SLR September 2017

SEPTEMBER 2017 | ISSUE 173

WWW.SLRMAG.CO.UK

DAVID LONSDALE

The Barclay Review in detail

THE EVOLVING FREE-FROM OPPORTUNITY

Free-from means different things to different customers – but it means profit for retailers.

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FASCIA AND FRANCHISE

Is it time to consider your options?

NEWSTRADE STEERING GROUP

New SLR group to revitalise category

SPOOKY SALES

Cash in on Halloween

Win a REAL £1,000 diamond with Diamond White and SLR! p21

September 2017

Contents

Contents ISSUE 173

NEWS p4 Nicotine Vapour Products deadline looms

Time is running out for retailers to register their business with the Scottish Government if they sell vaping products. p5 Co-op new favourite to buy Nisa

Nisa Chairman says Co-op has been granted “a period of exclusive due diligence”. p6 Asda plays down B&M takeover rumours

Senior sources at supermarket chain reported as saying there was “no truth to speculation”. p8 News Extra Scottish Annual Business Statistics

Government report reveals that the total number of retail jobs and the number of retail stores have both fallen. p16 Product News Pladis wishes everyone ‘Merry Biscuits’ as it launches biggest-ever Christmas brand campaign. p18 Off-Trade North Lanarkshire’s proxy purchase campaign makes headway in the fight against underage drinking. p20 Newstrade SLR partners with News UK to launch new steering group for the Scottish newstrade.

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INSIDE BUSINESS p22 Research Digest A round-up of the latest facts and figures most relevant to the Scottish local retail industry. p24 Opinion David Lonsdale SRC Director considers the Barclay Review into business rates. p25 SLR Rewards 2017 Our Newstrade Retailers of the Year, Joanna and Franck Casonato, had the best seats in the house to see Celine Dion at the Hydro. p26 Woodlands Local What happened last month at SLR’s store in Falkirk. p30 Hotlines Some of the latest products for retailers to consider stocking. p62 Under The Counter SLR’s curmudgeon-in-chief casts his jaundiced eye over some stories you may have missed.

FEATURES p32 Halloween The nation’s growing obsession with the annual frightfest is great news for retailers. p40 Sports and Energy The star of the soft drinks show continues to race ahead. p42 Tobacco We look at the impact of EUTPD2 legislation, and what retailers can do to avoid getting burned. p48 Breakfast The breakfast products market continues to evolve, and it’s healthier options that are driving sales. p52 Fascias and Franchises The case for joining a symbol group has never been stronger, and the choice never wider.

SPECIALS p21 Win a real cut diamond worth £1000 with SLR and Diamond White!

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ON THE COVER p12 Is it time for local retailers to re-appraise the opportunity presented by the free-from category?

SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

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News NICOTINE VAPOUR PRODUCTS Retailers must register before October

P&H updates website Palmer and Harvey has launched the latest update to its online ordering website. Retailers can now access detailed product and nutritional information, provided by digital product content provider, Brandbank.

The update is part of an ongoing development programme and follows the launch of a linked barcode scanner app in April.

Trading Director leaves Landmark Landmark Wholesale’s Trading Director, John Searle, has announced his resignation from the business with effect from the end of the year. Searle has worked for Landmark for 22 years in two periods, re-joining in April 2002 as Senior Trading Controller, becoming Trading Director in May 2004. In the short term, Landmark will not be looking to recruit a replacement and Jim Brown and Jon Burton,

Deadline looms for vape retailer registration Scottish retailers who sell Nicotine Vapour Products (NVPs) have until the first of October to register their business – even if they hold an existing Tobacco Licence.

New rules that came into effect on April 1 mean that NVPs are now fully age-restricted products, and sales by staff who are themselves under 18 must be authorised. The legislation also saw the introduction of a new tobacco and NVP register, to which retailers were given six months to submit their details.

It’s worth reiterating that there is now a single national register for both tobacco and NVP retailers.

Retailers must register if they sell either tobacco or NVPs or both.

The register operates in conjunction with a fixed penalty notice scheme.

Courts now have the ability to

impose banning orders on the sale of tobacco and NVPs. Registration is free, and can be carried out online at www. tobaccoregisterscotland.org/register or via a paper form. Copies of the registration form can be requested by calling 0131 244 2169 or from local Trading Standards departments.

Retailers with multiple premises will need to complete individual forms for each property. Additional premises can easily be added to an initial online registration however.

The Scottish Government opted for a registration scheme rather than issuing licences as it is simpler and less costly to administer. Unlike a premises licence, the registration certificate does not need to be displayed, although it should be kept to hand for inspection purposes.

Further information can be found on the official registration website (www.tobaccoregisterscotland.org).

The Scottish Grocers Federation has also produced a guide to the new vaping laws, which is available from Trading Standards departments.

Senior Trading Controllers, will report directly into MD John Mills.

Lottery butlers ring some luck to Stirling Allanwater Papers in Stirling was visited by a pair of National Lottery butlers to celebrate the number of big winners made in the area. Since the lottery’s launch in 1994, the FK postcode (which includes Stirling) has produced a whopping 20 millionaires. The butlers paid for customers’ shopping, carried their bags and helped National Lottery players in choosing their lucky numbers with the aid of a special gold phone that was on speed-dial to a real local winner.

ECONOMY Trade association calls for stimulus package

SRC seeks consumer spending push from Scottish Budget The Scottish Retail Consortium has sought the prioritisation of measures which will support consumer spending and help lift private sector investment in the Scottish Government’s upcoming Budget which is expected to be unveiled later this autumn.

In a 14-page submission entitled ‘Shaping the Future of Scottish Retail’ to the Scottish Finance Secretary, the SRC highlighted the profound changes affecting retail and proposed detailed recommendations in key areas affecting consumers and retailers such as Scottish income tax, council tax, business rates, the apprenticeship levy, newly devolved taxes and regulation.

The submission came ahead of the expected publication later this autumn of the Scottish Government’s spending and taxation plans for 2018–19.

In the submission, the SRC recommends that Scottish Ministers deliver on the recent commitment to coproduce a Scottish Retail Strategy and bolster consumer

confidence by ruling out increases in income tax rates.

It also suggests accelerating implementation of a zero-rate income tax band and a moratorium on new or addtional rates levies.

Furthermore, Ministers are asked to capitalise on the Barclay Rates Review to recast business rates for the decade ahead and deliver a medium-term plan to substantially lower the rates burden.

David Lonsdale, Director of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said: “With consumers and retailers under pressure from higher inflation, rising costs, and anaemic growth, the Scottish Government has to put growing the economy at the very heart of its next budget.

“With half of VAT receipts being assigned to Holyrood our politicians have a direct stake in facilitating a flourishing retail industry. Retailers will be looking to the Finance Secretary to act when he brings forward his Budget later this year.”

WHOLESALERS

Filshill videos reveal all Glasgow wholesaler JW Filshill has opened its doors to its customers, suppliers and also its competitors by launching a year-long video marketing campaign called ‘Leading The Way’ revealing how the business operates.

The videos – each one lasting around three minutes – show how the wholesaler engages with its staff, customers and suppliers, offering insight into every aspect of the business. A new short film is being pubished every week, and can be viewed at www.youtube.com/c/filshill.

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News MERGERS AND ACQUISTIONS Sainbury’s bid a distant memory

Co-op enters exclusive talks to buy Nisa The Co-op has emerged as the new frontrunner in the race to acquire Nisa, pushing Sainsbury’s to the sidelines.

