68% are now in the hands of independent dealers and the top five groups own 28% between them.

Steve Rodell, Christie’s Managing Director for Retail, comments: “Forecourt and convenience retail deals did not waver in the slightest during 2017, despite so much uncertainty being peddled in the press. In fact our Retail team sold 29% more businesses than the previous year.

“The forecourt market continues to evolve and bloom, delivering consistent growth over the past three years. In one of the most active periods we have seen, we transacted or valued almost a quarter of UK independently owned and operated petrol stations in 2017 – more than ever before.”

Rodell says that for some owners, the value of their forecourt is the highest they’ve seen.

Some took advantage of increased demand from a wide pool of buyers and this meant prices achieved last year were consistently strong, and he believes this is likely to continue through 2018.

This is largely the result of strong trading fundamentals supported by year-on-year growth shown in trading records. Good quality on-site property, healthy fuel margins and burgeoning convenience operations all combine to make forecourts an attractive proposition, especially in the current low interest rate environment.

While the supermarkets remain the largest operators, there hasn’t been much change in the number of supermarket sites as the major grocers halted their plans to open large stores with fuel in the face of the expanding portfolios of discounters Aldi and Lidl. This has been good news for independents who in general no longer have to fear the arrival of supermarket fuel prices and the prospect of lost business.

Rodell again: “Independent retailers have considerably more sites but average just two to three million litres a year and are focussed on improving non-fuel sales. The oil companies, of which only BP and Shell remain in any size, sell around four to five million litres a year per site.

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“Private equity houses have invested in three of the five biggest groups in recent years and they have grown further by acquiring other independents which has fuelled group deal activity. High volume single site deals were also a significant feature of 2017 as those owners that tested the water were pleasantly surprised by the prices achieved, usually after competitive bidding.”

Rodell also predicted that “there will undoubtedly be further consolidation going forward” and was proven correct by the MFG deal shortly afterwards, although his prediction that “the next step for MRH appears to be flotation” proved slightly less accurate.

as those recently introduced by Shell and BP that allow customers to pay for fuel in advance, as well as a rollout of wi-fi and more electric charging points.

“Getting the forecourt mix right and offering a better experience will bring more customers who are likely to dwell longer and spend more.”

All of which dovetails nicely with the experience of the major forecourt operators in Scotland and across the UK: an improved convenience offer, more focus on food to go, better innovation and increased use of technology.

MORE THAN JUST FUEL

Christie & Co believes the announcement last July that the Government is committed to banning the sale of all new diesel and petrol cars by 2040 is unlikely to have any short-

Sean Russell, Director of Marketing at Costcutter Supermarkets Group, agrees on these key tenets of modern forecourt retailing: “Forecourt retailing is much more than just fuel. A large percentage of customers shopping in forecourt stores arrive on foot, so

term impact on forecourts, although it may cause those 24% of landlords who have a long-term lease in place to look more closely at the future of their investment.

The report does end however on the observation that “independent operators are more than likely to adapt and evolve”.

Rodell concludes: “With comparatively low margins on fuel, many operators are focussed on expanding their retail business to attract more customers into the shop. Last year the total value of forecourt convenience sales was around £4bn. Around 3,500 petrol stations now have a symbol-branded or national chain convenience store and many now also have branded food to go operations such as Subway, Greggs and various well-known coffee brands.

“This is very much seen as the long-term solution to the inevitable decline in fuel sales that will come on the back of alternative fuelled vehicles. On the technology side, we expect to see a growing number of apps, such

they need to be leading convenience providers combining impulse, food-to-go and a wider grocery offer.

“As one of the largest forecourt retailers in the UK, we have a dedicated forecourt team who work with retailers to develop stores that meet the varying needs of the diverse forecourt store customer base. All our retailers benefit from expert advice and support and pioneering technology systems to help them run their business more efficiently and effectively.”

Russell cites the successful rollout of the company’s Shopper First programme as an important development of Costcutter’s strategy of combining local shopper insights with an engaging brand programme to drive significant sales growth for retailers.

