SLR October 2020 edition.

OCTOBER 2020 | ISSUE 210

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JOHNSON BILL CLEARS FIRST HURDLE

Shopworker Protection Bill passes Stage 1 at Holyrood

JOHN PATTERSON Vaping up 12.6% after Menthol Ban

BAIJU JOSE

MFG Londis Bellshill in profile

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‘FIVER FRIDAY’

Boost for local retailers

$1BN NEWS DEAL

Google offers publishers $1bn

CHRISTMAS NPD The freshest festive confec

UWS CALLS IN THE BIO-FOGGERS AGAIN AS COVID CASES RISE

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October 2020

Contents

Contents ISSUE 210

NEWS P4 People Charles Wilson to leave Booker P5 Acquisitions Billionaire brothers buy Asda P6 Sustainability DRS prep steps up a gear P8 Discounters Aldi expansion gathers pace P10 News Extra Post Office Scottish Horizon cases investigated P16 Product News Party like a DJ with Relentless P20 Off-Trade News Grolsch swings back into the UK P24 Newstrade Google offers news publishers $1bn P26 Research Digest 80% of shoppers prepared to back high street.

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INSIDE BUSINESS P27 Menthol Ban Vaping grows 12.6% in wake of Ban. P28 Store Profile MFG Londis Bellshill Baiju Jose unveils his refreshed and refitted forecourt as it reopens under the Londis fascia.

P34 Covid United Wholesale Scotland calls in the bio-foggers once more as Covid concerns rise.

P36 SLR Rewards Vaping JTI talks vaping and growing sales and profits.

P40 Hotlines The latest products to hit the shelves.

P50 Under The Counter Men in tights and seed potatoes, a replacement for straws and national sarcasm week.

FEATURES P42 Christmas Confectionery A pick of the latest festive NPD. P44 Medicated Confectionery Gearing up for a winter spike.

P46 Cigars Category performing well, led by premium and value for money.

P48 Packaging Soft drinks leads the green recovery.

ON THE COVER P14 Daniel Johnson’s Shopworker Protection Bill passes the first hurdle at Holyrood.

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OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

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News WHOLESALERS Well-respected industry figure bows out

Henderson marks 10 years with milestone installation Henderson Technology has celebrated 10 years of its EDGEPoS till system by completing its 600th installation at a site in Northern Ireland. The installation was part of a contract to supply 17 forecourts owned by Irish oil company Maxol. Since launching in 2010, EDGEPoS has grown to offer self-checkout stations, electronic shelf edge labels, scan & go apps and prepay food-to-go options.

Lidl’s largest Scottish store Lidl’s largest store in Scotland has opened on Edinburgh’s

Charles Wilson to leave Booker Booker boss Charles Wilson has announced he will retire in February 2021.

Wilson was diagnosed with throat cancer two years ago but remains in remission. He has decided that it is now “time to take things a little easier”.

He will be succeeded by Andrew Yaxley who is currently Chief Product Officer for Tesco. A comprehensive handover period is under way.

Wilson joined a struggling Booker 15 years ago and led its transformation into the UK’s leading wholesaler. He also steered it through a £4bn takeover by Tesco.

Tesco Group Chief Executive Dave Lewis said Wilson held an “unparalleled” reputation in the UK food business: “The transformation of Booker over the last 15 years is one of the most remarkable business case studies in recent history. Since the merger with Tesco he has been a superb member of the Executive team and a brilliant colleague. Whilst we are very sad to see him retire, we completely understand and wish Charles and his family all the very best for the future.”

Charles Wilson commented: “It has been a privilege serving our retail and catering customers and a

pleasure working with a great team at Tesco/Booker.

“For those of you who ask such things, I will not be selling any Tesco shares in the next few years and will remain a committed supporter of the company.”

Charles Wilson

Granton Road. Originally opened in 1995, the store was Lidl’s first Edinburgh site, and was previously extended in 2014. This latest expansion has increased the sales area to 1438sq m; the extra space includes a 145sq

WHOLESALERS TWC partnership gives buying group unparalled insights

WHOLESALERS

Confex unveils gamechanging data service

Virtual trade show a hit for Unitas

m unit for lease. The expansion comes ahead of the Granton Waterfront regeneration project, which will bring 3,500 new homes to the area.

PayPoint signs Neosurf eVoucher deal PayPoint has announced an exclusive deal with NeoSurf, a company that provides pre-paid

Jess Douglas

pincodes for use across 20,000 different websites. Customers can now exchange cash in PayPoint retailers’ stores for a Neosurf eVoucher, which is printed with a unique pincode to purchase online services.

Cash can also be used to top-up balances on Neosurf e-wallets and prepaid cards.

Ocado overtakes Tesco as UK’s most valuable retailer A surge in its share price has made Ocado the UK’s most valuable retailer, pushing Tesco from the top spot. The company is now worth £21.7bn, a rise of 155% since March. Tesco is valued at a paltry £21.1bn, despite towering above the UK grocery landscape with a 26.8% market share, according to Kantar. For comparison, Ocado’s

Wholesale buying group Confex has teamed-up with data and digital specialists TWC to launch a new sales data reporting service.

The new service will provide insights to both Confex members and suppliers to help them understand market influences and provide opportunities to accelerate growth and monetise opportunities from the group’s sales data. It is scheduled to go live in April 2021.

According to Confex’s Marketing & HR Director Jess Douglas, the partnership is an important component in the buying group’s drive to deliver advantage and forward thinking to its 213-strong member base, which has a collective turnover of over £2.16bn.

She commented: “The value of data is increasingly being recognised pan-industry, and we

believe there is immense value to be gained from harnessing information in a way that is easily usable by our members. Our aim is to furnish stakeholders with a reliable read on what is happening across wholesale and individual supply categories based on fact, not hearsay!

“How data is used in terms of its application into digital and marketing strategies is at the forefront of our thinking – our approach is mirrored by our members, many of whom have pivoted into B2C hybrid models over the last year. Knowing your customer is an absolute imperative.”

Tom Fender of TWC said that intelligent insight and customer knowledge are arguably the most powerful things that wholesalers hold within the fabric of their business, and which until now have been under-utilised in many instances.

He added: “Right now, industry forces are changing at a speed that even a year ago would have been unthinkable. The way we receive information is also changing through smart technologies – the new Confex Data Service will be accessible through familiar smart technologies that we all use every day, and users will be able to access information any-time, any-where, 24/7 – whether on phone, tablet or PC.”

Unitas Wholesale has successfully staged its firstever virtual trade show, held on 14 to 18 September 2020.

The event was publicised to members through e-marketing and social media, and hosted on the Unitas Wholesale website. Member wholesalers engaged with the digital event well, with a 180% increase in page views and a 66% uplift in average user duration on the website.

Unitas Wholesale members were able to take advantage of a range of upweighted deals from over 100 leading brands, negotiated exclusively for the show. The event also delivered on creating an environment to facilitate focused communication between member wholesalers and supplier partners, while showcasing new product developments and business insights from over 30 key brands.

Unitas Wholesale Managing Director Darren Goldney said: “I’d like to thank our member wholesalers for their participation and our supplier partners for supporting the event.”

share is just 1.7%.

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News MULTIPLES EG Group acquire Britain’s second-biggest supermarket chain

Billionaire brothers buy Asda Forecourt operator EG Group has bought Asda from Walmart for £6.8bn.

The US grocery giant had put its controlling stake in the British supermarket up for auction after the Competition and Markets Authority blocked Asda’s £7.3bn merger with rival Sainsbury’s last April.

EG Group, which is owned by self-made billionaire brothers from Blackburn Zuber and Mohsin Issa, has the financial backing of private equity firm TDR Capital.

Walmart paid £6.7bn for Asda in 1999 and will retain an equity investment in the business, with an ongoing commercial relationship and a seat on the board.

Formerly known as Euro Garages, EG Group was founded in 2001 with a single forecourt in Bury. It now operates more than 5,200 petrol stations across the UK and Europe.

Zuber and Mohsin Issa Three of these in the Midlands are pilot sites for Asda’s recentlylaunched ‘Asda On The Move’ foray into the convenience channel.

The two brothers expressed a desire to support Asda’s management to achieve longterm growth: “We believe that our experience with EG Group, including our expertise around convenience and brand partnerships and our successful partnership with TDR Capital, can help to accelerate and execute that growth strategy.”

Asda will remain headquartered in Leeds under boss Roger Burnley.

CHARITY McColl’s halfway to £1m Great Ormond Street target

McColl’s reaches £500k charity milestone McColl’s has raised £500,000 for Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity, less than a year since the national partnership launched in October 2019.

The money raised will help fund the refurbishment of family accommodation, just across the road from Great Ormond Street Hospital, which will enable parents to be by their child’s side in minutes, day or night, as they receive lifesaving specialist care.

During the pandemic McColl’s also supported staff by providing essential food and drink products to the hospital free of charge, including

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sandwiches, bread, milk, eggs, biscuits, tea and coffee.

Fundraising highlights since the partnership launched include 81 McColl’s colleagues and friends from across Scotland coming together to complete two 26-mile walks around Loch Leven and Ayrshire, collectively raising over £15,000. The partnership has also seen world records broken, with a team of eight McColl’s colleagues from Crewe spending 24 hours throwing darts at the double 10 on the darts board, successfully breaking the Guinness World Record for the most double 10s hit in a 24 hour period and raising £11,770.

SMALL CHANGES

BIG RESULTS Suntory Beverage and Food GB&I (SBF GB&I) has teamed up with Energy Saving Trust and retailer Amit Patel to show how simple sustainability-focused changes are #GoodForBusiness. In this second column, we show how easy it is to start #GrowingForGood.

We have looked at Amit’s store to decide the key areas that might benefit from some tweaks and changes, and to help retailers develop thoughts around their own sustainability journey.

“Having walked the store from door-to-door, we identified three immediate improvements Amit could make which show that if small changes are scaled up, the convenience world can deliver a real positive sustainability impact,” said Jemma Healy, category controller at SBF GB&I.

REPLACING THE BEHIND-THECOUNTER HEATER Amit uses a mini 800W oil-filled radiator behind his counter to stay warm, but it is not providing enough heat.

“When considering sustainability, you also need to make sure your devices work well for you,” says Andrew Tod of Energy Saving Trust. “A mini radiator in a large space won’t help keep you warm, so in situations where you don’t need to heat a space but just the immediate space where the till is, a directional halogen heater is a better fit.”

We replaced his heater with a new halogen one with three power settings - 400W, 800W and 1200W, costing £30. If three power settings are used equally, installing this new halogen heater will heat your staff much better.

REPLACING THE FRONT DOOR Amit’s store is on a main road, and the force of the many lorries that drive past means his door is often open, letting heat out and cold air in.

By installing a new door-closing mechanism, costing £500, we can ensure the door doesn’t blow

STORE PROFILE RETAILER Amit Patel STORE NAME Premier Town Street, Sandiacre STORE SIZE 900sq ft

open – making customers more comfortable and keeping heat in, thus using the behind-the-counter heater less often.

Savings are difficult to accurately quantify but this new measure will reduce energy consumption and bills as the space is better heated and improve the thermal comfort of the store.

UPGRADING THE TV Amit uses a 32” screen in his store to display and monitor CCTV footage. Replacing this is a quick win for reducing energy consumption, electricity costs, and emissions.

We replaced this old screen with a more energy efficient model, with a power rating of 30W (compared to Amit’s existing TV, which has a rating of 150W), costing £149.

For a screen that’s on for 12 hours a day, 360 days a year, this could save up to £80 per year.

“Many manufacturers now provide a typical annual energy consumption for new TVs, to help you compare models before you buy,” says Tod. “Turning the TV off at the plug overnight will make an additional energy saving, so ensure this is done each night before you leave the store.”

OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

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News DEPOSIT RETURN SCHEME Invites go out for Industry Advisory Group

Lactalis joins SWA Dairy group Lactalis UK & Ireland has joined the Scottish Wholesale Association as part of its strategy to strengthen its links with the wholesale sector in Scotland and build awareness of the branded cheddar market. Membership will allow the cheese maker to identify opportunities within the Scottish wholesale market, and to grow sales across the retail and foodservice channels.