In a statement to members released as SLR went to press (August 30), Nisa Chairman Peter Hartley said the Co-op had been granted “a period of exclusive due diligence from today”. This appraisal of the Nisa books prior to a potential offer will be paid for the Co-op.

Sainsbury’s had been Nisa’s preferred bidder, but negotiations stalled as the supermarket chain waited to see the outcome of the competition watchdog’s investigation into the Tesco/Booker deal. Nisa’s loss of the McColl’s supply contract to Morrisons is also thought to have played a part.

Hartley was keen to point out that, despite this latest development, key elements of the deal have yet to be ironed out. He said discussions so far had been “pragmatic and constructive”, and that the Board would focus on resolving remaining issues in “a manner which is satisfactory to members”.

If an offer is forthcoming, following the due diligence

‘Set Summer Free’ sets tills ringing for Costcutter Costcutter’s 12-week Set Summer Free activity, which ends mid-September, has already seen record audience reach, increased shopper engagement on social media, the highest-ever level of competition entries and increased sales. Over 25,000 customers have already engaged with the campaign’s social content, adding nearly 4,000 new followers. Total reach on Twitter is nearing one million and on Facebook fast

period, it would require the approval of 50% of Nisa members to go ahead.

The Nisa board will, Harley stressed, continue to look at any other serious offers that emerge. The Sainbury’s deal is, although cooling rapidly, understood not to be not dead yet.

News of the Co-op’s intent will no doubt cheer Nisa retailers, many of whom were unhappy at the prospect of getting swallowed up by Sainbury’s and dismayed at the loss of buying power when McColl’s jumped ship.

approaching 400,000. Over 30,000 competition entries have been received so far. Sales of campaign-specific products are already worth £320,000.

In-store Amazon top-ups via PayPoint PayPoint has launched a new service that allows customers to add credit to their Amazon

WHOLESALERS Industry veteran calls it a day

Farewell to Filshill: Ian McDonald retires One of the longest-serving figures in the Scottish retail and wholesale trade, Ian McDonald, is set to retire from Glasgow-based JW Filshill after a career spanning over 40 years.

McDonald, who has been instrumental in growing the KeyStore brand in Scotland and the north of England, will remain with the business working on a number of projects before stepping down in January 2018.

Craig Brown, until recently co-owner of the west of Scotland-based retail, food and drink consultancy Ross & Brown, has joined Filshill in the newly-created role of Retail Sales Director and will hold responsibility for all sales activities within the business.

McDonald’s highlights at Filshill include winning the Morning Noon & Night business of 50 stores – delivering turnover of £30m – in 2004. He has forged strong relationships with key customers such as Scotmid, G101, Vino, Park’s of Hamilton, Margiotta’s of Edinburgh and many independent retailers across the country.

“There can be few delivered wholesalers across the UK, let alone Scotland, fortunate enough to have an individual of Ian’s calibre driving and developing their retail business,” said Simon Hannah, Managing Director of Filshill.

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CARD PAYMENTS

account in-store using cash.

Payzone thrashes out T&Cs with NFRN

Customers can either request a top-up barcode through their

The NFRN and Payzone have settled some of their differences over Payzone’s proposed new Terms and Conditions.

The new contract, which has been introduced to coincide with Payzone’s latest tablet technology, includes some significant changes from the existing retailer arrangement.

Following what NFRN Chief Executive Paul Baxter described as “a full and frank discussion”, several key points were agreed: Q Retailers will receive 28 days to consider the new terms and conditions.

Q Retailers that believe the new terms and conditions are impractical will be able to terminate their current contract without penalty charges at the existing expiry date stated on the current contract or sooner if the legacy hardware is discontinued.

Q The new T&C clause required retailers to give six months’ notice to terminate – this has been reduced to 60 days.

Q Any retailers that have had terminals already installed or have had charges levied already on the ‘new’ basis will be given the same ‘revised’ terms and conditions.

Amazon app which they present in-store and pay in cash to update their online account balance. Or, they can request a top-up amount at the till to get a unique code printed on a receipt to redeem online. Amazon is offering customers £5 in credit when they top up £20 or more in-store, up until October 31.

Nisa’s sausage sales sizzle despite soggy summer Lacklustre summer weather hasn’t hampered sales of Nisa’s Heritage Gourmet sausages.

Almost £20,000 worth of sales were made to independent Nisa retailers in the first week of August, a record amount.

The news comes as the symbol group’s prescientlytitled summer-long marketing campaign ‘Come Rain or Shine’ draws to a close. This saw a number of activities that targeted

Several sticking points remain, however. Payzone will now work with the NFRN to consider further solutions in support of retailers who decide to enter into a new contract.

customers via social media – a key focus for Nisa – leading to an increase in both engagement and number of followers.

SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

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News MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS Asda plays down talk of £4.4bn bid for household goods chain

MacDonald’s the man for Brewgooder Brewgooder has named Scott MacDonald as new Commercial Director, as it sets its sights on increased UK distribution across the on- and off-trades.

He is tasked with increasing the beer’s presence in the UK retail channel. A 20-year food and drink industry veteran, Macdonald has worked inhouse and as a consultant for companies including AB Inbev and Eden Mill.

MFG plugs in to charging network Motor Fuel Group (MFG) has signed a deal with ChargePoint Services for the roll-out of forecourt electric vehicle charging across its UK network.

MFG, which operates 413 stations under the BP, Shell, Texaco, JET and Murco fuel brands, will host 50kW plus rapid chargers at its sites nationwide.

No truth in B&M takeover rumours, says Asda Speculation that Asda is planning to purchase discount retailer B&M has been dismissed by senior sources from the supermarket chain.

The rumoured £4.4bn takeover would add to the huge wave of consolidation that is currently sweeping through the convenience retail industry, with Tesco’s bid for Booke; Sainsbury’s and the Co-op’s interest in Nisa; and the Morrisons agreement to supply McColls.

The sources were reported as saying there was “no truth to speculation” that Asda was planning a move for B&M and that its US owner, Walmart, oversaw mergers and acquisitions.

B&M is currently pursuing an aggressive growth strategy, with plans to expand from 543 UK shops to over 900. It recently paid £152m

for grocer Heron Food Group, which operates over 250 high street stores, primarily in the north of England.

The move instantly made B&M a significant player in convenience. Its large units in out-of-town retail parks currently only sell a limited range of food and drink products alongside a more extensive offering of discount household goods.

Meanwhile, Walmart has been on a buying spree in America, snapping up smaller online retailers in a bid to fend off competition from Amazon after the internet giant’s purchase of the Whole Foods chain of grocery stores.

B&M’s 79 stores German stores would once again give Walmart a foothold a country it abandoned over a decade ago. Run-ins with regulators over predatory pricing

tactics, coupled with a disastrous inyour-face American style of customer service, saw it offload 85 stores at a loss of $1bn.

Industry analysts say Asda and B&M make a good fit, citing a “very strong overlap” in their core customer demographic and their shared “everyday low prices” strategy.

Harsha Wickremasinghe, Associate at mergers and acquisitions specialist Livingstone, said: “The big question is whether Wal-Mart has the appetite to pursue a transformational deal at this time, particularly when Asda’s turnaround is at such an early stage. However, B&M’s superior growth profile, robust international growth prospects and highly complementary proposition make it a prospective acquisition that maybe too good to pass up.”

The chargers will become part of ChargePoint Services’ existing GeniePoint Network.