He says: “We have also embarked on a new supply relationship with the Co-op, which goes live shortly, and will see us combine our in-depth understanding of the independent convenience sector with the wholesale scale

CAUSE FOR CONCERN

www.slrmag.co.uk

16/03/2018 12:31:55

O T D E T T I M M CO

S R E L I A T E OUR R SINCE 1977

COMMITTED TO GREAT PRICING, AVAILABILITY & DELIVERY “We’re now trading under the Nisa Local banner and the store has been fitted out to the Store of the Future 2 format, which has gone really well. We decided it had to be Nisa.

The chilled and frozen range were what really did it for us - it’s immense. But also, the Heritage range is great.

For the refurbishment we closed for two weeks, but Nisa really did everything for us.

They arranged the shopfitters and popped in every day to make sure things were going well. They said it would take two weeks, and it did.”

They said it would take two weeks, and it did.

Barry Chandi, Nisa Local, Buckden, St Neots

Join the family... visit www.join-nisa.co.uk SLR March 2018.indd 53 14647_NISA_TradePress_Barry Chandi_2017_A4_AW01.indd 1

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Feature

Forecourts

and expertise of the Co-op to create the best possible offer for forecourt and independent retailers.

“The rollout of the Shopper First Programme is gathering pace with dozens of stores now being transformed with the new Costcutter brand. Our shopper persona dashboards are providing valuable insights to help retailers make the right investments to meet local shopper demand and drive increased footfall.”

One of the company’s most recent stores in Scotland to be transformed was Ord Filling Station in Muir of Ord which underwent a £100k-plus refit in December. As well as a complete store re-design, in-depth research was also carried out amongst the shopper base to truly understand habits and needs.

Russell comments: “The store now boasts an extensive range of convenience products and services including more chilled and hot food-to-go, an extended beer, wine and spirits offer including specialist craft ales, local malts and gin, along with a comprehensive range of Scottish-sourced produce, including fresh meat, dairy and bread.

“As a direct result of the changes and invaluable shopper insights, sales have increased by 40% and footfall figures have grown from 1,700 to 2,700 per week.”

VITAL INSIGHTS Shopper insight is also where research agency HIM makes its living and a recent forecourt report from the company highlighted some vital insights into the transformation of forecourts in very recent times and, critically, picked out some of the similarities and some of the differences between forecourt and “standard” convenience shoppers.

The report says: “Long gone are the days of forecourts simply being a place to fill up on fuel, but rather now position themselves as for some being the most convenient shop in direct competition with traditional convenience stores.

“With the majority of shoppers visiting a forecourt by car, forecourts have the opportunity to tap into a customer base that convenience stores often can’t due to being located in city centres or main roads with no parking available.”

The report highlights 2005 as the “revolution” year for shoppers’ perceptions on the very purpose of a forecourt. Following M&S partnering with BP, shoppers began to treat a forecourt as a “normal” convenience store, and as a result were more prepared to do a “normal” shop, says the report.

However, one major realisation the industry has had recently is how differently a shopper behaves in a forecourt compared to a standalone convenience store. The 56

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Forecourts

report cites Booker’s 2015 acquisition of 300 Costcutter forecourts for the Londis brand as a watershed moment which led Booker to create a dedicated forecourt retailing team.

“It is important,” says the report, “not only for retailers, but also for suppliers to understand that forecourts are now not seen as petrol stations, but rather as a convenience store that also sells petrol. As a result, this has vastly opened up the opportunity for food suppliers to have a better offering in forecourts that appeals specifically to convenience forecourt shoppers compared to the standalone convenience shopper.”

The rush of convenience multiples to jump into bed with other forecourt partners is evidence of this with food to go being the standout opportunity. According to HIM research, the main mission/reason for many shoppers visiting a forecourt is no longer to buy fuel, but rather to purchase food to go.