First Amazon Fresh store opens doors Amazon has made further inroads into the grocery market with the opening of its first Amazon Fresh store, located in the affluent Los Angeles suburb of Woodland Hills. The store offers what the online giant is calling “a seamless grocery shopping experience” whether customers are shopping in-store

DRS preparations step up a gear Scotland’s new Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) is scheduled to get underway on 1 July 2022, and the Scottish Government has now started to invite industry bodies and organisations to become members of the schem’es Industry Advisory Group (IAG).

The IAG will help develop the retailers exemption framework. The two main criteria for exemptions will be proximity to another return point and if there is no reasonable way to operate a return point without being in breach of legal obligations such as food safety.

The Group will provide expertise and advice from a range of backgrounds to support the Scottish Government in developing an assessment policy that will ensure fair and consistent assessment of exemption applications in line with the DRS Regulations.

John Lee Among the organisations invited to join is the Scottish Grocers’ Federation (SGF).

John Lee, SGF Head of Public Affairs, commented: “We are very glad to accept the invitation to be a key member of the advisory group.

The real impact of Deposit Return for retailers in Scotland is beginning to move closer. The DRS regulations, approved earlier this year by the

Scottish Parliament, state that the exemptions process will go live in January 2021.”

Lee said that the scheme “will simply not be workable for many retailers and they must have the option of taking an exemption”.

He continued: “The process has to be fair, consistent and transparent.

The application process goes live in January and we have to get ready for it now.”

The group will be chaired by the Scottish Government and secretariat support will be provided by the Scottish Government’s Circular Economy Unit. Representatives of Zero Waste Scotland and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency will attend as observers.

The scheme was originally scheduled for April 2021 but was postponed because of the coronavirus outbreak.

or online, with click & collect and – for Prime members – free

POST OFFICE Postmasters surveyed over future decision-making

CHARITY

same-day delivery.

Postmaster consultation gets underway

Golfers chip in over £3k for Moira Fund

The Post Office has launched a consultation asking how Postmasters want to be involved in the development and execution of business decisions.

The consultation will run for 12 weeks and will include in depth discussions, followed by a survey of over 8,000 Postmasters on options such as establishing regional or thematic forums that could advise and influence business decisions.

A separate survey and qualitative discussions will take place with all its commercial partners.

Amanda Jones, Post Office Retail and Franchise Network Director, said: “We want to see Postmasters thriving in their local communities with commercially successful branches run by individuals who know what products and services their customers require. This consultation is part of our efforts to reset our relationship with Postmasters and hear directly from them about how they want to be

The fifth annual Moira Fund golf day has raised over £3,000 for the charity.

Held at Dullatur Golf Club, Cumbernauld on Saturday 12 September, the event saw players brave typically Scottish weather to participate in Texas scramble, nearest the pin, longest drive and most accurate drive competitions.

The day was rounded off with lunch followed by a prizegiving ceremony, raffle and auction.

All in all, the event – which SLR sponsored – raised £3,420 for the Moira Fund, a charity which helps people bereaved by the murder or manslaughter of a loved one.

Fund Trustee John Leslie said: “It was another very successful day. Even a half hour Biblical-proportioned rainstorm couldn’t spoil it!”

MFG appoints new Commercial Director Forecourt operator Motor Fuel Group has announced the appointment of David Pitron as its new Commercial Director.

Pitron joins MFG from BP, where he worked for the past 16 years in a variety of trading, offer, strategy and partnership development positions in the UK and overseas. His last position was as Global Retail Commercial Development Director, responsible for establishing new retail offers and partnerships.

Greencore’s Coveney named as IGD President Patrick Coveney, CEO of Greencore Group, has been appointed President of IGD by its Board of Trustees. Already an active member of IGD’s Policy Issues Council, he will take on the Presidency from Andrew Higginson on 1 January 2021.

Coveney is the first CEO of a private label manufacturer to be appointed to the role of IGD

involved in the development and execution of business decisions.”

A dedicated microsite has been created where Postmasters can find out more information about the consultation and can log on and submit their views. The consultation is being run by an independent agency that will provide an impartial assessment of Postmasters’ views.

The Post Office had previously announced that a Non-Executive Director position on its Board will be created. Since the announcement, the Post Office has been learning from other organisations about their experiences of making a change to their Board. Post Office is also working with its shareholder, the UK Government, to agree the appointment process.

Most recently, the Post Office has also announced the creation of a new Postmaster Director role that will be the Postmaster voice within the business and will lead on Postmaster engagement.

President.

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DISCOUNTERS 100 new stores in pipeline for German chain

Aldi expansion gathers pace

Aldi has announced a record £1.3bn investment in its UK business over the next two years.

This will include opening around 100 new stores, upgrading 100 stores and the launch of new and expanded distribution centres. The discounter expects to recruit a further 4,000 staff next year to add to the 3,000 roles already created in 2020.

It is also toying with a number of concepts not usually seen in the discount channel.

These include the launch of a pilot click & collect service at a store in the Midlands.

The service is currently available to staff at the store. It the trial is a success, Aldi plans to extend it to the store’s customers and then further sites across the country.

Aldi workers can choose from a full range of grocery items online, then drive to the

store where colleagues will bring their order to their car contact-free, in line with social distancing rules.

The discounter is already trialling a rapid delivery service across stores in the East Midlands, London, Cambridge and Greater Manchester in partnership with Deliveroo.

This allows customers around selected stores to order from a range of more than 300 Aldi products and have them delivered in as little as 30 minutes.

In Scotland, the company recently opened a new £22m freezer and chill facility in Bathgate, providing an extra 17,000sqm of space and allowing Aldi to expand its range of locally-sourced products.

It also plans to spend a £36m chunk of its mammoth investment in nine new stores north of the border before the end of 2021.

CHARITY Dawood Pervez one of three new appointees

New Trustees for GroceryAid Bestway boss Dawood Pervez has joined the Board of GroceryAid as a Trustee.

Two further new Trustees were also named: Mark McKenzie, Group Sales Director, Nestle UK & Ireland and Rhian Bartlett, Sainsbury’s Director of Fresh Foods.

The industry charity is overseen by 16 Trustees who are responsible for its development and growth, and for legal and statutory compliance.

Pervez was appointed to the role of Managing Director of Bestway in 2018 having been elected to the Board of Directors of Bestway Group in 2004. In

addition to progressing the Group’s digital platforms, he set up the Group Export Division, which established trade links to over 20 countries and was awarded the Queen’s Awards for Enterprise for Export in 2012. Prior to joining Bestway, Pervez worked for Linklaters, the global law firm, where he specialised in international corporate and structured finance work.

McKenzie has been with Nestle for 20 years, prior to which he trained with Marks and Spencer and John Lewis, followed by stints with Mars UK and Coca-Cola Enterprises.

Bartlett is a retailer with over 20 years’ experience. She re-joined Sainsbury’s last year from Screwfix, where she was Customer and Digital Director. Prior to Screwfix, she spent nearly three years at eBay as the Senior Director of UK Trading.

Ruston Smith, Chair of GroceryAid Trustees, commented: “These are important appointments for GroceryAid and further enhance the talent we have to draw on at the charity. It’s fantastic to have a team of Trustees of this calibre.”

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ILLICIT TOBACCO Spaniels 1 – rogue traders 0

Dixie the dog smokes out illicit tobacco trader

Trading Standards officers in East Ayrshire seized almost 16,000 counterfeit cigarettes and 3kg of fake hand rolling tobacco from a shop in the village of Cumnock after members of the public tipped them off.

The haul was unearthed by sniffer dog Dixie, who accompanied officers on their search of the premises.

Councillor Jim McMahon, Cabinet Member for Community Safety, East Ayrshire Council, said: “Dixie the dog was the star on this occasion, being a spaniel, her nose is so well tuned to finding these products. She’s helped us before and ultimately she is a life saver. We’re all very pleased to be able to work with her and her handler as part of our operations.”

McMahon said Trading Standards protected “hard working” traders: “In this instance, we’ve helped make sure those who play by the rules aren’t losing out to unscrupulous people who would undercut their business.”

TRADE ASSOCIATIONS Newagents’ group gets online makeover

New name and look for NFRN website The Federation of Independent Retailers (NFRN) has given its website a major makeover.

Now called TheFedOnline.com, the site has a vibrant new look, simpler navigation and new content to give users a significantly enhanced digital experience.

A clear and simplified menu makes it easier for users to search for benefits, deals, services and news. The site has also been designed for ease of use on any computer platform, whether desk top, laptop or mobile.

Announcing the new look, National President Stuart Reddish said: “We are very proud to unveil our new and much improved website. Besides giving the Federation a vibrant new platform, it really showcases the huge portfolio of benefits and guidance that is available and better reflects the organisation’s positioning as the voice of the independent retailer with a modern platform for members and potential members.”

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“TheFedOnline.com is modern, informative and simple to use so members can quickly access relevant information.”

The new site will contain breaking NFRN and industry news, latest deals and benefits and advice on employment matters and legislation. Exclusive member only content will include latest business partner deals, news from the Federation’s districts and branches and access to legal help.

“We believe that TheFedOnline.com will be a powerful resource for members,” added Reddish. “As a one stop site it will provide independent retailers with all the information they need to run their businesses even more effectively, helping to plan and implement successful solutions to the problems and opportunities faced. It will also keep fully up to date with everything that is going on in the Federation and the industry.”

Members who were registered users of the old NFRNOnline.com site will not have to reregister to access the new site.

News Extra

Post Office | Horizon Scandal

NewsExtra ENSURE A CRACKING CHRISTMAS – P42 POST OFFICE Justice for wrongly-convicted subpostmasters in Scotland moves closer

Convenience Matters with the SGF At around this time each year the Scottish government sets out its policy and legislative plans in the Programme for Government.

The ‘Programme’ is actually a 135-page document and it is a difficult read. As with every other Scottish government document these days, you quickly become lost in a bewildering world of strategies, frameworks, projects, initiatives, plans, schemes, programmes, forums, and funding streams.

Additionally, many of the key announcements made by the First Minister were not particularly new: we have known for quite some time now about the Scottish National Investment Bank and about the Green New Deal.

However, a deep-dive into the document revealed one potentially very significant new announcement: the Scottish government will work in partnership with industry to develop a Retail Strategy!

This would probably be the first of its kind in the UK and at one level is very welcome. It recognises both the importance of retail – it is still the largest private sector employer in the UK – and the major challenges the sector faces from the impact of Covid.

We will ensure that convenience is a major part of this strategy. It’s not much of an exaggeration to say that, at the moment, convenience is the most important retail channel and is likely to stay so. There is, however, a need for some caution. if the government gives things to the industry – financial support or assistance with taxes, rates and levies – it will undoubtedly expect something back in return.

Let’s be careful with what we wish for!

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SLR | OCTOBER 2020

HORIZON SCANDAL: JUSTICE WATCHDOG INVESTIGATES SCOTS CASES As the Post Office looks to ‘reset’ its relationship with Subpostmasters in the wake of the Horizon IT scandal, the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission is asking those convicted to get in touch regarding potential miscarriages of justice.

The public body In Scotland that examines miscarriages of justice is contacting more than 70 Subpostmasters convicted for crimes like fraud and false accounting to see if the Post Office’s faulty Horizon software was involved in their cases.

The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC) has highlighted an initial 73 cases but said it was “entirely possible” there could be others.

Cases could likely be appealed even if the person involved is now dead or originally pleaded guilty to avoid a heavier sentence.

Most people the SCCRC is contacting received community sentences and fines, although some were imprisoned.

In a leaflet it sent out, the SCCRC said: “The Post Office identified your case as a Scottish prosecution during the relevant period (from 1999) in which they may have been involved.”

The leaflet also said: “We would like to make sure that you have the chance to apply to us.”

The scandal has gone on for over 20 years. The Post Office’s Horizon IT system, designed by Fujitsu, caused shortfalls in some branch accounts, leading to accusations of theft. As well as those who passed through the criminal justice system, a number of Postmasters were bankrupted as a result. Last December, the Post Office agreed to pay out £58m in an out of court settlement with 557 Subpostmasters over the long-running dispute.