McColl’s quarterly update McColl’s Q3 trading update has revealed that total revenue climbed 31.1% for the 13 weeks to August 27 and 15.8% year-to-date (YTD). Like-for-like sales nudged up 0.7% over the quarter and 0.4% YTD. McColl’s attributed this to growth in key grocery categories.

Speaking of the company’s supply deal with Morrisons, Chief Executive Jonathan Miller said: “This has been a significant quarter for McColl’s”.

All quiet on the Costcutter front There was still no word of any deal between Costcutter and another industry player as SLR went to press. Sir Michael Bibby, MD of the symbol group’s parent company, recently informed retailers of “exciting opportunities on the table right now”. Bibby, who had “hoped and expected” to make a formal announcement, has thus far

GROCERY ‘Legendary’ figure dies

Industry mourns loss of Barrie Russell Barrie Russell, Managing Director of BRG Limited, has passed away aged 71.

Frequently referred to as a legend in the grocery trade Barrie was much loved and respected by all for his enthusiasm and commitment to the industry.

Starting his grocery career in the 1970’s Barrie joined CPC Best Foods as a Rep before progressing to Regional Manager. He left CPC to work for Robert McBride as Sales Manager and after a short period left McBride to launch his own company, Russell Marketing Agency.

Barrie took a strategic decision to sell Private Label contracts within major customers, through all channels in the grocery trade covering multiple retailers,

discounters, variety stores and wholesalers. Asda, B&M Bargains, Booker, Co-op, Costcutter, Nisa, Poundland, Spar, Tesco and Sainsbury’s were all customers.

Barry Williams, Trading Director at Poundland, said Barrie was like a father figure to him: “He has followed me everywhere giving his views on the industry, helpful advice and always trying to sell me some fire lighters.”

COST OF LIVING

Grocery prices rise in August Food prices increased by 1.3% in August on the same month last year, according to the latest BRC – Nielsen Shop Price Index.

This was a slight increase on July’s figure, when Food price inflation stood at 1.2%.

Fresh Food inflation slowed to 0.8%, down from July’s 1.0% and the second month in a row that the rate has eased.

However, Ambient Food prices grew by 1.9% in August from 1.6% in July. This is the highest inflation rate for Ambient Food since December 2013.

Taking Non-Food products into account Overall Shop Prices fell by 0.3 per cent in August, a slight deceleration from July’s 0.4% drop. Except for June of this year, this is the shallowest deflation rate since November 2013.

Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium said the slowdown in Fresh Food inflation kept a lid on overall price increases: “The seasonal availability of fruit and vegetables from UK suppliers is currently shielding shoppers from the impact of higher import prices.

“However, as Winter approaches and our dependence shifts to imported goods, that will change.”

remained tight-lipped.

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RED CUPS WINNERS Linking in with the ‘Inspire’ element of the advice, Smirnoff recently ran a competition which challenged retailers to show off their POS displays to be in with a chance of winning one of ten £1,000 cash prizes. Promotional red cup packs also gave consumers the opportunity to win V-Festival tickets.

Now that the competition has closed, we take a look at three of the winning displays and speak to the retailers behind them to find out what kind of impact they have had on sales.

“We always trade well with the Smirnoff Red bottles, however after implementing our Red Cups display we saw a notable increase in sales. The POS display drew customers to the brand and encouraged them to explore the product range before making a purchase.”

Diane Lomax, Irlam Square Convenience Store Ltd, Salford

“The impact of the display was immediate.

It effectively attracted the attention of the customer and made upselling Smirnoff products much easier.”

Jay Patel, Bargain Booze Select Convenience, Lancashire

“We had great feedback from customers, they loved the in-store theatre. It kept the store looking fresh and brought the promotional ends alive. In our store, Smirnoff sales have showed a growth of 20% year on year. Promotions like this maintain interest in the brand which customers know and love.”

For more information on Diageo’s NEW My Store Matters advice, speak to your local rep today.

Justin Whittaker, MJ’s Premier Store, Lanchashire

News Extra

Scottish Annual Business Statistics

NewsExtra TRICK OR TREAT TIME P32 RETAIL EMPLOYMENT Government report makes for grim reading

Convenience Matters with the SGF The grocery retail market is probably the most dynamic industry in the UK. Convenience is one of the key growth areas in grocery retail and as such it would be a huge surprise if the dynamic nature of the industry did not impact on convenience. The intention of Booker and Tesco to drive forward some kind of merger is clear evidence of this. If the proposals get the go ahead from the Competition and Markets Authority, it will be the biggest thing to land on our sector for decades.

Meanwhile Morrisons has come to an arrangement with McColls, and B&M has made a big stride into convenience with the acquisition of the Heron Food Group. On-line, Amazon Fresh has now increased its offer to include 180,000 different products available and has more than quadrupled the area it serves since it launched in 2016. The Co-op has recently broken with tradition and unveiled its own franchise operation, focused on petrol forecourts.

SGF has also moved in a new direction: the Tesco One-Stop Franchise became members earlier this year.

We feel it recognises the changing and dynamic nature of the market in Scotland. It also strengthens our ability to engage with government on behalf of a united sector.

Convenience in Scotland remains in a good place – people in Scotland want to shop often, to shop local and they value the personalised service they get from a good community store. We believe that the key element in all these changes is that all the main players are aiming to strengthen their links to convenience. This provides us with huge opportunities; by working together we can make the most of them.

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Retail jobs and store numbers fall

The Scottish Government’s ‘Scottish Annual Business Statistics’ report published at the end of last month reveals that both the total number of jobs in the retail industry and the number of retail stores have fallen over the last year.

There were 6,400 fewer retail jobs and 185 fewer retail stores in Scotland over the year. The report finds that employment in the Scottish retail industry has shrunk by 16,400 over the past eight years, down 6.3% over the period. The number of retail stores is down 1,831 over the past eight years, down 7.5%.

Commenting on the data, David Lonsdale, Director of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said: “These latest figures graphically highlight the impact of the toxic cocktail of burgeoning tax and regulatory costs and transformational change in the retail industry. Sadly our warnings about the impact of rising government-imposed costs on an industry in profound transition are being borne out, with fewer jobs and fewer retail stores. In particular the loss of over 6,000 jobs over the past year must act as a wake-up call to policy makers.

“Earlier this week we laid out

a number of actions the Scottish Government should bring forward in its upcoming Budget to encourage investment by retailers in stores and distribution centres, in particular restoring parity with England on the Large Business Rates Supplement. As the Barclay Report reinforced, this selfdefeating Scotland-only rates surcharge – which affects 5,100 stores and costs retailers £12m each year – needs to end and we are keen to see a clear and early timetable for achieving this.

“We also want to see a moratorium on any new or additional business rates levies, together with clarity over how employers who currently pay the Apprenticeship Levy in Scotland will be able to access the proposed Flexible Workforce Development Fund to offset their training expenditure.”

The cumulative burden of growing tax and regulatory costs affecting retailers have recently included: the Apprenticeship Levy which commenced in April and is estimated to cost Scottish retailers £15m each year; the doubling of the Large Business Rates Supplement last year, meaning retailers in Scotland are paying £12m per year more in business rates; and the national living wage increase in April.

6,400 Fall in retail jobs

185

Drop in retail stores

16,400 Fall in employment numbers in last eight years

1,831 Drop in retail stores in last eight years

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Comment

THE CONSOLIDATION PLOT THICKENS It’s always the way. Just as SLR is going to press a new story breaks and the editorial team goes into overdrive to accommodate it. This time it was the breaking news that Nisa has granted the Co-op an exclusive run at its business.