But that doesn’t mean that the basics of convenience retail can be ignored. Before retailers and suppliers even begin to consider their ranging, pricing, promotions and so on, says the report, ensuring shoppers are being drawn to visit their forecourt in the first place is essential.

The latest HIM research shows that “friendly and helpful staff” is the main factor in driving shoppers to store. Therefore, although shoppers inevitably are going to want a good range of products and good prices, what is really important to them is the in-store experience.

UNDERSTANDING THE CUSTOMER And it’s all well and good getting a shopper to visit a particular forecourt once. But driving that shopper to repeatedly return is what makes a successful store. By understanding what is important to a shopper and ensuring that shopper is satisfied, retailers can aim to prevent a customer choosing to shop elsewhere by meeting their expectations on what a forecourt should offer and provide.

HIM’s research revealed that forecourt shoppers rate product availability the fourth most important factor, with the top three all relating to in-store experience. This again emphasises that shoppers are ever demanding, no longer simply wanting products but rather seeking an overall experience in-store.

But it won’t pay to forget about those fuel sales, says Paul Yates, Regional Accounts Manager Scotland at JET: “Yes, current market conditions are creating an environment where ambitious independent forecourt dealers can thrive – as long as they understand the changing needs of the consumer and deliver on those expectations.

“And while there is a huge emphasis at the moment on brand partnerships and forecourts www.slrmag.co.uk

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becoming convenience destinations – and many are – our research nonetheless shows that 70% of consumers simply want to fuel quickly and efficiently.

“Offering consumers a bright and welcoming image, high quality pumps and well-maintained forecourt facilities is vital. Being able to consistently offer a firstclass consumer experience is also key to developing customer loyalty – regardless of store size. Our research suggests that as long as consumers can fill up with high quality fuel and grab a coffee and a decent snack in a clean and friendly environment, then a forecourt will meet most expectations. So, rather than feeling dispirited, those Scottish dealers who have small sites and shops on small plots of land should feel heartened that not every site can be a convenience destination and not every consumer wants or expects this from their local filling station.”

ONE SIZE FITS ALL? All of which means that the previously dominant “one size fits all” approach is no longer an option for forecourts. Tailored activity for every site is an absolute must, as is a modern approach to customer engagement and promotional activity that goes way beyond the blunt tools that have historically been employed in the forecourt sector.

“We know that a ‘one size fits all’ approach simply doesn’t work for dealers and that’s certainly the case with promotions,” says Anne Day, Brand Communications Manager at JET. “Our aim is to give our dealers choices as they are much closer to their customers than we are and know what will and won’t appeal to their customer demographic.

“By taking a different approach to consumer engagement and getting closer to consumers, we’ve been able to address the challenge that fuel companies and forecourt owners face in driving brand awareness and highlighting promotions or campaigns beyond the forecourt. Using digital channels and novel advertising outlets has enabled us to reach new audiences.”

That fresh approach was born out of independent research commissioned by JET which “unveiled a clear opportunity to change perceptions of the brand, build brand awareness and tap in to the potential under45s market by getting closer to them”.

Off the back of these findings, JET spent over a year rolling out a raft of consumer engagement activities with the main emphasis on off-site activities to capture new consumers.

The results have been extremely positive.

During a promotion for Amazon, for example, volumes across JET’s network rose by an average 2% compared to the preceding

Feature

period and the top 10% of sites had a volume increase of 4%.

When JET ran an advertising campaign on Waze (the world’s largest community-based traffic and navigation app), it reached over 800,000 Waze users in the UK, with 26,000 of those proactively engaging with the JET advert and 6,000 clicking through to the final element of the app where they were given directions to their nearest JET forecourt. The adverts on Waze resulted in £61k worth of fuel purchases and one JET site saw a 22.5% increase in fuel sales during the three-month trial period.

JET has since continued to advertise through Waze and the results are proving even more encouraging, with over 23 million impressions, 43,057 advert clicks and 15,281 direct navigations to a JET site in the period from June to the end of September 2017.