The SCCRC’s move came just ahead of a decision by the Post Office not to oppose appeals against 44 out of 47 convictions referred by England’s Criminal Cases Review Commission to the Court of Appeal.

Tim Parker, Chairman of the Post Office, said: “I am sincerely sorry on behalf of the Post Office

for historical failings which seriously affected some postmasters. Post Office is resetting its relationship with postmasters with reforms that prevent such past events ever happening again.”

Although the Post Office is keen to put the scandal behind it and move on, it looks as if its legal team will be busy for some time yet. The Director of Public Prosecutions is currently considering whether to bring charges of perjury against officials who claimed under oath during the original prosecutions that there were no problems with the Horizon system. Evidence since uncovered, including emails, suggests it was known there were issues with the software.

The Government, which owns the Post Office, has launched a review into the scandal, led by former High Court judge Sir Wyn Williams. However, Williams will not be able to force witnesses to attend or be cross-examined. Nor will he investigate the Government’s role in the affair.

This has led to calls for a full-scale public inquiry from a cross-party group of more than 50 MPs. Alan Bates, founder of the Justice For SubPostmasters Alliance, branded the review as “a pointless exercise” and “utterly futile”.

He said: “It’s just an internal review, it’s got nothing to do with redressing what they’ve done in the past.” www.slrmag.co.uk

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Comment

RETAILER PROTECTION: A TALE OF TWO GOVERNMENTS

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

The last six months have seen everyone and their granny falling over themselves to praise local retailers. What a sterling job we’ve done keeping communities across the land fed, watered and functioning in the most trying times in living memory. Retail staff were even anointed with the hallowed ‘key worker’ status, so vital were they to the functioning of society during the pandemic.

Yet when it quite rightly gets pointed out that abuse of shopworkers has rocketed during lockdown and it might be an idea to offer these vital key workers a little much needed support and protection, the response from the UK Government was basically a sympathetic shrug of the shoulders. Only days after that official response, however, the Scottish Government announced that they planned to back Edinburgh South MSP Daniel Johnson’s Shopworker Protection Bill - and they duly kept their promise. This may have been pure coincidence, but given the ongoing face-off between Nicola and Boris, it does smack a little of political point-scoring.

Whatever the reason for the timing, it’s a very welcome development for local retailers in Scotland. The Scottish Government has a long history of ‘progressive’ legislation that seems to get rushed through with little thought for the consequences at the coal face of convenience stores across the country.

In its desire to be ‘first’ with legislation like the tobacco display ban and DRS, for instance, the Scottish Government has often found itself at odds with the local retailing sector who invariably have to pick up the pieces, communicate the new legislation to often baffled customers and then ask their staff to police it in-store, all with close to zero support from the Government.

In fact, it doesn’t require much of a leap of the imagination to see how this strategy has actually contributed to the problem of shopworker abuse. So it’s pleasing to finally have the prospect of a bit of ‘progressive’ legislation that actually works in our sector’s favour, offering retail staff the sort of protection that they have long been desperate for – and deserving of.

There’s still a long way to go on Johnson’s Bill but with the backing of the Scottish Government, there’s a strong possibility it will make it into law and store staff across Scotland will finally be able to feel that they are no longer the forgotten heroes.

ADVERTISING Advertising Manager Robert Aitken 0141 222 5302 | raitken@55north.com

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

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

CIRCULATION & SUBSCRIPTIONS Circulation Manager Cara Begley 0141 222 5381 | cbegley@55north.com Scottish Local Retailer is distributed free to qualifying readers. For a registration card, call 0141 222 5381. Other readers can obtain copies by annual subscription at £50 (UK), £62 (Europe airmail), £99 (Worldwide airmail).

55 North Ltd, Waterloo Chambers, 19 Waterloo Street, Glasgow, G2 6AY Tel: 0141 22 22 100 Fax: 0141 22 22 177 Website: www.55north.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/slrmag DISCLAIMER The publisher cannot accept responsibility for any unsolicited material lost or damaged in the post. All text and layout is the copyright of 55 North Ltd. Nothing in this magazine may be reproduced in whole or part without the written permission of the publisher.

All copyrights are recognised and used specifically for the purpose of criticism and review. Although the magazine has endevoured to ensure all information is correct at time of print, prices and availability may change.

This magazine is fully independent and not affiliated in any way with the companies mentioned herein.

Scottish Local Retailer is produced monthly by 55 North Ltd.

ANTONY BEGLEY, PUBLISHING DIRECTOR

© 55 North Ltd. 2020 ISSN 1740-2409.

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Cover Story

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Shopworker Protection

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Shopworker Protection

Cover Story

SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT BACKS SHOPWORKER PROTECTION BILL In a rare bit of positive news from Holyrood, the Scottish Government has backed Daniel Johnson’s Shopworkers Protection Bill, paving the way for much needed extra support and protection for all local retailers.

BY ANTONY BEGLEY

“The pandemic has seen people working in retail performing critical roles, supplying the basic essentials to all of us and keeping us safe as we do so. This bill pays an important tribute to these efforts over the last six months.”

DANIEL JOHNSON, MSP

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I

n a potentially historic development for the Scottish local retailing sector, the Scottish Government announced has backed Daniel Johnson’s Shopworkers Protection Bill, paving the way for long overdue extra support and protection for all Scottish local retailers.

Only days after the Westminster Government had declared itself “not persuaded” that a specific offence needed to be introduced to offer more protection to shopworkers, the Scottish Government came out in support of a Bill designed to do just that.

The UK government’s comments were in direct response to a petition from trade union Usdaw, and signed by more than 60,000 people, demanding better protection for shopworkers. While The Ministry of Justice said it was ”sympathetic to the motivations behind the petition”, it remained “unpersuaded of the need for a specific offence as there are already a wide range of offences which exist and which cover assaults against any worker, including shop workers and those selling age-restricted items.”

Only days later, the Scottish Government announced that it would support the Protection of Workers (Retail and Agerestricted Goods and Services) (Scotland) Bill at the Stage 1 vote, as it duly did. The Bill will now move forward to Stage 2 where it will undergo detailed scrutiny and debate with any potential amendments also being considered.

The Bill was brought forward by Edinburgh South MSP Daniel Johnson and will give

shop staff additional legal protection when carrying out their work, particularly in relation to assault or abuse in relation to a mandatory activity such as requesting ID for age-restricted products.

Johnson said: “I’m delighted to see the Scottish Government supporting my Bill at stage 1, adding their backing to this important issue along with trade unions and retail groups across the country. Dialogue with ministers in recent weeks has been useful in identifying understanding on this important issue.

“Passing my bill into law will provide an important recognition of the key duty shopworkers have upholding the law and the issues they face doing so. Most critically, the pandemic has seen people working in retail performing critical roles, supplying the basic essentials to all of us and keeping us safe as we do so. This bill pays an important tribute to these efforts over the last six months.”

Scottish Grocers’ Federation (SGF) Policy Manager Luke McGarty said: “Serious instore retail crime is not going away and impacts on retailers, their staff, their families, customers and the wider community. The Bill represents a unique – perhaps a once in a generation – opportunity to create a safer retail environment.

The Scottish Retail Consortium was also in favour. Its Head of Policy Ewan MacDonald-Russell commented: “The bill is an opportunity for the Scottish Parliament to lead the way in in the UK in supporting hardworking retail staff – and we hope all parties will support the thrust of the legislation.”

OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

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News

Products

Spar Brand answers ‘What’s for tea?’ question Spar has unveiled a new

ProductNews

selection of own-label products designed for the ‘tonight’s tea’ meal occasion. The range includes Spar Brand pizzas, chilled breads, ready meals and an array of prepared vegetables.

For the first time ever, Spar has developed a simple ‘mix and match’ evening meal deal for two at a price of £5. The main and side combinations create more than 40 different dinners that are easy to prepare.

Snap, share and win a grand with Mentos Mentos has launched ‘Me & You,’ an on-pack promo that encourages shoppers to snap a selfie of themselves with their favourite Mentos product to be in with a chance of winning.

Fifteen top prize-winners will

NOT TO BE SNIFFED AT: MEDICATED CONFECTIONERY – P44 SPORTS & ENERGY DRINKS CCEP gets on the ones and twos

Party like a DJ with Relentless Coca-Cola European Partners has unveiled a new promotion to support its Relentless range of energy drinks, giving music fans the chance to win a DJ equipment package.

Running now until the end of October, the promotion will see three lucky winners get their hands on a complete home DJ kit from Pioneer DJ, including headphones, desktop speakers and a digital DJ controller. Ten runnersup will also receive a pair of headphones.

The competition is being promoted with in-store POS and via the brand’s digital platforms. Consumers can

enter through the Relentless website, and retailers can request supporting POS – including posters, wobblers and barkers – from the CCEP Customer Hub Tools & Resources pages at cokecustomerhub. co.uk or on 0808 1 000 000.

Simon Harrison, Vice President of Commercial Development at CCEP GB, said: “Relentless has a long association with the music industry.

“We hope this new promotion with Pioneer DJ taps into Relentless fans’ love of music creation whilst helping retailers drive instore theatre and sales in the coming months.”

each receive a £1,000 Buyagift voucher. A host of other prizes are up for grabs. The promo is

BREAKFAST

back with a £1m media spend

Weetabix joins fight against child food poverty

until the end of January.

Back to nature Cereal bar brand Nature Valley has teamed up with Tripadvisor to encourage Brits to explore some of the UK’s most beautiful nature spots in a new £1.8m campaign called #visitnature.

The promotion sees Nature Valley become the first ever FMCG brand to partner with Tripadvisor in Europe and is expected to reach 5.6 million people within the brand’s target audience.

Lärabar sponsors mindfulness podcast General Mills’ real food snack bar brand, Lärabar, has become official sponsor of Mind Body

Weetabix has thrown its weight behind footballer Marcus Rashford’s Child Food Poverty Task Force.

The brand is endorsing the campaign’s policy requests for the expansion of the free school meals scheme. This builds upon Weetabix’s existing work to ensure that school children can start the day with a nutritious breakfast.

As part of its commitment, Weetabix called on the government to endorse and fully fund the National Food Strategy’s three main policy recommendations: 1) Expansion of free school meals to every child from a household on Universal Credit or equivalent, reaching an additional 1.5 million 7-16 year olds 2) Expansion of holiday provision (food and activities) to support all children on free school meals, reaching an additional 1.1 million children 3) Increasing the value of the Healthy Start vouchers to £4.25 per week (from £3.10) and expanding into all those on Universal Credit or equivalent, reaching an additional 290,000 pregnant women and children under the age of four.

Spirit’s ‘Your Wellbeing Podcast’ in a bid to “communicate its mindfulness positioning with new and existing consumers”.

The partnership includes dedicated social media posts on the podcast’s channels and 30 second Lärabar branded idents that will feature during each

Sally Abbott, Managing Director of Weetabix UK and Ireland, said: “We believe that no child should have to start their school day hungry, which is why we’re supporting Marcus in his ambition for the free school meals scheme to be expanded. Weetabix is founded upon belief that everyone should start the day with a healthy and nutritious breakfast and nearly ninety years on, we continue to uphold this principle.”

HOT DRINKS

Maltesers Hot Chocolate gets makeover Mars Chocolate Drinks & Treats has redesigned its Maltesers Hot Chocolate products.

The new look runs across 350g and 180g jars, 140g pouches, 25g single serve sticks and hot chocolate pods.

Michelle Frost, General Manager at Mars Chocolate Drinks & Treats, commented: “We are delighted to share our new look Maltesers Hot Chocolate with retailers and consumers alike! The eyecatching packaging really brings to life the chocolate taste of this delicious drink and creates synergy on-shelf with our Galaxy Hot Chocolate range.”

The new look range is available now.

For all sales enquiries, please contact Aimia Foods on 01942 408600.

podcast show.