Oddly, the news was broken by Nisa’s official PR company in the form of an open letter from Nisa Chairman Peter Hartley – this is not the way that big news stories are generally broken to the trade press, but then again, this recent spate of consolidation hasn’t been conducted under normal rules.

It had become clear that, for whatever reason, Sainsbury’s had cooled its interest in Nisa in recent weeks. Whether that decision was informed McColl’s decision to move from Nisa to Morrisons is something we may never know the answer to, but what is now clear is that, in the words of Hartley, the Nisa “Board has granted the Co-op a period of exclusive due diligence”.

The fact that former Nisa Chief Executive Neil Turton is now Chief Operating Officer at Co-operatives UK has undoubtedly played a part in the latest consolidation dalliance and SLR understands he has been instrumental in bringing the two groups together.

Hartley said in the letter to Nisa members: “The Board of Nisa has held a number of positive discussions with the Co-op in recent weeks, following its reaffirmation of interest in making an offer for your company. During these discussions the Co-op has confirmed, subject to further due diligence, its intention to progress matters as quickly as possible, in the hope that a transaction can be finalised.”

Subject to the results of the due diligence, Hartley went on to say that “it is anticipated that the Co-op could be in a position to make a final offer to the Members for your consideration”.

Due to the mutual nature of Nisa, any offer of merit that does emerge would then be subject to Members’ approval. Hartley did emphasise, however, that there is no guarantee that an offer will be forthcoming – possibly as a bargaining chip to keep the Co-op on its toes – and said that Nisa would “continue to review serious queries and offers which emerge and which it believes are in the best long-term interest of the Members.”

Initial feedback seems to be that the Co-op is likely to be a more palatable offer for Nisa retailers, given how the two business models are far more similar than they would have been under a Sainsbury’s deal – but many retailers were no doubt excited by having a tie up with a major multiple.

And all the while Michael Bibby, Managing Director of Costcutter owner Bibby Line has been teasing the market with promises of an imminent major announcement.

These are indeed tumultuous times.

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

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

DESIGN Design & Digital Manager Richard Chaudhry 0141 222 5300 | rchaudhry@55north.com

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

CIRCULATION & SUBSCRIPTIONS Scottish Local Retailer is distributed free to qualifying readers. For a registration card, call 0141 222 5381. Other readers may obtain copies by annual subscription at £50 (UK), £62 (Europe airmail), £99 (Worldwide airmail).

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

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

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Scottish Local Retailer is produced monthly by 55 North Ltd.

© 55 North Ltd. 2017 ISSN 1740-2409.

ANTONY BEGLEY, PUBLISHING DIRECTOR

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SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017

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# Th i n kSm a r t

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The UK’s leading tech, data, digital and loyalty conference for the convenience trade returns.

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Cover Story

Healthier & Free-From

THE EVOLVING FACE OF FREEFROM – AND WHY IT MATTERS With low- and no-sugar the current megatrend in retailing and over a third of UK shoppers buying into the traditional free-from category, is it time for local retailers to re-appraise the opportunity?

BY ANTONY BEGLEY

HOW TO MERCHANDISE A FREEFROM RANGE? A key question is how to effectively merchandise a ‘free-from’ range in-store.

There are two main options: Q Site your free-from range throughout the store with free-from products sitting alongside equivalent standard versions within each category. This makes it easy for shoppers to find the products as they sit naturally within the appropriate category.

Q A second option is to create a dedicated bay or section in-store that is dedicated entirely to free-from lines. This makes it easier for free-from shoppers to browse your entire range and may help drive up basket-spend.

ORGANIC GROWTH According to Nielsen data, the key growth areas of organic foods and drinks in the 52 weeks to 1 July 2017 include: Q Spreads and preserves, including nut butters: +21% Q Fruit +12.6%: with tomatoes up by 13.1% and bananas marking the highest growth of any food and drink product in the organic sector with sales soaring by over 25.5% Q Confectionery and soft drinks: +8.3% Q Salad: +7.9% Q Cereals: +6.5% Q Dairy, the largest market sector for organic: +1.25% overall, with butter growing by 9.2% and milk by 2.9%

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SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017

T

he last decade has been a transformative one for local retailing in Scotland with a flood of legislation and changing shopper habits forcing retailers to evolve, and quickly. This has led to sustained pressure on virtually all the product categories that historically constituted the bulk of a typical convenience store’s turnover.

Tobacco and alcohol have been ravaged by new laws and rules designed to curb or eliminate consumption while high sugar and high fat products like confectionery and soft drinks are in the firing line now. In short, retailers can no longer rely on being able to make a living from a c-store of 10 years ago.

There are moral issues here too, particularly around the role of the retailer in helping the government achieve its aim of improving the diet of the Scottish people. Few retailers disagree with the principle, but many take issue with the way they are forced into the front line of policing and managing the process of national self-improvement – particularly when at the heart of that debate

lies a commercial conundrum: to improve the nation’s diet, retailers are required to suppress sales of the products that keep a roof over the heads of their family.

Unfortunately the government is less forthcoming when it comes to helping retailers find new, sustainable sources of income, rather than simply choking off sales in key categories and leaving retailers to try to pick up the pieces of a broken business.

Former Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill’s description of the decimation of the convenience sector as “acceptable collateral damage” in pursuit of a healthier Scotland still smarts all these years later.

That sort of arrogance and ignorance still however seems to be the modus operandi of the current government, although many bodies – most notably the SGF – are working hard to get politicians onside and understanding the subtler nuances of what is a gargantuan Scottish local retailing industry.

Scottish local retailers are nothing if not resilient however, and have been remarkably successful against the odds in creating new markets, most notably fresh and chilled and food-to-go in recent years. But as any retailer will tell you, building a decent fresh and chilled range or a solid food-to-go offering is an expensive, complicated and difficult business.

So retailers are having to work harder and harder, often just to stand still, and every new www.slrmag.co.uk

Healthier & Free-From

27%

Increase in gluten free sales in last year

40% Britons who actively avoid certain ingredients

www.slrmag.co.uk

Cover Story

opportunity – no matter how marginal or risky, must be pursued. Which brings us to ‘free-from’.

Not so long ago, free-from was a niche market aimed at a small section of the community and serviced by very few manufacturers, often with lines priced in the super-premium bracket. But then something strange happened. While once it was the likes of Holland & Barrett serving that market, slowly the supermarkets glimpsed an opportunity. In no time, every major multiple had introduced a free-from bay and these seem to be getting bigger and bigger all the time, as a walk round your local Sainsbury’s will testify.

Unlikely as it seemed, this market appeared to be bigger than many retailers would have anticipated. The supermarkets don’t have four and five metre bays of this stuff if it doesn’t sell.

But just how big is the market, and should local retailers with much less space and no ability to stock very-slow selling lines be interested?

Let’s look at some numbers: The latest statistics published by independent charity Coeliac UK show that sales of gluten-free products rose by a massive 27% in 2016.

Another recent Kantar study found that a very significant 13% of Britons are now opting to go gluten-free while Mintel data suggests a third of British consumers consciously buy free-from foods in any six-month period.

The same Mintel data estimates that the UK free-from market is currently worth £470m and is predicted to grow by 43% between now and 2020. Still not convinced?

Another recent study of over 2,000 shoppers by discount agency VoucherCodesPro found that shoppers who choose specific dietary requirements typically spend £2,000 a year more on groceries than those who don’t.

Vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and halal diets shoppers spend, on average, an estimated £162 per month extra.