“I think the key to the success of our consumer engagement has been making it very highly targeted,” adds Day. By capturing consumer data through a number of elements in its integrated consumer engagement initiative, JET can now deliver highly-targeted consumer marketing and communications in the future.”

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Feature

Frozen

RECORD NUMBERS WARMING TO FROZEN Frozen is a category that just keeps growing with the latest figures up 6% on the previous year, so it’s one worth keeping on top of in-store.

A

fter a period in the relative wilderness, frozen food is back in favour with customers across Scotland and the rest of the UK. The retail frozen food sector finished last year on another high, maintaining the impressive growth that saw it pass the £6bn milestone for the first time ever in 2017.

Statistics from Kantar Worldpanel for the year to December 3, 2017 show that the value of sales was up 6.1% and volume increased 2%, creating an additional £64m worth of value for the sector.

The star performing category was Savoury Food, up 8.8% in value, while Frozen Vegetables and Fish also recorded significant value growth of 7.2% and 6.7% respectively.

John Hyman, Chief Executive of the British Frozen Food Federation puts the growth down to an evolution of the perception of frozen among shoppers. He says: “The growth is in part due to the continuing premiumisation of frozen food and a growing awareness by consumers that frozen can be as good as – or better – quality than fresh and is often superior value.

“Consumers are much more tuned-in to the benefits of frozen food including waste reduction, convenience and health, and are discovering the breadth of choice in highquality, on-trend products that are available to them with little preparation at home.

Increasingly, consumers are choosing the premium products on offer in the freezer to try and replicate restaurant quality food at home, and this has contributed to this value milestone.”

One consumer shift that is certainly helping to expand the Frozen category is the ever-increasing interest in meat-free foods, with Quorn the leading beneficiary and the number one meat-free brand. Quorn is now worth £175m, growing at 12.8% [IRI/Kantar, Jan 2018]. This is of particular interest to local retailers, as the company has launched a range of five frozen PMP products exclusively for the convenience channel.

Quorn’s core frozen range is price-marked at £2.49 and comprises Crispy Nuggets, Sausages, Burgers, Mince and Quorn Pieces.

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THE MEAT-FREE OPPORTUNITY Q Meat-free shoppers spend up to five times as much in-store as non-meat-free shoppers [Kantar / IRI, Nov 2017] Q Meat-free is bought by almost 10.2 million shoppers [Kantar / IRI, Jan 2018] Q 80% of category shoppers are meat reducers [Kantar 2017]

MCCAIN MERCHANDISING TIPS Use POS around the store to drive shoppers to the freezer In the height of winter, use impulse freezers to showcase frozen best sellers Make sure your frozen range offers variety and choice rather than duplication Use POS to bring meal occasions to life, such as recipe ideas and enticing imagery Q Vertical block merchandising will help shoppers see the contents of your freezers Q Q Q Q

Quorn also caters for fast-growing shopper demand for gluten-free products, offering a 21-strong gluten-free range including bestselling frozen lines such as mince, burgers and sausages.

Also helping retailers cash in on the frozen boom is McCain, the UK’s largest manufacturer of frozen potato products since launching in Britain over 50 years ago.

McCain has maintained a value share at 51% and a volume share at 41% of the category, which is currently worth over £646m – showing that potato is crucial in driving footfall to the frozen aisle.

McCain Category Controller Naomi Tinkler, says: “Tapping into new consumer groups with innovative NPD is key to brand and category growth, and it is vital that ranges are relevant to today’s shoppers by offering a variety of products that reference the latest

food trends and feature interesting flavours, seasonings and cut types.

“Alongside this it’s also important for retailers to stock core range products that are firm family favourites. McCain’s pricemarked packs are key to driving growth and sales for family meal times, offering a variety of Chip and Fries options that are ideal for families with young children.”

McCain’s adult-focused range continues to drive penetration in the frozen potato category by tapping into a new audience which accounts for two-thirds of consumers.