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News

Products

JTI looks to stub out cigarette butt littering JTI has launched #IGiveAButt, a new scheme designed to change consumer behaviour around cigarette butt littering. As part of

SPORTS & ENERGY DRINKS Sterling effort by Lucozade

Raheem Sterling is up for the Cherry Kick challenge Lucozade Sport has teamed up with England footballer Raheem Sterling as part of a marketing campaign for its new Cherry Kick flavour.

The marketing activity will span three months, kicking off in September and featuring in the run-up to Christmas. It will highlight the importance of keeping hydrated during exercise even during the colder months.

Lucozade Sport Cherry Kick is available now in 500ml standard and PMP bottles as well as a four-pack multipack. The latest

addition joined the Sport range in April and packs feature an image of Sterling.

As part of the campaign, Sterling and a range of other Lucozade Sport ambassadors will undertake the Cherry Kick challenge on social media, as the brand bids to build excitement and drive sales.

The Cherry kick challenge is a take on the usual social media bottle challenges, where consumers will be asked to create their own Instagram Reels video, using a bottle of

the campaign, JTI has unveiled a portable ‘Stub Tidy’ that acts as a temporary way to hold butts until a bin becomes available.

The scheme is being piloted amongst 5,000 adult smokers via a nationwide digital sampling

Lucozade Sport to show off their football and/or sporting skills. By sharing their creations with the #CherryKickChallenge hashtag and tagging @LucozadeSportUK they will be in with a chance to win prizes.

Tom Bell, Head of Marketing for Lucozade Sport, said: “Signing one of England’s most recognisable footballers in Raheem Sterling to the Lucozade Sport squad is huge for the brand and will drive real stand-out for Lucozade Sport Cherry Kick on shelf.”

campaign.

Yazoo buckles up for theme park promo Yazoo has partnered with Merlin Group to offer 2-for-1 tickets for Alton Towers and Thorpe Park across its entire flavour portfolio, as both attractions see their doors reopen to the public. The activity is supported with digital, social and TV advertising. Previous Merlin Group partnerships having driven a 4-8% increase in sales of promotional packs for the brand.

MILK DRINKS Mabel the cow herds up brand’s online presence

Delamere unveils new website Delamere Dairy has launched a website specifically dedicated to its Flavoured Cows’ Milk range.

Visitors to delamereflavouredmilk.co.uk will find product news, recipes using the milk and postcards from the brand’s mascot Mabel the cow, who apparently has a penchant for travel.

The site has been launched with a competition to win a year’s supply of Delamere Flavoured milk.

The range has enjoyed strong growth over the last couple of years with sales up 66% in 2019 year-on-year, and Delamere now sits in the top four flavoured milk brands in UK convenience.

“We know that the range has really enthusiastic and engaged customers”, said Steve O’Connor, National Account Manager for Delamere Dairy.

“It seems only right that the range has a standalone website so consumers can keep up to date with news and join in the fun.”

To stock, call 01565 632 422 or email sales@delameredairy. co.uk.

FROZEN

Goodfella’s £10k prize promo targets Big Night In Frozen pizza brand Goodfella’s has launched a new on-pack promotion to celebrate the Big Night In occasion.

Running to the end of November, and part of a wider digital and TV campaign, the promo gives shoppers the opportunity to win a top prize of £10,000. Hundreds of other prizes are also up for grabs.

Claire Hoyle, Head of Marketing at Goodfella’s, commented: “Having tested the promotion with shoppers, we found that over 80% of respondents found the prize offer appealing and we’re confident the campaign will help retain some of the 1.7m new shoppers who have bought into the frozen pizza category in recent weeks.”

Fibre One revamps recipe to offer 30% less sugar Snack bar brand Fibre One has reduced the sugar content of its best-selling brownie range by 30%. The new brownies are available now in both single and multipack formats. The reformulation has also increased the fibre content of each brownie square to 6.5g. The new brownies will be supported by a marketing campaign in January that will include TV, social and shopper marketing activity.

Zoo do you think uses sustainable palm oil?

Ferrero UK has partnered with Chester Zoo to raise awareness of the importance of sustainable palm oil. The partnership enables further support of Chester Zoo’s Sustainable Palm Oil Cities project and its education programme in schools. Ferrero has used 100% sustainable RSPO-certified segregated palm oil since January 2015 and became one of the first global companies to achieve this.

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OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

17

News

Off-Trade

23 is the magic number Tobermory Distillery has announced the release of

Off-TradeNews

Tobermory 23 Year Old Oroloso Cask Finish (46.3% ABV). One for specialist drinks retailers, the sherried single malt has an RSP of £320 and joins the distillery’s core range. Originally a 15-year-old, Tobermory 23 Year Old has spent more time resting in Oloroso casks at the distillery to create an even more full-flavoured whisky.

Ex-civil servant is Portman Group’s new Chair The Portman Group has appointed Philip Rycroft as its new Chairman. He replaces Sir Martin Narey, who stepped down in November 2019. A civil servant for over 30 years, Rycroft was most recently the Permeant Secretary to the Department for Exiting the EU. His private sector experience includes a stint as

LIGHT UP YOUR SALES WITH CIGARS – P46 BEER Dutch favourite returns to Britain

Grolsch swings back onto shelves Dutch lager brand Grolsch is returning to the UK after it disappeared from shelves at the end of 2019 when a 35-year manufacturing deal ended.

The beer has been given a complete overhaul, with an allnew 4% ABV brew coupled with a new brand identity and packaging.

It will be available once more to the off-trade from the end of October in 330ml crown cap bottles, 440ml cans (from March 2021) and the iconic 450ml ‘swing-top’ bottle– with a range of multipack formats. A 500ml can format specifically for the

convenience channel will also roll out.

The relaunch will be supported by a multimillion pound marketing campaign throughout 2021, including national advertising, point-ofsale materials, staff training, and in-store promotional activity.

Ahead of this, the campaign will run on social media from October 2020 and on video-ondemand, social and digital out-ofhome from April 2021.

Tim Clay, Managing Director at brand owner Asahi UK, said: “Grolsch Premium Pilsner is back with a fresh brand identity

and a brilliant, revitalised liquid, brewed at its iconic home in East Netherlands. The brand new packaging and in-store activations we’ve tailored for Grolsch’s return are just as exciting – highly distinctive and full of character. We’re delighted with the response and take-up from customers to date.”

an adviser to brewer Scottish & Newcastle (since acquired by Heineken).

GIN

PRUK names new Wine Portfolio Director

Geordies lead the G&L charge

Pernod Ricard UK has appointed Lucy Bearman to the position of Wine Portfolio Director. Bearman will be responsible for leading marketing campaigns for PRUK’s portfolio of wines and delivering NPD to grow the drinks giant’s market share in wine. She joined PRUK in 2012 and has since held several positions within Brand Marketing, Category and Customer Development nd holds over 20 years’ experience in the wine industry.

Halewood opens St Petersburg distillery Halewood Artisanal Spirits has opened a new £5m vodka distillery in St Petersburg, Russia as the business looks to bolster its premium artisanal spirits range. The company’s JJ Whitley Vodka range will now be produced and bottled at the distillery and distributed around the world. It will be the first

New data from Boë Gin has suggested Tonic’s crown as the mixer of choice for gin may be slipping.

A survey of 2,000 UK gin drinkers found that over half (53%) of those aged 18-34 now prefer a gin and lemonade (G&L), with just a quarter (26%) opting for tonic as a mixer.

And it’s not just young drinkers.

The rapid rise of flavoured gins, which now account for a third of the overall gin market, is also helping to knock the G&T from the top spot; lemonade is the preferred mixer for over half (52%) of all flavoured gin drinkers.

Meanwhile, it was England’s North East which proved to have the UK’s highest number of G&L drinkers, as well as gin drinkers overall. London and the South East, on the other hand, remains a heartland for G&Ts, favoured by over half (55%) of drinkers there.

British-owned vodka distillery in Russia.

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News

Off-Trade

Welcome to the family Venezuelan rum brand Diplomático has released Diplomático Selección de Familia (ABV 43%) a “spicy, rich rum with a robust and elegant body”. It is

WINE Pernod Ricard brand gets vibrant overhaul

New look for Campo Viejo Rosé

made from molasses and sugar

Campo Viejo Rosé has been given a packaging makeover, with new bottles boasting a vibrant turquoise and silver design.

The packaging, selected by consumers from three potential designs, also features a new screwcap for easy and convenient opening, whilst conserving the fruit flavours of the new 2019 vintage.

The new packaging highlights the brand’s premium cues with descriptors

oak, ex-Bourbon and ex-Sherry

both in English and Spanish to highlight the wine’s Spanish origin.

Lucy Bearman, Wine Portfolio Director at Pernod Ricard UK, commented: “Campo Viejo Rosé is vibrant, crisp and refreshing and this stunning new packaging embodies the very essence of these credentials.”

The new Campo Viejo Rosé (ABV 13.5%) packaging will roll-out across the off-trade from mid-October 2020, RSP £8.

cane honeys then aged for up to 12 years in American white casks. The super-premium rum is exclusively distributed in the UK by Speciality Brands and has an RSP of £55.

BrewDog signs up to climate change scheme BrewDog has become the first business to join the Pawprint Pioneers Program as part of its commitment to fighting climate change. Brewdog boss James Watt said: “Pawprint will

ALCOHOLIC GINGER BEER Cider brand hopes Kiwi deal bears fruit

Westons adds Ranga

RUM

empower BrewDog’s people to

Dead Man’s Fingers gets fruity

fight climate change at work, at

Westons Cider has added New Zealandfounded Ranga Alcoholic Gingerbeer to its growing portfolio.

Ranga will be brewed in the UK and Westons will drive all sales and distribution across the on and off-trade.

The introduction of Ranga follows a partnership between Westons and Dutch botanically brewed beer Lowlander in February 2020.

Darryl Hinksman, Head of Business Development at Westons Cider, sees Ranga resonating particularly strongly with younger drinkers: “We expect broadest appeal to be amongst experimental 25-38-year olds.

“The great news is that there’s lots of room for growth in the category as there are currently so few products sitting in this space.”

Spiced rum brand Dead Man’s Fingers has launched a new Mango Rum. It is available from Booker, with a £22 RSP for a 70cl bottle (ABV 37.5%).

The new Mango bottle boasts the distinctive Dead Man’s Fingers branding and bold colour palette. It joins Dead Man’s Fingers Lime, Raspberry, Passionfruit, Hazelnut, Pineapple, Coconut, Coffee, Hemp, as well as the original Spiced Rum. Sam Caulfield, Brand Manager for Dark Spirits at Halewood Wines & Spirits, said; “The response to the brand and our latest flavour innovations has been incredible, and we continue to see strong performance across the portfolio.”

all to measure, understand and

home and beyond. It’ll allow us reduce our carbon footprints and is based on scientifically-robust data from our shared scientific advisor, Mike Berners-Lee.”

New date for low/no alcohol show The rescheduled Low2NoBev Show – developed to help drive the low and no alcohol sector forward –will take place at The Old Truman Brewery, London, on Wednesday 9 and Thursday 10 June 2021. Stands for the original show were sold out prior to enforced postponement but a move to a bigger venue means there is now room for additional exhibitors. Visit low2nobev.com for further details.

CRAFT BEER

Fallen Brewing rebrands Award-winning Stirling-based craft beer brewery Fallen Brewing has unveiled a brand overhaul, which features larger can sizes and a refreshed design.

The rebrand includes new labels that feature pen and ink artwork designed by East Lothian GP Zain Kapasi, artist and close friend of Paul Fallen, founder of Fallen Brewing.

The brewery is situated at the old Kippen Railway Station and Kapasi’s illustrations celebrate this location, with its railway heritage featured in stylised trains and railway scenes.

Paul Fallen commented: “Zain’s illustrations were exactly what the coloured designs needed. They add texture, interest, and provenance to the cans and each drawing is unique. We are delighted to have worked with Zain on the rebrand”.

The Fallen Brewing range is made using soft Scottish mountain water and hops and malts from around the world. It includes the aptly-named Local Motive, Chew Chew and Platform C. Fallen beer retails from £3.30 for a 440ml can. To stock visit: eebriatrade.com.