“To some, free-from may still have the air of an ‘alternative’ or niche category but it’s now nearly 40% bigger than a signature staple of British consumption, tea,” says Mike Watkins, Head of Retailer and Business Insight at consumer researcher giant Nielsen.

“The nation is increasingly concerned about diet and health. Over four in 10 Britons now actively avoid certain ingredients in what they eat and drink, which is reflected in fresh fruit and free-from being the fastest-growing categories.”

The free-from market has been experiencing huge growth, powered along in recent times by the increasing shopper interest in SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

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Cover Story

Healthier & Free-From

£2,000

amount that specialist diet consumers spend more per year

14

‘healthier’ options and by a marked growth in specialist diets. Some of this demand is created by those with a medical requirement to avoid gluten but there is increasing data to show that many shoppers are buying freefrom as a simple lifestyle choice.

One in three households, for instance, now buys into the plant-based food and drink categories every week. The plant-based category increased in value by +13% last year.

Now worth over £200m in the UK, it brought in over one million new shoppers in 2016.

Brand leader Alpro has seen growth in value at 24% and is now the UK’s fastestgrowing FMCG brand in grocery. Alprobranded household penetration has climbed to nearly 35%.

But don’t lose sight of the fact that, from a retailer’s point of view, free-from means different things to different shoppers. For some, it’s the traditional specialist lines that exclude one or more ingredient to which at least some shoppers can have either an allergic reaction or an intolerance. Typically, this might refer to gluten present in wheat or to dairy products in general.

But for others it can be as simple as lowor no-sugar – and a quick look at 90% of products launched in the last year by any major soft drinks manufacturer tells you all you need to know about how fast that trend is set to develop, propelled no doubt by the infamous sugar tax.

Indeed, reformulation is one of the megatrend buzzwords of our era. Biscuit, confectionery and soft drinks manufacturers are falling over themselves to remove fat, sugar and other perceived nasties from them products – which is, incidentally, to be commended.

And for others still, fresh produce – particularly fruit and vegetables – is viewed as free-from. Unprocessed, natural and healthy.

The trend also encompasses organic produce, free of artificial fertilisers and preservatives.

Free-from, it seems, is more of an approach to life than a set of product categories.

So while the debate about the role of the retailer in improving the nation’s diet rolls on, as it should, the reality is that retailers should be preparing for a new world order in local retailing if they wish to build a business that’s sustainable for the next 10 or 20 years.

This wide free-from trend has big implications for independent retailers in terms of the range they stock and the way they merchandise dairy-free, gluten-free and other specialist diet lines in-store, as well as the reformulated variants of traditional big selling products like Irn-Bru Xtra and CocaCola Zero.

Building a strong, profitable free-from range has never been easier but doing so within a commercial framework is key to success – and pricing is vital. Data from Kantar shows that it’s a myth that free-from shoppers are less price conscious than average consumers.

Over half of free-from consumers complain that price differentials between free-from and non-specific equivalents are too wide.

The implication for local retailers here is clear: free-from shoppers are just as keen on value as everyone else, so make sure you are delivering against that demand.

And while more and more shoppers are seeking out free-from products, there is growing evidence that they are not prepared to compromise on taste.

Sam Benjamin, Brand Manager at Too Good To Be Gluten Free, says: “The growing glutenfree market is demanding free-from choices but with a heavy focus on the taste and quality of the product. Supermarkets have responded to consumers by expanding their gluten-free ranges to the point that we now see around 80% of all gluten-free products in the market stocked by major supermarket brands.”

Mark Sterratt, Market, Strategy & Planning Director at Lucozade Ribena Suntory agrees, but says retailers must step it up to meet the demands of today’s shoppers: “Low sugar soft drinks are crucially important to independent retailers. When looking at total soft drinks, the segment is currently worth £460m in independent convenience and at its current rate of growth is expected to top £575m by 2019 [IRI, May 2017]. In fact, the growth of low calorie soft drinks is outpacing the growth of the wider soft drinks category and, with water excluded, now claims a 30% share of total soft drinks across the market.

“Yet within independent convenience, just 21% of total soft drink sales are low sugar – highlighting the opportunity for independent retailers to grow their profits in this area by becoming a destination of choice and drive repeat footfall. Furthermore, research shows that shoppers who are interested in healthier options in store also typically spend more [HIM CTP, 2017] – so these consumers should be a key target.”

Whichever way you look at the free-from opportunity, there’s little doubt that it is one that has an important future and it’s one that local retailers can’t afford to ignore.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

News

Products

CONDIMENTS

NFL becomes Kraft Heinz’s latest squeeze Heinz Yellow Mustard has become the official Mustard sponsor of the NFL in the United Kingdom.

The activity is supported by a £400,000 social media spend, with the Heinz Yellow Mustard ‘Ultimate Playbook’ offering posts focusing around host food inspiration, NFL education, fun facts and statistics. In-store activity has also been planned.

A competition gives entrants having the opportunity to win merchandise, UK game tickets and the grand prize of a trip to Super Bowl LII. Heinz Yellow Mustard is available in 220ml packs of Mild or Honey flavours at an RSP of £1.69 (8 units per case).

The Mild variant is also available in 400ml packs (RSP £2.29, 10 units per case).

ProductNews AVOID GETTING BURNED BY THE NEW TOBACCO LEGISLATION P42 BISCUITS Pladis fires the festive starting pistol

Merry Biscuits from pladis Pladis has unveiled plans for its biggest-ever Christmas brand campaign. For the first time, brands under the McVitie’s, Jacob’s and Carr’s master brands will come together under the campaign banner ‘Merry Biscuits everyone’.

The integrated campaign is themed around sharing, and looks to highlight the products that bring family and friends together to celebrate the festive season.

With a total investment of £1.3m to support McVitie’s, Jacob’s and Carr’s brands, the campaign

will involve an onpack promotion and seasonal point of sale. There will be new products, as well as the return of some festive editions.

An exclusive promotion will give consumers the chance to win a trip to Lapland or one of thousands of family days by unlocking the ‘Merry Biscuits grotto’ using a unique on-pack code.

2017 sees the launch of new McVitie’s White Chocolate

Digestives Nibbles – biscuit balls coated in white chocolate.

Also new this year is the McVitie’s Milk Chocolate Digestives Postbox Tin – a fun and festive gifting solution.

Carr’s will be launching its first new products in several years, with Carr’s Batons tapping into the premium nibbling sector, available in three flavours. Jacob’s will also be launching a new Cracker CRSPs Sour Cream & Chive Caddy.

PASTA SAUCES

Dolmio cuts ties with puppets Dolmio has launched a new global ad campaign that drops the familiar puppets in favour of a new family featuring award-winning actor Dominic West.

The new ad sees West – best-known for his turn in crime drama The Wire – as a melodramatic dad who, along with his son, is so engrossed in a video game that he won’t come to the dinner table. That changes when his partner reveals that spaghetti bolognese is on the menu.

Titled ‘No Drama’ the ad is airing both on TV and online until November.

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SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Products

News

Pomegreat reformulates Pomegreat pomegranate juice drink, now part of Wonderful Brands, has launched a new recipe now with added vitamins and no added sugar. The drink

CRISPS New ad for latest Walkers campaign

‘Choose or Lose’ hits TV screens

Walkers has launched a new TV advert to support its ‘Choose or Lose!’ campaign, which is on air until the first week in October.

‘Choose or Lose!’ launched in July and gives customers the chance to decide the fate of some of Walkers’ most popular variants.