With out-of-home dining growing in popularity with one- and two-person households, McCain launched Gastro Chips and Frozen Skin-On Fries in 2017 – both of which seek to replicate the flavour and taste on offer at restaurants, for consumers to enjoy at home. www.slrmag.co.uk

16/03/2018 12:32:01

ISN’T IT TIME

YOU MADE A

delicious difference to your sales?

With the UK’s No.1 meat free brand* • Quorn is the UK’s No.1 meat free brand, worth £175 million and growing at 12.8%*1 • 80% of category shoppers are meat reducers*2

• Meat free shoppers spend up to five times as much in-store as non meat-free shoppers*2

* Source; IRI 12we 14th Oct 17- Total UK Value Sales. *1 IRI & Kantar 52 w/e January 6 2018. *2 Kantar 2017.

Quorn is a nutritious protein source. Protein contributes to growth and maintenance of muscle mass.

STOCK UP ON SLR March 2018.indd 59

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Feature

Adult Snacking

SNACK ATTACK With 93% of people eating snacks and two-thirds of those doing so at least once a day, the adult snacking market is a key sales and profit driver for local retailers.

S

nacking remains a vital sales opportunity for retailers. According to HIM data from 2017, some 93% of people eat snacks, with 63% of those snacking at least once a day. A considerable 82% buy snacks on impulse and the food to go market is expected to grow to £41bn by 2020. The meal deal is vital to this: 46% of crisps, snacks and nuts are bought within some sort of meal deal, so a strong range offering variety to shoppers is crucial.

Scottish favourite Golden Wonder is offering retailers another tasty reason to stock its products with the launch of a new onpack promotion with Pizza Hut Restaurants, which runs from April 14 to June 23.

Matt Smith, Marketing Director of Golden Wonder, believes the tie-in will help the range grow in Scotland and appeal to a wider demographic. He says: “As there are prizes in every pack, which are worth much more than the price of the pack itself, we are anticipating greater uplift across the

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convenience sector and strong repeat purchase.”

The promotion will be complemented by a heavyweight support campaign which includes TV advertising in Scotland from April 21 until June 1, as well as significant social media and public relations activity.

Also hitting the TV screens is key adult snacking brand McCoy’s. The McCoy’s Chips ‘When Flavour Calls’ ad returns in a £1.5m campaign throughout March, supported by digital and shopper activity.

The launch of Chips has contributed to the strength of the McCoy’s brand which is in double digit MAT growth of +11.3% and currently a £121m brand [Nielsen, Jan 2018].

This year McCoy’s Chips will offer better value for shoppers with an increase in the sharing bag pack size to 130g (RSP £1.50).

McCoy’s Chips are also available in 70g £1 PMPs and in multipacks of six 25g packs (RSP £1.99) and in three chip shop flavours: Salted, Salt & Vinegar and Curry Sauce.

Pot Noodle, the UK’s number one Instant Hot Snack brand, is expanding its successful Pot Pasta range by adding Tomatoey Mozzarella (RSP £1.39) to the range as part of a £2m marketing investment.

The launch is supported by a media campaign that will reach 88% of its target audience through 75 million social media impressions including a bespoke Snapchat lens, 40 million out-of-home views, proximity mobile alerts around target stores, and the brand’s biggest-ever sampling campaign.

Rustlers is another adult snacking brand currently enjoying a strong period, with shoppers turning to the UK’s best-selling micro snack like never before.

The combination of a distinctive flamegrilled taste, quick cook time, competitive pricing, and standout marketing support

is striking a chord with young adults who are an integral part of Rustlers core target market.

“It’s important for retailers to recognise Rustlers’ pulling power amongst young adults,” says Angela Daulby, UK Group Sales Director, Kepak Convenience Foods.

“Not only do 18 to 25-year-olds rank Rustlers as the number-one brand in its competitive set [TransgressiveX 2015], they are extremely brand loyal, with high repeat purchase rates.

This means that convenience and independent retailers can stock Rustlers in the knowledge that it will appeal to young adults who shop their stores in large numbers.