Spar white wins gold Spar is celebrating after winning a gold medal at the 2020 Decanter World Wine Awards for its Wildflower Pinot Grigio 2019 (RSP £7). Sourced from Romanian wine exporter Cramele Recas, the wine is made from grapes grown in the Banat region of Western Romania and has “delicious peaches and fresh citrus flavours which makes it the perfect partner to spicy curries, creamy pasta dishes or risotto”.

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OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

21

BOOST YOUR VALUE SALES AND STOCK UP ON PINT CANS! 60% of shoppers only buy pint can formats, with the pack size growing +£37 million last year.*

Convenience retailers saw their average annual sales increase by £383 when stocking the pint can format vs 500ml can.**

We’re optimising our portfolio to help you meet the growing demand in pint cans. From October, we’ll cease production of the 500ml can.

Stock up on our 568ml and 440ml cans today. ©2020 AB InBev UK Limited, all rights reserved.

*NEILSEN GB Total Impulse – Value (in £M) – 2019 ** Nielsen Scantrack |YTD 05.09.20 | Impulse channel

ALCOHOLIC SPARKLING WATER. YEAH, THAT’S A THING NOW.

Please drink responsibly. Over 18s only.

News

Newstrade

Reach targets newsroom diversity Daily Record and Mirror

News& Magazines

publisher Reach is creating a new training scheme called Reach Boost designed to improve minority ethnic and social class representation in its newsrooms.

Reach will pay for aspiring journalists to train while in full time employment in newsrooms, initially in the publisher’s London and the South East region. If the scheme is successful Reach is hoping to roll out ‘Reach Boost’ across other regions.

Under the scheme Reach will partner with NCTJ-accredited journalism course providers to take on and support students

FESTIVE CHOLATE NPD – P42 NEWS Net giant backs publishing

GOOGLE TO PAY $1BN TO PUBLISHERS TO PRESERVE EDITORIAL INTEGRITY

Google will pay $1bn to news publishers around the world to let them make more editorial decisions about how their content appears on its products.

from a diverse range of backgrounds to achieve their formal journalism training.

Telegraph boosts profits Telegraph Media Group grew saw its profits rocket by 73% to £14.3m in 2019, thanks in large part to the company growing its digital subscription revenues by half to £17.8m.

What the company terms “planned cost actions” also contributed to the hike in profits, despite the fact that turnover fell by 5% to £263.9m in 2019.

The Telegraph’s digital subscribers have grown from 363,000 in December 2018 to

In an unusual move, internet giant Google has confirmed that it will pay $1bn to news publishers around the world over the next three years to let them make more editorial decisions about how their content appears on its products.

The Google News Showcase will create story panels that participating publishers can package however they see fit, though some publishers see the move as an indication that Google is “feeling the pressure of legislation and government action designed to bring them to the negotiating table”.

The latest announcement builds on Google’s news licensing programme announced earlier this year for which Google said it would pay for free access for users to read articles from paywalled publications to help them grow their audiences.

Almost 200 national and regional publishers are already on board for the product, according to

Google.

The story panels will appear initially within Google News on Android, then Apple and later on Google Discover and Search.

News Corp chief executive Robert Thomson commented: “We applaud Google’s recognition of a premium for premium journalism and the understanding that the editorial eco-system has been dysfunctional, verging on dystopian.

“There are complex negotiations ahead but the principle and the precedent are now established.”

423,000 in December 2019. As of 8 September this year it has 522,000 subscribers who pay

NEWSPAPERS

from £2 per week.

Guardian redundancy letters ‘sent with insufficient postage’

Average net revenue per digital subscriber grew 8% in 2019 to £99.40

Guardian staff being made redundant by the publisher as it aims to cut its workforce by about 12% reportedly received their redundancy letters only to discover that they had been sent with insufficient postage and that they might be required to pay the difference to claim the letters back.

An article in The Press Gazette, the newspaper for the UK’s journalists, highlighted how threatened staff were promised the letters but receive nothing for several days after the promised delivery date and were then emailed instead. Then the staff receiving voluntary redundancy letters were told that the letters did not have sufficient postage on them and would require them to pay £1.50 to claim their letters confirming their redundancy.

The staff were then they could choose to either expense the cost or leave it and wait for the offer by email instead.

Guardian News and Media currently has 1,495 staff of whom 869 work in editorial and production.

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Inside Business

Research Digest

FTG TO DROP £6BN A YouGov nationwide poll of more than 2,000 GB adults has revealed that more than half of British people believe that the re-opening of pubs, bars and non-essential businesses came too soon.

The UK food-to-go market is set to decline by £6bn in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the new Lumina Intelligence UK Food-togo Market Report 2020 Update.

However, the report forecasts that turnover of the food-to-go market will recover to close to its 2019 level by the end of 2022.

The UK food-to-go market experienced a decade of growth through the 2010s with Lumina Intelligence valuing the market at £21.3bn in 2019, a growth of +2.4%.

However, the catastrophic impact of the coronavirus pandemic is set to wipe £6bn off the market value in 2020.

This equates to a decline of 29%, taking the market value to £15bn.

The average number of foodto-go visits per consumer per month has dropped 25% yearon-year with lunch the most impacted daypart with a fall in frequency of 37%.

Despite a significant reduction in value this year, the food-to-go market is set to recover quickly due to its versatility, low contact and value-led proposition.

80% OF SHOPPERS ‘WANT TO HELP HIGH STREET’ New research from Visa suggests many consumers are concerned about the future of their high streets – and over 80% want to help.

A

s lockdown measures tighten up once more, new research among 2,000 adults by Visa reveals that four in five shoppers (81%) believe their high streets need support to pull through. Some 84% of consumers are worried about the future of their high street but 81% of Scottish consumers are determined to play their part in supporting local businesses.

The research from Visa also revealed that half (46%) of UK small business owners say that if everyone in their local community spent just £5 extra a week with small businesses either on or offline, it would help them to survive in

the long term. As a result, Visa is partnering with grassroots initiative Totally Locally to offer free ‘Town Kits’ to small

business owners and community groups looking to work together to protect the future of independent high streets.

Together they are encouraging small business owners to sign up to ‘Fiver Fest’, a two week celebration of small businesses and local communities. With over half of consumers (58%) saying they could spend £5 extra a week with small businesses, Totally Locally and Visa are calling on consumers to make a change to their spending habits and shop locally where they can.

For more information, visit www. fiverfest.co.uk for a list of towns taking part or if you want your town to join in.

FROZEN OUTPERFORMS FRESH AND CHILLED New Kantar data shared by the British Frozen Food Federation shows that the frozen category has risen by more than £221m in the last three months alone, outperforming fresh and chilled.

L

ike many categories, frozen has enjoyed something of renaissance during the pandemic. The category has been growing steadily in recent years but the latest Kantar data, shared today by the British Frozen Food Federation (BFFF), shows that sales of frozen food have increased by £221m in the last three months (w/e 6 September).

The growth in sales follows an increase of £285m in the previous 12-week period from 26

SLR | OCTOBER 2020

the end of March to 14 June, indicating that the popularity of frozen food has continued to grow under lockdown. In the three months since 8 June, value rose by 13.6%, whilst volume was up by 9.9%, outperforming the total grocery market in both volume and value as well as the fresh and chilled category.

BFFF Chief Executive Richard Harrow (pictured) comments: “The performance of the frozen category remains very positive with continued growth ahead of total grocery. In all

three sets of 12 week data supplied by Kantar this year, frozen value performance has been above both grocery and fresh and chilled in percentage terms.

“We know that since mid-March, more consumers than ever have been shopping in the frozen aisle. This is hardly surprising, given the long shelf-life, reduced food waste, value for money and variety of food on offer there. These latest figures indicate this may be a long-term trend.” www.slrmag.co.uk

Inside Business

Menthol Ban

VAPING UP 12.6% AFTER MENTHOL BAN IRI data for the 12 weeks after the introduction of the Menthol Ban in May show the vaping category in double digit growth while menthol product sales rocketed by almost 45%.

V

aping category sales increased by 12.6% in the 12 weeks after the introduction of the Menthol Ban on 20 May, compared with the previous 12 week period, according to data from IRI. Sales of menthol products shot up 44.6% over the same period in tracked channels.

Since May, it has been illegal for manufacturers to produce, and retailers to sell, menthol flavoured cigarettes as part of the revised European Tobacco Products Directive.

The data is the first reliable insight into the impact of the ban on characterising flavours – to give the new legislation its Sunday name – and appears to suggest that the ban has given the vaping category the boost that many retailers expected it to.

The news has been welcomed by Juul Labs UK, with Sales Director John Patterson commenting: “Juul Labs believes smokers should first and foremost quit. Those who have not successfully quit should completely switch to potentially less harmful alternative nicotine products. Our mission is to transition the world’s billion adult smokers away from combustible cigarettes, eliminate their use, and combat underage usage of our products.

We believe that vapour products can offer adult smokers an alternative to combustible cigarettes and, in so doing, reduce the harm associated with tobacco.

“The vaping category itself has experienced solid growth in the past few months. If we look at total sales across closed and open systems in the twelve weeks pre and post the removal of menthol cigarettes, menthol and mint products contributed to almost 60% of all growth in the category, with menthol flavours alone responsible for 36% of all growth.”

Patterson hails the company’s Glacier Mint and Menthol JUULpods as key drivers and must-stock products for retailers: “With vaping products, adult smokers have a choice of flavours and a range of alternative options

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that may help them transition away from combustible cigarettes.

“Since May, Glacier Mint JUULpods have remained the number one refill kit in the closed pod sector in the UK and Menthol JUULpods have performed strongly. Retailers who stock the JUUL range could therefore grow their category sales and offer adult

smokers a credible alternative to cigarettes, which continue to be the number one cause of preventable death in the UK.” Juul Labs is continuing to invest in its ‘Challenge 25’ age verification policy, providing retailer training, alongside mystery shopping audits to limit appeal to underage individuals.

“In the 12 weeks pre and post the removal of menthol cigarettes, menthol and mint products contributed to almost 60% of all growth in the category.”

JOHN PATTERSON, JUUL LABS

OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

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Inside Business

MFG Londis Bellshill

DRIVING GROWTH IN BELLSHILL Bellshill retailer Baiju Jose’s forecourt reopened last month after a full refit and refresh to convert the MFG-owned forecourt into a Londis – and it’s been a great few weeks with immediate sales hikes.

BY ANTONY BEGLEY

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www.slrmag.co.uk

MFG Londis Bellshill

Inside Business

“We increased the sales space by taking some space from what was the back store which allowed us to bring in new products and services, and also let us grow some categories that are doing well and needed more space.”

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hen you own 900 or so sites and change retail partner, the task of rebranding the entire group is no mean feat - as Motor Fuel Group (MFG) has been finding over the last couple of years since it acquired MRH in 2018 and started work on shifting every store into Londis, but the pace at which they are executing the task is impressive by any standard. With ex-Booker stalwart Steve Fox now firmly in position, it’s hardly a surprise that high standards are both demanded and delivered by the MFG team.

The latest store to receive a full conversion and refit is the MFG forecourt in Bellshill.

MFG operates a ‘commission’ model which basically means that MFG owns the sites but, rather than being run by MFG staff, the stores are run by self-employed retailers.

It’s a similar model to that Spar wholesaler and retailer AF Blakemore has just begun experimenting with down south and we may see more of it in future.

The Bellshill store is managed by Baiju Jose and reopened last month after a major refit, rebranding and expansion of the shopfloor.

“It’s been a very busy few weeks, as you can imagine, but it’s been an instant success,” says Baiju.

“We’ve seen immediate sales increases of 15% on the week before, which is great as the store had already been performing to a high level during the pandemic.

The store used to be an MRH site under the Hurst’s brand so the conversion to Londis was the perfect opportunity for MFG and Baiju to make major improvements across the board.

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OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

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Inside Business

MFG Londis Bellshill

He explains: “The refit took four weeks in total and for a week of that we had to close the site altogether to allow for re-pumping and so on, which we couldn’t do with customers around. On the forecourt, we re-pumped every island and we also added Super Unleaded for the first time which meant bringing in a brand new storage tank, but it lets us broaden our offer to shoppers. We get a lot of HGV custom too, being so close to the M8 and various business parks, so we also decided to modernise the HGV pumps which lets HGVs fill up twice as quickly as before. Plus, we’ve added an Adblue option on every pump. We’ve also replaced all the signage and furniture and the car wash, so our overall forecourt offer is much stronger.”