Until October 22, shoppers can vote to keep a classic flavour or

replace it with a new one. The challenger flavours are all firm favourites in other countries.

Salt & Vinegar is up against Lime & Black Pepper from Australia; Prawn Cocktail takes on Paprika from Spain; and Smoky Bacon squares up to Bacon & Cheddar from the USA. The outcome will be determined

by the number of single packs bought in-store (80%) and by an online vote (20%).

The new advert features a woman who is dithering over which flavour of Walkers crisps to choose from a store.

She is suddenly thrown into a gameshow hosted by Gary Lineker. The audience is split between Salt & Vinegar and Lime & Black Pepper supporters, both groups cheering on their flavour.

Torn between the two, tension mounts until the woman finally selects Lime & Black Pepper, much to Lineker’s shock and the delight of the new flavour’s fans.

Now back in the shop, the woman discovers that the Salt & Vinegar packs have disappeared from the display.

will now only contain naturally occurring sugars from the fruit and be sweetened with stevia leaf extract. As part of the launch, the brand has also developed a new eye-catching and family-friendly packaging design detailing the benefits of a different vitamin on each carton.

The new Pomegreat formulation, RSP £1.40, is available now.

Trebor has pots more to offer with new format Trebor has launched its popular Softmints in a 100g pot format.

The new pots come in both the Peppermint and Spearmint variants. Oliver Wilcox, Brand Manager for Trebor, said: “Both variants are highly incremental to one another, with only 11% overlap between peppermint and spearmint, so retailers

OWN-LABEL best-one premium range unveiled

Bestway’s inspired thinking

should stock

Bestway Wholesale has added a new premium range, best-one Inspired, to its own-label offer.

The 15 new products, including all-butter cookies, hand-cooked crisps and high-fruit content conserves, have been launched to tap into the premiumisation trend which is driving growth in many convenience categories. Premium own label has increased its share in multiples from 5.6% to 6.1% over the past year and is worth over £3bn in grocery.

at £.170 and are available in

Despite the premium nature of the products, they are all presented in price-marked packs.

“Shoppers don’t necessarily want cheap – they want value,” explained Ed Smeaton, Director of Trading for Retail at Bestway Wholesale. “We have made indulgence affordable and are communicating this to shoppers via on-pack price-marking.”

The best-one Inspired line up consists of: Q Three all-butter cookies variants – Belgian Chocolate Cookies, Belgian White Chocolate Chunk Cookies, Sultana Cookies Q Two Italian pestos – alla Genovese and alla Rosso Q Three hand-cooked crisps packs – Sea Salt, Sea Salt & Cider Vinegar, Mature Cheddar and Caramelised Red Onion Q Cherry Tomatoes in a rich Tomato sauce Q Three high fruit conserves – Cherry, Strawberry and Blackcurrant

up on both to ensure they can offer choice for their customers.” The pots RSP outers of 36.

Back to school for Nurishment Enriched milk drink Nurishment is going retro with the launch of #OLDSKOOLNEWCOOL, its biggest-ever social media brand-builder. The wide-ranging marketing drive, forecast to reach over 10 million consumers this year, will include the brand’s first dedicated gaming app, competitions and video content as well as a series of animated short films. The campaign includes high street and outdoor advertising, running from

All best-one Inspired products deliver a retailer POR of over 30%.

Bestway plans to extend the range over the coming months.

September for the rest of the year. A new product launch will also give consumers the chance to win retro prizes in November via an Instant Win on-pack.

www.slrmag.co.uk

SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

17

News

Off-Trade

Brewgooder shortlisted for two awards Brewgooder is celebrating

Off-TradeNews

after being shortlisted in two categories in the UK Beer & Cider Awards 2017. The craft beer is in the running for the ‘Best Corporate Social Responsibility’ gong for its work in facilitating wells in Malawi, servicing more than 5,000 people with clean water. The brand has also been shortlisted in the ‘Best Launch’ category, having gone from a £60,000 crowdfunded startup to being on shelves in six months, all while funding two new wells in Malawi.

Goa Beer taste makeover Goa Beer has been given a recipe reformulation, ahead of a Christmas marketing campaign from importer Viiking Ventures.

A change of malt has led to a brighter colour, with improved clarity and more subtle taste. The

SPORTS & ENERGY: THE LEADER OF THE SOFT DRINKS PACK P40 BEER Cantona back to promote 1664

Kronenbourg is strictly not for the birds Ex-footballer and Kronenbourg brand ambassador Eric Cantona has returned for Kronenbourg 1664’s latest campaign ‘Le Scarecrow Suprême’.

The campaign takes the form of a series of short films set in Kronenbourg’s birthplace Alsace, France. Trying to protect the hops used to make Kronenbourg 1664, Cantona embodies a life-size scarecrow who stops at nothing to guard the hops from a swarm of pests and distractions. From reprising his football prowess to replicating Amazon’s Alexa, Cantona unleashes a variety of bird-bothering tactics.

The social campaign will be served on Facebook and YouTube, and will also grace a bespoke branded Amazon landing page.

Ifeoma Dozie, beer Brand Director at brand owners

Heineken, said: “For the last six years, Monsieur Cantona has been bringing to life the eccentricities of the Alsace region, and this is probably his biggest role to date.”

strength remains at 4.8% ABV. The gluten-free beer is available in bottles and cans from Booker

LIQUEURS

and Makro.

New look for Edinburgh Gin’s fruit liqueurs

Cîroc vanilla variant

Edinburgh Gin’s fruit gin liqueurs have moved into a new bespoke bottle design to match the distiller’s core range and bring unity to its portfolio.

Hand-blown by glassmakers in Italy, the bottles feature an embossed Edinburgh Gin logo and illustrations of signature ingredients including Perthshire raspberries and Madagascan vanilla.

The portfolio features four fruit gin liqueurs, all 20% abv and available in 50cl bottles with an RSP of £18.50. Variants are: Raspberry Liqueur; Elderflower Liqueur; Plum & Vanilla Liqueur; and Rhubarb and Ginger Liqueur. The latter recently topped the Amazon best-seller list, described as the “perfect summer drink”.

The fruit gin liqueurs are available directly from Edinburgh Gin or Ian Macleod Distillers’ distributors.

The latest addition to Diageo Reserve’s ultra-premium Ciroc vodka portfolio, Ciroc French Vanilla (abv 37.5%), will be available in the UK from October 2017 with an RSP of £41.05 for 70cl. Inspired by the French style of making luxury ice-cream, the five-time distilled vodka is infused with a blend of vanilla and is made using French grapes.

Morgenrot extends Pang Pang range Manchester-based importer Morgenrot has added a further two beers from Sweden’s Pang Pang brewery to its portfolio.

Best known for its Shower Beer, specifically produced to be consumed in the shower, the brewery’s latest offerings are Gaffa Grey IPA (5.8% abv) and Prepper Double IPA (8% abv).

The new beers are available in 33cl bottles and will be joined shortly by a third new beer

BEER Spanish brand puts culture front and centre

The little things matter to Estrella Damm Estrella Damm has launched its latest short film, The Little Things, which celebrates the Mediterranean lifestyle with a story of cultural and gastronomic discovery. And beer, of course.

Starring Jean Reno and Laia Costa, The Little Things is the second short film Estrella Damm has used to convey its brand values. It follows last year’s Vale, which starred Dakota Johnson.

“Estrella Damm is about saying ‘yes’ to cultural and gastronomic offerings; going out and meeting people; immersing yourself in the local creative scene,” said Estrella Damm. “Our short films reflect this perfectly to give the audience a true insight into the Mediterranean passion and way of life that goes into every drop of our beer.”