“As many young adults and students shop alone, looking for affordable, single-serve snacks and meals which suit their on-the-go lifestyle, brands such as Rustlers have a key role to play in attracting them to store.”

Kepak has broadened the appeal of Rustlers with the Rustlers Gourmet range, engaging a slightly older audience of 25 to 34-year-olds and tapping into the high street trend for gourmet burgers.

The Rustlers Gourmet ‘Classic’ and ‘BBQ’ burgers are both made with 100% beef and served in a brioche bun to meet demand for more sophisticated hot food to go options.

“Rustlers Gourmet Burgers provide the premium option that many young adults are now looking for in convenience, with eight out of 10 consumers interested in experiencing the gourmet burger trend at home,” adds Daulby.

KP Nuts is also delivering growth for local retailers in the snacking arena with sales up 4% in the last year. Catering to the needs of the convenience channel, the brand offers a £1 price-marked pack range – available across its Original Salted, Dry Roasted, Salt & Vinegar and Chilli variants – delivering 67% growth to the category. www.slrmag.co.uk

16/03/2018 12:32:03

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16/03/2018 12:32:06

UTC

FLAT EARTHERS RENT SHOP IN INVERNESS

Nothing gets UTC’s dander up more than the sight of a High Street with boarded-up shops. Nothing that is, except cranks with ridiculous beliefs intent on foisting them upon the rest of us.

Imagine his consternation last month then, when he was flicking through his copy of The Scotsman and learned

that Flat Earthers have rented a shop in Inverness.

The unsavoury bunch have taken the shop on in a bid to promote the theory that the world is not round. They clearly missed Ellon Musk’s recent adventures in space – and much of what has happened in the 20th century, but there you go. A

ABERDEEN COUNTRY ROCKERS GAGGED BY TABASCO While the auld yin loves a wee Ruby Murray of a Saturday evening and he can even stretch to a fiery burrito when the snow is deep and crisp and even, he has never quite managed to get to grips with Tabasco sauce. He claims it makes him gag, which brings us nicely to the tale of an Aberdeen country rock band – The Malpaso Gang – who have also been gagged by Tabasco, albeit in a slightly different way.

The band released a tribute song to Tabasco but promptly received a heated email from lawyers working on behalf of the US hot sauce manufacturer. Despite the fact the song was encouraging listeners to buy Tabasco, the email ordered the band not to make use of the Tabasco name, logo or bottle trademarks.

Guitarist Matt Duncan said: “Many of the country songs we sing are about unrequited love, but I never thought we would get rejected by a hot sauce.” And there’s not a lot we can add to that.

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SLR March 2018.indd 62

message on the shop window apparently says: “You’ve been lied to”.

Inverness West councillor Alex Graham diplomatically commented that “anything to boost occupancy of the several empty shops” was welcome but added that he did personally believe that the earth is round.

NEVER DRINK AND SHOP While UTC would never admit to having gone shopping while under the influence of alcohol, he was interested to discover that a lot of people do. A press release from price comparison site Finder UK quoted research into the allegedly very British tendency to shop while on the bevvy. Apparently Brits have spent an estimated £4.46bn on spontaneous drunk purchases.

(A stickler for research methodology, the auld yin did raise a sceptical steel woolly eyebrow when he learned that this finding was based on a study of just 2,000 Brits, but whatever.)

It turns out that almost half of the British adult population who regularly drink alcohol admit to making a purchase while under the influence – so that’s over 15 million Brits that have made drunk purchases. On average, these people allegedly spent £291.07 each, which admittedly seems remarkably high.

What where they buying drunk? Diamonds? Second-hand Ford Fiestas? Thai brides?

The survey also found that men appear to be blowing more on average than women – £364.72 v £213.41 – and those born after the year 2000 seem to be the most reckless generation with almost 60% admitting to drink buying.

UTC was last heard muttering something about “feckless young idiots” as he puttered off in his second-hand Ford Fiesta.

www.slrmag.co.uk

16/03/2018 12:32:09

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