The store itself also saw a major rework to allow Baiju to grow his retail range significantly. “We increased the sales space by taking some space from what was the back store,” he explains. “It was bigger than we needed anyway, but that allowed us to add about a quarter more space to the shopfloor.

We now sit somewhere around the 2,000sq ft mark for retail space. That allowed us to bring in new products and services, and also let us grow some categories that are doing well and needed more space.”

With a convenience location just off the M8 and close to many major industrial parks, HGV drivers are a key target for the store, as are the school kids from the nearby high school but the the store also sees large footfall from the residential area that surrounds the store.

“For the HGV audience, the new faster pumps are a big draw, but we wanted to get the lorry drivers to spend more in the shop too,” says Baiju. “We already had a Subway, which we’ve retained, but we’ve increased our food-to-go offer with a new chiller for chilled food-to-go alongside a new set of meal deals.

We’ve also added a F’Real machine and Tango Ice Blast to the Costa machine we already had.

We’ve essentially created a dedicated food-togo area in the store for the first time and that’s proven really popular. Plus we’ve doubled the range of snacks, bars and protein lines we have and we’ve got a much wider range of electrical accessories from Fifo. We’ve created a new area for accessories and equipment that HGV drivers are looking for – everything from plug-in kettles to air freshener and bug cleaner.

“We want the drivers to know we’ve thought about what they need and that they’ll get a fast, efficient, enjoyable experience when they 30

SLR | OCTOBER 2020

www.slrmag.co.uk

MFG Londis Bellshill

Inside Business

visit us.”

While the pandemic has badly affected footfall from the local school, the store has still been very busy in recent months, particularly early in the morning and at lunchtime. “So we re-worked our offer to make the store even more attractive to our key demographics,” he says. “The Subway is a massive draw but the F’Real and Tango Ice Blast are already proving big hits. A new US candy gondola end has also been popular and we have a comprehensive range of crisps, snacks, confectionery and soft drinks too.”

The local residents have always used the store regularly and Baiju benefits from the customers visiting the McDonald’s next door and the Premier Inn across the road. He comments: “They love the new look store and our improved range, but we’ve also upweighted our offer for the local market.

We’ve brought in a new range of meal solutions, things like ready meals that offer a quick, tasty and convenient solution for lunches or evening meals and we have a solid core grocery range.”

So is he pleased with the move to Londis and his shiny new forecourt and store?

“Absolutely,” he says? “We were obviously hoping for an uplift in sales after the changes but we probably didn’t expect increases as big as 15% on top of what has already been a fairly strong six months.

Coronavirus has turned the world upside down for us, as it has for all retailers, but MFG has been working very hard to support us and, as a group, it’s proving very resilient. Fuel sales were down obviously, but we’re beginning to get back to something approaching normal.

Currently, MFG sites are only down about 15% year-on-year in terms of fuel sales, which is remarkable. But you never know what’s coming next.

The recent 10pm closing time in hospitality has probably helped, as we’re a 24 hour shop, so we’re seeing decent footfall after the pubs and restaurants close, but you can never tell what’s coming next.

We just need to be as prepared as we can and as flexible as we can so that we are in a position to cope with all this flux.”

And the progress hasn’t ended just because the refit has been completed. “We’re just about to add a home deliveries service with Uber Eats and we expect to see some more growth through that,” concludes Baiju. “We’re just working hard at giving our shoppers what they want and helping them out however we can in these very unusual times.” www.slrmag.co.uk

OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

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Inside Business

Covid-19 | UWS Bio-fogging

THE BIO-FOGGERS ARE BACK AT UWS

With coronavirus cases on the rise once more, Glasgow wholesaler United Wholesale (Scotland) has called in the bio-foggers again to deep clean and disinfect all its sites to protect customers and staff.

“It’s fantastic to see UWS taking the safety of customers and staff to another level. This deep clean has given me confidence to shop without thinking about the worry that Covid has brought to the nation.”

QUEENSLIE CUSTOMER NAVEED AMJED, DAY TODAY ELITE, VARNSDORF WAY, AIRDRIE

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s every week goes by, the likelihood that the country will once again return to full lockdown increases and it’s more important than ever that wholesalers and retailers ensure that their customers and staff are as safe as possible when they shop.

With those concerns now front of mind, Glasgow-based United Wholesale (Scotland) has called in specialist contractor PSS Group again to carry out ‘bio-fogging’ disinfection of its three depots and its head office.

UWS became the first wholesaler in Scotland to utilise bio-fogging technology earlier this year but with Covid-19 cases once

again on the rise, Managing Director Chris Gallacher decided it was time to do another full deep clean.

The ‘bio-fogging’ technology used is also deployed in hospitals and is implemented using a specialised hand-held device to deliver a disinfectant solution in a mist form. After a few hours, the treated areas become safe to the public.

“The safety of our workforce and customers has always been our number one concern throughout the pandemic, which is why we implemented bio-fogging for the first time earlier this year,” said Gallacher. “But with coronavirus concerns growing once more www.slrmag.co.uk

UWS Bio-fogging | Covid-19

we felt that it was important that we respond positively and proactively so we have decided to repeat the bio-fogging process once more across our depots and head office.

“We want to do everything we can to not only protect our workforce and customers, but to help drive down coronavirus cases and care for our NHS. Deep cleaning is a sensible plan for all businesses. I would encourage all wholesale and retail groups to carry out this procedure.”

Each of the three UWS depots have now been successfully decontaminated during closing hours once more to ensure no harm can come to customers or staff. The operation was again carried out by PSS Group and means that the nearly 3,000 retailers who shop at UWS can continue to provide the

nation with vital supplies without any worry of catching the virus.

Additionally, the company has just purchased new ride-on floor washing machines to ensure the floors in all depots are cleaned and sanitised before opening for trade the next day.

Mohammad Abdur Rajak, Owner of DayToday Bridgeton, said: “It’s fantastic to see UWS is taking the safety of its customers and keyworkers so seriously. The recent second deep clean at its depot with fog technology gives us that much needed confidence and that added layer of security whilst shopping at any of their three warehouses.”

Gallacher also said several of UWS’s retail customers are in the process of preparing for implementing bio-fogging in their stores.

Inside Business

“This is a great move from UWS. I’m always concerned when doing the weekly shop but this just gives us the confidence we can come to M9 and shop without worry about the risk Covid 19 brings.”

M9 CUSTOMERS ASIYAH & JAV JAVID, DAY TODAY EXPRESS ELITE, ALLOA RD STENHOUSEMUIR

“There is no doubt these guys are going above and beyond. Not only do they have security at the front door they are making sure everyone has facemasks on before entering the cash and carry. The trolley is sanitised and the central cash team are protected with high screens. The Bio Fogging just gives you that extra confidence to shop at UWS.” MAXWELL RD CUSTOMER ALI, DAY-TODAY ELITE, BLANTYRE

www.slrmag.co.uk

OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

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SLR REWARDS

CATEGORY MANAGEMENT | VAPING

TOBACCO REMAINS KEY, BUT VAPING IS THRIVING

JTI, sponsors of the vaping category at this year’s SLR Rewards, offer some great category management advice to help local retailers in Scotland make more of a thriving category.

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hilst the Characterising Flavour Ban has brought substantial changes, the tobacco category is extremely resilient, having faced countless legislative changes over the past decade. As expected, new trends have emerged post-Ban, as customers make the decision to switch to other products.

In order to take advantage of this opportunity, retailers should continue to monitor trends and develop their ranges to meet these new customer demands.

TOBACCO IS STILL KEY As one of the biggest and most resilient FMCG categories1, traditional tobacco still remains a key profit driver and should not be overlooked.

Retailers should maintain full availability and range across all brands, stocking at RRP* or below. As the trend towards value continues to boom, with the segment growing 20.9% year-on-year in Scotland2, retailers should look to maximise on sales, by stocking products such as Kensitas Club - which is the fastest growing tobacco brand in Scotland3, Amber Leaf, the UK’s No.1 tobacco brand with a 29.6% share of the RYO market4, Sterling Rolling Tobacco 3-in-1 pouches, which have recently transitioned from a crushproof box, and Sterling Dual Capsule Leaf Wrapped cigarillos, which are the UK’s No.1 cigarillo brand, with a 97.9% share of the UK cigarillo market5.

VAPING IS THRIVING With the vaping category growing 26.6% year-on-year6, and set to continue as ex-menthol and capsule smokers look for alternative products postBan, retailers should take advantage of this opportunity and stock up on best-sellers, like our popular pod-device Logic Compact. Retailers should also be mindful of the different types of vapers, especially now some have become more experimental as the category grows. It is important to stock up on a range of products, including for example, the Logic Compact Intense and EPIQ ranges, which include nicotine salts to offer a smoother and more intense flavour delivery in a range of different flavours.

NEXT-GEN NICOTINE IS ONE TO WATCH Since its launch into the UK market in 2018, the tobacco-free nicotine pouch category has grown considerably and is now worth £44,036 a month in Scotland7, presenting a huge profit opportunity for retailers. As customers look towards alternatives to traditional tobacco and vaping products, demand is set to continue, and retailers should look to stock products such as Nordic Spirit, which holds 89.4% market share in

Scotland8.

Nordic Spirit is currently available in a regular 6mg and strong 9mg in three flavours - Bergamot Wildberry, Elderflower and Mint which is also now available in an extra strong 12mg. As the category continues to grow, and customers have questions on the products and how they work, retailers should be knowledgeable about the category and the brands they stock.

For more information on all of these categories, retailers should visit JTIAdvance.co.uk, or take advantage of JTI’s extensive UK salesforce, who are fully trained to give advice to help retailers make the most of the tobacco, vaping and next-gen nicotine categories, from the latest trends to legislation and NPD. 1 IRi Market Place January 2020 2 IRi Market Place, Volume Sales, Value RYO Category, North Scotland, Central Scotland & Border Regions Combined, MAT To 31/05/20 vs MAT To 02/06/19 3 IRi Market Place, Volume Share, Total Tobacco Category, North Scotland, Central Scotland & Border Regions Combined, over the last 12 months to May 2020 (based on slope calculation) 4 IRi Market Place, Volume Share, Total RYO/MYO, Total UK, May 2020 5 IRI Market Place, Volume Share, Total Cigar Category, Total UK, May 2020 6 IRI Market Place, Value Sales, Total E-Vapour Category, Total UK, MAT Jun 2020 vs MAT Jun 2019 7 IRi Market Place, Value Sales, Nicotine Pouch Category, North Scotland, Central Scotland & Border Regions Combined, Jun 2020 [ii] IRi Market Place, Value Sales, Nicotine Pouch Category, North Scotland, Central Scotland & Border Regions Combined, Annualised Figure Based on Jun 2020 8 IRi Market Place, Unit Share, Nicotine Pouch Category, North Scotland, Central Scotland & Border Regions Combined, Jun 2020

*Retailers are of course free to sell JTI products at whatever price they choose www.slrmag.co.uk

OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

37

BOURTREEHILL IRVINE

www.uniteduk.com

UnitedWholesaleScotland

www.day-today.co.uk

MyLocalDayToday

www.usave.org.uk

“Day-Today have undertaken a full critique of my store and they have delivered on every point.

The team at Day-Today have made a number of positive changes to the store layout so I’m now making the sales floor work much harder.

My sales have never been higher and my customers love what we’ve done with the store.”

Imran Ali”

CO-OWNER IMRAN ALI

CO-OWNER S AY I A D H A M I D

J O I N D AY- T O D AY T O B E C O M E T H E V E R Y B E S T I N R E TA I L !