The Little Things can be viewed on www.estrelladamm.com. The trailer is being shown on Channel 4’s digital channels and other platforms, including social media.

named Bong Water.

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SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Off-Trade

News

PROXY PURCHASE North Lanarkshire scheme a success

Underage drinking campaign gets results The ‘You’re asking for it’ campaign in North Lanarkshire is proving to be an effective deterrent as adults are urged to think twice before they consider buying alcohol for underage children.

Police Scotland analysts report that antisocial behaviour has reduced by 6%, reports of street drinking in public places has reduced by a significant 55%, while youth disorder incidents are down 7%.

The campaign – which runs until the end of the month – has led to 32 detections of proxy purchasing. The partnership project is driven by the Scottish Alcohol Industry Partnership, Police Scotland and North Lanarkshire Community Safety Partnership. Local retailers are also playing a key role, by helping to identify the proxy purchase hot spots in their communities.

Area Inspector for Motherwell and Wishaw, Inspector Alistair Anderson, Police Scotland Youth Volunteers Alanna Ferguson and Alanah Prentice, Licensing & Compliance Manager for Scotmid Co-operative, Ian Lovie

Ian Lovie, Licensing and Compliance Manager for Scotmid, commented: “Scotmid is pleased to be actively involved in this campaign. I believe it delivers a powerful message. This partnership approach should encourage other areas in Scotland to tackle the issues associated with underage drinking. Speaking

from a retailer’s perspective, having this framework and support is invaluable. It is very difficult to identify when proxy purchases occur.”

The partnership project will report the full impact of ‘You’re asking for it’ when the campaign draws to a close at the end of September.

BEER Scandinavian style comes to a muddy field near you

Carlsberg brings ‘The Danish Way’ to festivals Carlsberg UK has rocked its way through the festival season in true Scandinavian style with its touring Danish Quarter, which over the summer welcomed music fans through its doors at the Latitude and Reading festivals, among others.

A five-year sponsorship deal with Live Nation, the live entertainment company behind many British music events, underpinned the £15m ‘The Danish Way’ campaign. This year, Carlsberg made its debut as Official Beer and Somersby Cider returned as Official Cider across the Live Nation portfolio in the UK. The Carlsberg Export VIP bar supported the activity and brought ‘The Danish Way’ to a host of the summer’s other music events, including Leeds, Virgin V Festival Weston Park and Glasgow’s TRNSMT.

www.slrmag.co.uk

AWARDS

Stewart Brewing rises to the challenge Stewart Brewing has scooped two silver and two bronze medals at this year’s International Beer Challenge (IBC).

Now in its 22nd year, the IBC is designed to reward and promote excellent beers from around the globe and attracts entries from over 30 countries.

The Scottish craft brewer’s Radical Road, a triple-hopped pale ale, and First World Problems, a Belgian IPA, secured silver medals in the tasting awards, while Ka Pai, a light bodied pale ale, was awarded a bronze medal. Stewart Brewing’s core range, which includes Edinburgh Gold and Hollyrood, was recognised in the design and packaging category with a bronze medal.

Q: My local licensing standards officer has been into my shop and told staff that angostura bitters now need to kept within the designated alcohol display area. I was sure that they were not classed as alcohol. Can you please advise?

Michael says: As of May 15 this year the licensing standards officer is correct! The Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015 changed the definition of alcohol so that angostura bitters are now classed as alcohol in licensing terms. As such, the product should now be stocked only in the designated alcohol area.

Q: I’m keen to advertise the fact that my store now stocks wines and beers. Can I advertise this in the store’s window?

Michael says: The attitude of licensing standards officers depends on where you are in the country! The general consensus is that you can display an alcohol branded graphic, such as a window vinyl, so long as it is displayed on a window that is within the authorised alcohol display. You should also bear in mind that you cannot promote your alcohol offer within 200 metres of the store, for example, on an “A board” in the car park. Given the complicated nature of alcohol offers you might want to take expert advice.

Q: We’d like to move our modest alcohol display from one end of the shop to another following a refit.

We’ve had the measuring tape out and the proposed area is basically the same size as the existing one.

What do we need to do?

Stephen says: you’ll certainly need to lodge a variation application with an updated layout plan. If the area is the exact same size, or less, then this should be a “minor” variation and would be granted without a hearing. However, if is even just slightly higher this would be treated as a “major” variation meaning full public consultation, possible objections, and a hearing.

So make sure your measuring tape is bang on!

SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

19

News

Newstrade

News& Magazines SEE THE LATEST PRODUCTS HITTING SHELVES P30 CATEGORY DEVELOPMENT New group seeks to freshen-up newstrade

SCOTTISH NEWSTRADE STEERING GROUP TO REVITALISE TRADE SLR and News UK join forces with some of Scotland’s top newstrade retailers to revitalise the newstrade in Scotland and help others capitalise on this still vital category.

READER?

HAVE A

FIV£R

ON US PICK UP THE PAPER

PROJECT 1

Sun Savers A key element of the Scottish Newstrade Steering Group will be its commitment to action, rather than simply functioning as a talking shop. Consequently, the Group is already underway with its first project: effective in-store execution of a Sun Savers campaign which will directly benefit retailers and their shoppers alike.

The Group will be implementing the Sun Savers campaign in-store across the next few weeks using high quality POS and staff training to ensure maximum impact in-store.

Sun Savers is News UK’s innovative app-based mechanic which, very simply, rewards shoppers with £5 every time they buy 28 copies of The Scottish Sun. Shoppers download a small app onto their smartphone then scan the paper every time they buy it. When they reach 28 copies they add their bank account details and get £5 transferred in. It couldn’t be simpler.

The aim, from a retailer’s point of view, is to drive up purchase and visit frequency which is also highly likely to drive up incremental sales for the retailer.

This is the richest loyalty scheme in the newstrade and was tested first in Scotland.

Our Group retailers will be implementing the full POS pack in-store and will be training their staff to encourage Sun customers to download the app and start earning money – for doing nothing more than buying the paper they love anyway.

Scottish Newstrade Steering Group While we are still looking for retailers to join the Group, the founding members are: Q Dennis Williams, Premier Broadway Convenience Store, Edinburgh and SGF President Q Linda Williams, Premier Broadway Convenience Store, Edinburgh Q Joanna Casonato, Giacopazzi’s Milnathort and Kinross Q Chris Gallacher, Managing Director, Scotfresh Q Fred Charles, Project / Development Manager, Scotfresh Q Saleem Sadiq, Spar Renfrew Q Ashy Sadiq, Spar Maryhill Q Abdul Majid, Nisa Bellshill Q Dougie Anderson, Business Development Manager, Eros Retail Q Gordon Wilson, Newstrade Category Manager, CJ Lang

Some of Scotland’s most prominent retailers gathered recently at News Scotland’s offices in Glasgow to celebrate the inaugural meeting of the new Scottish Newstrade Steering Group, set up jointly by SLR and News UK. The Group has been created in order revitalise the newstrade in Scotland and help Scotland’s wider local retailing community make more of what remains one of the most important categories in local retailing, generating significant profits and massive footfall every

day for retailers across the country.

The launch Group comprises retailers from several major fascia groups and geographic areas, all with an interest in developing their newstrade category and using it to drive more profits from their businesses.

Our plan is to run a 12-month calendar of activity in-store and report our work and results back through the pages of SLR. We have chosen News UK and News Scotland as partners because they are unquestionably committed to the newstrade in Scotland at a level that outstrips all other publishers in terms of investment in both their own titles and the wider category.