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Hotlines

Product News & Media Watch

Strips Bobby’s Foods Bobby’s Foods has unveiled Strips, a new “uniquely shaped” potato chip with a thin, layered texture designed to impart the maximum amount of flavour. Suitable for vegetarians, Strips is available now in the following three variants – Salt & Vinegar, Cheese & Onion, and BBQ – in shelf-ready packs of 16 x 90g, with a £1 RSP. To order or to find out more retailers should call John Lucas on 07760 431230 or email john.lucas@ bobbysfoods. co.uk.

Tropicana Lean PepsiCo Tropicana’s brand-new range of juice drinks containing 40% less sugar and 40% less calories and rolls out in three flavours: Citrus Fruit, Mixed Berries and Tropical Fruit. All are available in 900ml bottles made from 100% recycled plastic (RSP £2.75). The launch addresses the issue of sugar content – a key reason why shoppers, particularly those with families, leave the chilled juice category.

Slow Roasted Nuts Forest Feast Forest Feast’s new premium Slow Roasted & Seasoned Nut range is gluten free and available now with an RSP of £3 per 120g pack. The range launched with six variants: Colossal Cashews with Sea Salt; Californian Pistachios with Sea Salt; Sea Salt & Black Peppercorn Nut Mix; Pitmaster Smoked Almonds & Peanuts; Serrano Chilli Honey Almonds & Peanuts; and Heather Honey Peanuts & Cashews.

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Ribena gets fizzy with new sparkling range Ribena has entered the flavoured carbonates category with the launch of new Ribena Sparkling.

Ribena Sparkling is available now in two flavours across three formats. Ribena Sparkling Blackcurrant comes in 500ml, 2-ltr and 6 x 330ml multipack cans, while Ribena Sparkling Raspberry is available in 500ml and 2-ltr formats.

Price-marked packs are available on both the 500ml and 2-ltr formats. The 500ml PET bottles are priced in line with existing Ribena SKUs, at £1.09 or 2-for-£2, while the 2-ltr bottles will be price-marked at £1.79.

The new lines are intended to be sited alongside other flavoured carbonates in the chiller – separate from Ribena’s core juice drinks.

The launch is supported with out-of-home, digital and social media campaigns as well as extensive shopper marketing activity.

Ribena is also offering retailers an exclusive reward which can be claimed through the Shopt app until 27 October.

Charlotte Flook, Head of Brand, Ribena, at Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I, said: “Blackcurrant is the seventh biggest soft drinks flavour and there is only one other mainstream raspberry-flavoured fizzy drink offering in the market.

“We also know that blackcurrant and raspberry flavours are 33% and 61% incremental to the category respectively, which demonstrates the opportunity the new drinks can offer retailers in terms of additional sales.”

For more information, retailers should call Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I on 08702 408601 or visit www.lrsuntory.com.

Cook Republic ready meals Swift Fine Foods Irish ready meal and convenience food producer Swift Fine Foods has launched a new range of premium vegan ready meals into the UK. The new range has been developed to capitalise on growing consumer demand for fresh, healthy and convenient vegan meal options.

It launches with four variants: Tofu, Garlic & Bok Choy Noodles; Black & Red Lentil Casserole; Roast Aubergine & Couscous; and Cauliflower & Chickpea Tagine. All RSP at £4.49.

‘Stay Positive’ sweets Bonds of London The four-strong range promotes and fundraises for The Mix, a charity that provides support to under 25s, offering free, confidential and multichannel services. Packs share one of four positive messages: ‘Brighter Days’ on Mini Pencil Bites; ‘Pass on the Love’ on Heart Gummies; ‘Squeeze the Day’ on Sherbet Lemons; and ‘In This Together’ on Cherry Jellies. Bonds will donate 5p to The Mix for every pack sold.

Chicago Town Pizza to Go Dr Oetker Chicago Town has added three new flavours to its hot Pizza To Go self-serve range – Chicken & Bacon, Manhattan Meaty, and Saucy Vegan.

All feature rising dough and crusts stuffed with the brand’s signature tomato sauce. The vegan-friendly variant is loaded with jackfruit in BBQ sauce and topped with a dairy free mozzarella alternative. Visit oetkerfoodservice.co.uk or email foodtogo@oetker.co.uk.

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Hotlines

Product News & Media Watch Maryland Choc Chip & Coconut Cookies Burton’s Biscuit Company

Vegan Pepperoni Slices Quorn

Maryland’s new on-trend flavour is available now, exclusively to the convenience channel, in 200g, £1 price-marked packs. Burton’s recently rolled out the new £1 200g PMP range, replacing 99p 136g PMP’s, in a bid to drive impulse sales in stores. Coconut and chocolate flavoured biscuits are currently experiencing 65% year-onyear growth within the convenience channel.

Lemon Drizzle Slice Spar Brand Spar Brand has extended its food-to-go range with the launch of several new products including Spar Mini Lemon Drizzle Cake (60g, RSP 90p). Also available are Spar Plain Porridge and Spar Apple & Cinnamon Porridge (both 250g, £1.50 promo), two sub rolls Ham & Cheese and Chicken & Stuffing (both £3.25), and snacks including Low Calorie Strawberry Jelly Pot (160g, RSP 70p), and Spar Chocolate Mousse (70g, RSP 50p).

Vegan Pepperoni Slices (100g, RSP £2.20) is Quorn’s first Vegan Pepperoni product, launched as part of its Deli range. Available now, the slices are ideal for hot lunchtime sandwiches or as a vegan pizza topping. Vegan Deli, which launched in 2018, is Quorn’s most successful range to date and has so far delivered £21.4m sales and is growing at 64% year-on-year.

To stock Quorn contact customer. services@quornfoods.com.

Cadbury Dairy Milk Honeycomb & Nuts Mondelez The latest addition to join the Cadbury Dairy Milk range is the winner of the brand’s Inventor competition. Dreamed up by 19-year-old student Shannon Beech, it combines milk chocolate with golden crunchy honeycomb pieces and caramel-flavoured fudge, finished with chopped hazelnuts and will be available from January next year.

MEDIAwatch



Let’s stick together Confectionery brand Toffifee is back on screens with a new £1.8m TV and video-ondemand campaign. A new ad, which runs until 1 November, aims to increase brand awareness, and drive sales by showcasing Toffifee’s ability “to bring the family together with its delicious ingredients, perfect in the run up to the festive season”.

Juice on the loose again It’s a far cry from the 1993 ad that featured a manic bekilted Scotsman, but Maynards Bassetts is once more asking the nation to “set the juice loose” across outdoor and digital. The new campaign aims to get the brand firmly back on the radar of the British public and remind consumers of its 100+ year heritage.

JET keeps on moving The JET fuel brand has launched ‘Keep On Moving,’ its first TV campaign in over 20 years.

Shot at the new JET Dove Retail White Rose Service Station in Barnsley and throughout the Peak District National Park, the ad is part of JET’s ongoing brand awareness programme designed to increase visibility and consideration amongst customers.

The Playful Network Grand High Witch’s Chocolate + Vanilla Slices Premier Foods

£1 price-marked packs KP Snacks

Part of Premier Foods’ Halloween seasonal range, 8-packs RSP at £1.50 and launch under an extension of the annual Mr Kipling Roald Dahl summer range. Formula 86 Chocolate Tarts (6-pack, RSP £1.50) are also available. Both terrifying treats are inspired by the popular children’s author’s ‘The Witches’ story.

KP Snacks has added four new SKUs its £1 PMP range: McCoy’s Hot Mexican Chilli, Penn State Sour Cream & Chive, popchips BBQ and popchips Sour Cream & Onion.

All are available now. The popchips lines replace equivalent £1.29 PMPs. The launch comes as CSNs are found to be showing up in 70% more convenience baskets during lockdown.

Oreo has launched a new digital campaign – The Playful Network – which takes the mickey out of hyped-up mobile and broadband suppliers. A website features tips and ideas to create better connections with people.

The campaign runs until late November on video-on-demand, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and digital display.

Werther’s turns up the heat Werther’s Original has launched a new TV ad, as part of its £3m 2020 campaign to attract a new generation of shoppers. It features the tagline ‘What’s your little piece of warmth?’ and looks to celebrate the versatility of the Werther’s range. The advert runs until 8 November across primetime TV, as well as featuring in cinemas throughout October.

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

OCTOBER 2020 | SLR

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Feature

Christmas Confectionery

THE SWEETEST CHRISTMAS FOR YEARS?

With many consumers confined to barracks over the coming months, this Christmas could turn out to be the sweetest in many years for local retailers with festive confectionery sure to be a huge hit.

C

onfectionery is always a star of the Christmas show but there’s a strong argument to be made that this festive season could be a barnstormer as shoppers try to put the strains and stresses of lockdown behind them by planning a bumper festive season.

To help local retailers plan their festive range, we take a look at some of the NPD that will help drive footfall, sales and profit this year...

MARS WRIGLEY UK Mars Wrigley UK is bolstering its list of festive favourites like Celebrations and Maltesers Reindeer with two new indulgent flavours from the Galaxy Truffles range: Galaxy Truffles Caramel and Galaxy Truffles Orange. The company is also growing its selection box and advent calendar with a new Galaxy Truffles Advent Calendar and the return of the Malteaser Truffles the company has something for every shopper and every occasion this Christmas.

GALAXY CARAMEL TRUFFLES / GALAXY CARAMEL TRUFFLES (RSP £4.99 212G) The treat’s smooth caramel and velvety truffle centre is the perfect gift or addition to a Christmas party. Mars’ leading ‘chocolate scientists’ carried out extensive flavour testing trials to ascertain the perfect ratio of caramel to truffle. After sampling over 10 different caramels, the perfect flavour pairing was found.

Orange is clearly the flavour of the festive season with new Galaxy Orange Truffles helping retailers cash in on this on-trend flavour.

MILKY WAY SELECTION BOX (RSP £3.29 - 127G) SKITTLES SELECTION BOX (RSP £3.29 – 150.5G) Mars Wrigley is focusing on the selection box opportunity with two new stocking fillers, Milky Way Selection Box and Skittles Selection Box.

GALAXY TRUFFLES ADVENT CALENDAR (RSP £9.99 - 247G) / MALTESERS TRUFFLES ADVENT CALENDAR (RSP £9.99 - 218G)

MONDELEZ INTERNATIONAL Mondel�z is the number one confectionery supplier at Christmas and will be helping shoppers create some much-needed Christmas magic for their loved ones this year.

CADBURY DAIRY MILK ADVENT CALENDAR (RSP £5.99 - 258G) This beautifully designed Cadbury Dairy Milk Advent Calendar is perfect for those who want a classic treat to enjoy as they countdown to Christmas.

CADBURY DAIRY MILK JINGLY BELLS HAZELNUT CREME AND CHOCOLATE NOISETTE (RSP £1.49 - 82G) New limited-edition Cadbury Dairy Milk Jingly Bells are deliciously creamy and perfect for a treat for adults and to gift in stockings this Christmas.

FREDDO GIANT GOLD TREASURES TINS (RSP £5.99) The perfect gift for parents to give to children this season, who will discover delicious Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate buttons and a great surprise toy too!

Alongside the new and favourite gifting options, Mars is also extending the premium offering to advent calendars, with the launch of the new Galaxy Truffles Advent Calendar and the return of Maltesers Truffles Advent Calendar.

CADBURY ROSES BY EMMA BRIDGWATER TIN (RSP £9.99 - 800G)

MALTESERS CHRISTMAS MIX (RSP £0.65 – £9.99; 29G - 500G)

Cadbury Roses and Emma Bridgewater have come together with this special edition tin.

This year, the 265g Maltesers Christmas Mix pouch is back again and will contain 15 SKUs in total including a selection of Maltesers Buttons, Maltesers Reindeer and Maltesers packets.

CADBURY DAIRY MILK CHUNK GIFT BOX (RSP £2.99 - £4.99; 96G - 250G) The ultimate gift for loved ones this Christmas, the Cadbury Dairy Milk Chunk Gift Box is filled with delicious chocolate parcels.

OREO SELECTION BOX (RSP £5.95 430G) The ideal Secret Santa Christmas gift for Oreo fans, this selection box is filled with Cadbury Dairy Milk and Oreo flavour goodies including Oreo Mint, Classic Oreo and 2 x Original Dairy Milk bars.

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Feature

Medicated Confectionery

IT’S MEDICATION TIME Having a cough, sore throat or a bout of sneezing takes on an entirely fresh complexion this year as fears around coronavirus appear to be growing once more - so make sure you’re ready for a spike in sales of medicated confectionery.

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edicated confectionery comes into its own at this time of year but the category could see an even steeper spike in sales than usual as shoppers take every step they can to ensure they avoid coughs and sneezes in this coronavirus-dominated world.

“As it starts to get colder outside and with winter quickly approaching, consumers are looking for a way to stay ahead of the game when it comes to their health,” says Susan Nash, Trade Communications Manager at Mondel z International. “Relief candy plays a key part in a retailer’s range at this time of year.

Halls, the number one relief candy brand in the UK [Nielsen, Aug 2020]], is fulfilling consumer’s needs through an exciting range of products.”

To help retailers capitalise, Halls last unveiled an innovative new

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product perfect for this time of year. Halls demonstrated its market-leading position with the launch of new Halls Proactive with Vitamin C, a category first. This product aims to drive incremental sales for retailers, through extending into a new need-state and targeting a broader consumption occasion.

The sugar-free sweets with added Vitamin C proactively support the immune system before the onset of coughs and colds and are available in two citrus flavours – Orange and Pink Grapefruit – in a handy resealable bag.

The Halls and Halls Soothers range are iconic brands in the Relief category – so much so that when the new Halls Proactive was tested, the results showed 82% [Zappistore Concept Test - January 2019] of UK consumers would consider purchasing the new range extension.

Nash advises all retailers to stock the full range this winter, to meet all shoppers needs and flavour preferences.

Another popular brand worth stocking is Lockets which contain a soothing liquid centre and clearing menthol double-action formula.

Each pack contains 10 sweets and the range includes three flavours: Honey & Lemon, Extra Strong and Cranberry & Blueberry.

www.slrmag.co.uk

Feature

Cigars

CIGAR MARKET POLARISES UNDER LOCKDOWN The cigar category has performed remarkably well during the pandemic with the best performing segments at each end of the spectrum: value for money and premium.

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t’s a tough job making sense of market data these days with the last six or seven months throwing the world into turmoil. Analysing what the basic market research data is telling us and why it’s happening is no easy task and the cigar category is no different.

At top line level, the category has performed remarkably well.

The total cigar category is down across the UK by about 3.5% by volume and just 0.2% by value. Compare that with just four and five years and the market was in double digit decline. In Scotland the picture is even rosier with sales volumes down just 3% and value up by 2.1%.

What’s interesting to note, however, is that sales in Scotland of medium and large cigars have actually risen – and by a chunky 6.5% in volume and 10.2% in value. Miniature cigars still dominate the market with 71% volume share, but the growth of sales in larger cigars is worth noting.

Alastair Williams, UK Country Director at category captains Scandinavian Tobacco Group accepts that interpreting the data and understanding why the shifts are happening is complex, but suggests it’s possible simply down to ‘occasions’.

“What we’re seeing under lockdown is more people spending more time at home,” he explains. “Medium and large cigars obviously require a little longer to enjoy so it could simply be that more consumers have more occasions available to them to enjoy a larger cigar. Plus, the great weather all summer undoubtedly helped.”

At least some of the growth in the larger cigar market has been driven by a special limited edition introduced in August by STG. The Union Jack-bedecked Henri Wintermans Half Corona Limited Edition saw sales spike hugely and annual retail sales value in Scotland hit a chunky £1.9m.

But it’s not just at the premium end that the category is growing.

The only top 10 cigar brand in significant growth is Moments Blue, STG’s leading value for money offering. Sales are up 1.7% by volume in Scotland.

“It appears that there is a bit of polarisation,” says Williams. “The areas we’re seeing the biggest growth are in the premium end and the value for money end and that’s something that retailers should be aware of when they’re checking their range.”

STG is by far the largest player in the category both across the UK (54.9% share) and especially in Scotland (60.4%) share and the company has had a positive 2020 so far. Highlights include above

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SCOTTISH CIGAR MARKET

TOP 10 BRANDS IN SCOTLAND

expectations yearly performance, the launch of Signature Dual Filter cigarillo, the completion of the acquisition of the Royal Agio business and the signing of a new distribution deal with Mac Baren pipe tobacco.

All of these moves are set to further strengthen STG’s hold on the category and is potentially great news for local retailers. With the top three brands in Scotland and six of the top 10, STG’s portfolio now accounts for more than 35% of the total Scottish market.

Cigars remains a small element of the overall tobacco category but it’s an element that’s proving very resilient and the longer lockdown continues the more likely that the category will continue to solidify. So when is the last time you reviewed your range, and is it in line with the trends prevailing under lockdown? www.slrmag.co.uk

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Feature

Packaging

SOFT DRINKS GIANTS TAKE THE LEAD ON PACKAGING REVOLUTION With the ‘green recovery’ well underway, it’s the UK’s soft drinks manufacturers that are taking the lead on driving a revolution in the way their products are packaged with some inspiring innovation and creativity.

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ast month saw the official ‘Recycle Week’ come and go with probably less of a furore than its organisers would have hoped for, but the one category to take the recycling festival seriously was soft drinks. Many of the UK’s biggest soft drinks brands chose to support the week by unveiling their latest news and innovations to drive consumer and retailer interest in reducing our collective impact on the planet.

THE RECYCLING HABITS OF THE NATION

COCA-COLA EUROPEAN PARTNERS: SUSTAINABILITY MILESTONE REACHED Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP), in partnership with Coca-Cola Great Britain, announced last month that all plastic bottles across all its core brands made in Great Britain are now made with 50% recycled plastic (rPET). The move means the company is now using over 21,000 tonnes of recycled plastic per year and rPET now accounts for 50% of all plastic used in bottles across the company’s core range made in Great Britain.

With this change Coca-Cola increases its rPET usage by a further 25%.

Bottles will now carry new labels notifying consumers of the change and encouraging them to recycle the bottle.

The move comes as part of Coke’s long-term investment in the UK’s circular economy, since helping to establish the UK’s biggest bottle-to-bottle plastic reprocessing facility in Lincolnshire in 2012 which reprocesses bottles collected from households across the UK. Stephen Moorhouse, General Manager at

“The majority of Brits (93%) think it’s important that retailers set an example to others when it comes to recycling, with over half (53%) thinking retailers could do more to help consumers.”

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CCEP GB, said: “One of the key challenges the industry currently faces is that there isn’t enough food-grade recycled plastic locally available in the UK to switch to 100% rPET across our entire range. There needs to be more high-quality recycled plastic produced, so it’s vital to make sure we collect more bottles in an efficient way, and stop it ending up as waste.

“That’s why we support the introduction of a well-designed Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), consistent across Great Britain and coupled with investment in infrastructure.”

SUNTORY BEVERAGE & FOOD GB&I: PAPER STRAW FIRST Ribena has become the first major juice drinks brand in the UK to introduce a paper straw to its drinks cartons. Ribena’s bendable paper straws will reduce the amount of plastic waste lost to landfill. Plastic straws are currently hard to recycle in the UK, largely due to their size. If people don’t push the straw back into the carton when finished, it can get lost in the recycling process, often falling through gaps on recycling centre sorting belts.

“Developing a bendable, durable paper straw hasn’t been easy, but recycling it should be,” says Jo Padwick, Business Transformation Manager at Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I.

BRITVIC: RETAILERS ‘SHOULD SET RECYCLING EXAMPLE’ Britvic released new research on Monday that it had commissioned to understand the

A recent study by Britvic into UK recycling habits found: Q 66% of Brits don’t know what happens to their recycling once it’s taken away Q A third think their recycling probably ends up in landfill Q A fifth (20%) think they could probably recycle roughly half of the rubbish they throw in the normal bin Q 60% of Brits feel guilty if they put rubbish in the bin that could be recycled – 30% don’t Q The main reason for not recycling is a lack of understanding of the recycling messages of products (25%) Q A third of Brits try to teach their children how to recycle to get them in the habit when while they’re still young

recycling habits of the nation. The research reveals that most Brits (93%) think that it’s important that retailers set an example to others when it comes to recycling, with over half (53%) thinking retailers could do more to help consumers.

The research also revealed that over two thirds (68%) of consumers think that a DRS would encourage more people to recycle drinks bottles and cans.

“At Britvic, we are committed supporters of a well-designed GB-wide DRS and it’s time for us, along with the industry, to take responsibility to create a world-class scheme to support the drive towards a healthier planet that we can leave to future generations,” says Sarah Webster, Director of Sustainable Business at Britvic. “Sustainability is no longer an option for businesses, it’s fundamental to future success.

“Recycling as much as we can is vital, and it’s important that we work with retailers to set the right example to help encourage good recycling habits.” www.slrmag.co.uk

OUR CORE RANGE* IS NOW MADE FROM

50% RECYCLED PLASTIC

Saving 21,000 tonnes of virgin plastic every year. But that’s only half the story. We’re the biggest user of recycled food grade plastic in the UK. And we’re on a journey to using 100% recycled plastic. But to make this happen we need more bottles back.

That’s why we support a well-designed deposit return scheme. We want it to be easier for everyone to recycle.

Together we recycle.

*Brands including Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Diet Coke, Fanta, Sprite, Dr Pepper, Lilt, Schweppes Sparkling Mixers, Oasis, and Powerade with rest of the Company’s portfolio (Glaceau Vitaminwater, Schweppes Cordials, & Rose’s Lime Cordial) following later in the year. Glaceau Smartwater is already available in the UK with 100% recycled plastic bottles.

Great Britain

© 2020 The Coca-Cola Company. All rights reserved. COCA-COLA, DIET COKE, FANTA, SPRITE, DR PEPPER, LILT, OASIS and POWERADE are registered trade marks.

UTC

THE COMPLICATED ALTERNATIVE TO STRAWS

MEN IN TIGHTS AND SPUDS WHAT’S NOT TO LIKE? Perhaps betraying his working class upbringing all those eons ago, UTC has never been of a man for ballet. He does, however, have a soft spot for a spud, so he thought he would share what must surely be one of the more random partnerships he’s come across: spud supremo Albert Bartlett and The Royal Ballet.

Fore reasons not entirely clear in the press release, Albert Bartlett has somehow managed to persuade The Royal Ballet to to produce a version of Tchaikovsky’s ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ performed “as seed potatoes go to sleep”. The expression on the auld boy’s face when he reads that line was priceless.

The video was shot in Albert Bartlett’s factory in Jersey with the Jersey Royal seed potatoes “preparing to be tucked in themselves before being woken up in November and planted early in the New Year.” Even more unlikely, the star of the show is ballet superstar – their words, not ours – Reece Clarke who also works with the potato producer and is now first soloist with The Royal Ballet. It sounds like we’re making this up.

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Now that straws are off the menu in England and socially unacceptable everywhere else, a Hampshire engineer has designed what he’s calling “an eco-friendly alternative” that allegedly stops ice and various other bits in your drink hitting your lips and teeth, a first world problem if ever there was one.

Made of plants, re-usable, easy to clean and compostable, the clever design fits any glass and “lets your drink’s flavour flow”. Adrian Potter, who clearly has a lot of time on his hands, has invented the gadget to take on the single-use straw. He apparently came up with the clever design at the age of 17 while struggling with his gin and tonic at a golf club in Hong Kong: “There was so much crushed ice, lemon and garnish in the G&T, I couldn’t take a swig.”

Thirty years later he has perfected his design. We give you Icebloc, a steal at just £3.99 for six on Amazon.

NATIONAL SARCASTIC MONTH – THAT’S A GREAT IDEA

The auld yin couldn’t let October pass by without acknowledging that it’s apparently National Sarcastic Month. No stranger to a sarccy dig himself, it came to his attention via a press release offering a range of hilarious products to help us all sarcastically rip the piss out of one another.

And what could be more hilarious than a coffee mug saying “Why, yes I am a rocket scientist” or a hoodie offering “S.A.A.S Sarcasm As A Service”.

For more sarcastic and side-splitting tat, feel free to visit www.allteeallshade. store. Or not.

www.slrmag.co.uk

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