The Group is in the unique position of being able to actively help inform News UK’s decision-making process on activity which takes place in the Scottish marketplace.

The News Scotland and News UK marketing teams have some exciting plans for the category over the coming months and years – and this Group offers the exclusive opportunity to have an influence on how those plans

TODAY

are executed in stores all across Scotland to enable maximum effect and maximise sales and profits for retailers.

Members are already having a direct and major influence on how News Scotland invests in the category. The establishment of the Group reflects News Scotland’s firm belief in the importance of listening to retailers, seeking their advice and acting upon it.

Over the next few years, News Scotland has ambitious targets that will directly benefit retailers right across the country.

Dougie Anderson, Business Development Manager at Eros Retail, commented during the first meeting of the Group: “It’s refreshing to see a major publisher seek the views of retailers this way. Often we only hear about initiatives after they have launched and we have no opportunity to help tailor the activity to make sure it works on the ground in our stores. I’m looking forward to having a direct say in how the category can be developed for the benefit of all retailers in Scotland.”

If you wish to be considered for membership of the Scottish Newstrade Steering Group, email Antony at abegley@55north.com 20

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Win A Diamond With Diamond White | Reader Competition

Inside Business

WIN A CUT DIAMOND WORTH £1000!

This is your chance to win a REAL DIAMOND worth £1,000 at RSP with Diamond White and SLR! THE COMPETITION: Q This is exclusive in Scotland to SLR readers!

Q Diamond White is available at Booker, JW Filshill (delivered), United Wholesale (Scotland) and United Wholesale Grocers.

Q One Diamond White cider independent stockist will win a £1,000 diamond!

Q 10 runner up entrants will win a case of Diamond White each.

Q Simply create an outstanding Diamond White display – take a photograph and email it to john.dawson@brookfielddrinks.co.uk including your business name and address with ‘Competition’ as the subject line.

Q Help is at hand: Send for your free Diamond White POS kit by emailing john.dawson@brookfielddrinks.co.uk including your business name and address and write ‘Diamond POS kit’ in the subject or pick it up from your local wholesaler and use it to build your display Q Judges: SLR Publishing Director Antony Begley and Nigel McNally MD of Brookfield Drinks, owners of Diamond White . The winners will be notified on September 20th 2017. Judges’ decision is final.

Q Terms and conditions are available for viewing on: diamondcider. com/tradecomp and at www.slrmag.co.uk ABOUT DIAMOND WHITE: Q Diamond White is the Great British crafted cider with a superior recipe, a premium production method, high apple content and triple filtration.

Q One of the top selling premium ciders in the UK independent sector. Price marked 500 ml can exclusively for independents – great customer value at £1.25 per 500ml can.

Q Consumer promotion on 500,000 cans where 10 x £1,000 diamonds will be won. Promo cans now in distribution. Each can has a unique number under the ring pull ring which the consumer enters into the Facebook linked Win a Diamond micro web-site.

WIN A DIAMOND WORTH £1000

READERS EXCLUSIVE!

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WITH DIAMOND WHITE CIDER & SLR Check out the Trade Only competition above PLUS Every promotional can gives your customers a chance to win a diamond. One diamond can be won every week for TEN weeks!

Stock up now for sparkling sales

For illustration purposes only

www.diamondcider.com facebook.com/diamondcider john.dawson@brookfielddrinks.co.uk 01234 783034 For your FREE ‘Win a Diamond’ POS kit email John Dawson or collect from your Cash and Carry or ring the above number.

Full terms and conditions for the trade ‘Win a Diamond’ competition are available on www.diamondcider.com/tradecomp

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SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

21

Inside Business

Research Digest

JULY FOOD SALES UP 4.2% The SRC-KPMG Scottish Retail Sales Monitor for July 2017 has found that total food sales in July increased 4.2% versus July 2016, when they had decreased by 1.6%. This makes the 12-month average growth 2.0%.

Scottish retail sales increased by 1.3% on a like-for-like basis compared to July 2016, when they had decreased by 1.7%. In July, total sales in Scotland rose by 0.7% compared with July 2016, when they had declined by 1.8%.

This is a better performance than the 12-month average at -0.7%. Adjusted for deflation, measured at 0.4% by the BRCNielsen Shop Price Index, July sales grew by 1.2%.

DEFLATION AT 0.4% IN JULY The latest data from the BRC-Nielsen Shop Price Index for July 2017 shows that overall shop price deflation was 0.4%, a slight increase in deflation from the 0.3% June figure.

In July, food inflation slowed down to 1.2%, from 1.4% in both June and May. This is the third-highest Food inflation figure since January 2014, when it stood at 1.1%.

Fresh Food inflation slowed down to 1.0% in July from the 1.4% rate in June. Ambient food inflation meanwhile reached 1.6% in July; it is up, albeit by 0.1%, from a 1.5% increase in June.

CASH ONLY RETAILERS COULD ‘LOSE OUT ON 10M CUSTOMERS’

New survey finds that nearly half of consumers believe all payments will be made using mobile devices by 2022 and retailers ignoring this could miss out on millions of customers.

Q 53% of shoppers find queues the most frustrating thing about the retail experience.

Q 32% of people pick an online or high-street retailer based on how easy it is to pay for items.

Q One million people (41%) believe all payments will be done via mobile devices in the future.

Q The figure jumps to 53% among millennials.

FOOTFALL FALLS BY 1.1% The UK retail footfall results for July 2017 from retail footfall analysts, Springboard, showed footfall fell in July fell by 1.1% against the previous year, below the three-month rolling average of -0.4% and the 12 month of -0.2% respectively. There were four positive months within the past 12 against an average of two within the previous three years. High Streets showed a 2.1% decline.

Diane Wehrle, Springboard Marketing and Insights Director, said: “July’s results might well mark a sea change in consumers’ willingness to spend, as it was the first time since January that footfall dropped during both retail trading hours and into the evening.

“These results together with the high level of consumer borrowing and an increase in the vacancy rate to 9.6% from 9.3% in April – the highest it’s been since July last year – suggest that trading conditions could be reaching a tipping point into a period of restraint.”

22

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ew research among 2,000 UK adults by payment app Ubamarket has revealed how out-dated payment systems are driving away customers. The research found: Q Twenty per cent of UK adults say in-app payments are their favourite method of paying for items. This rises to 34% among 18-34 year olds.

Q Over 10 million people (20%) will consciously avoid shops, restaurants, newsagents, cafés or bars that only accept cash.

Q 73% of UK consumers – 37.5 million people – have changed their mind and decided not to buy something having seen the size of a queue in a shop.

The findings indicate that UK shoppers are turning away from time-consuming checkout queues and towards rapid payment methods.

Some 73% of respondents – the equivalent of 37.5 million people – have changed their mind and decided not to buy something after seeing the size of a shop’s queue. The nationally representative study by the retail app also revealed that ease of payment has become a make-or-break factor for retailers seeking to gain and maintain shoppers.

Ubamarket’s research found that retailers risk frustrating would-be customers by maintaining archaic payment methods – over 10 million customers (20%) will consciously avoid shops, restaurants, newsagents, cafés or bars that only accept cash. Moreover, 32% of Brits actually select online or high-street retailers based on how easy it is to pay for items.

Unsurprisingly, the survey finds inapp payment “a timely solution”; 41% of respondents expect that all payments will be processed via mobile devices in the future.

According to the research, in app payment is already the preferred method for one-fifth of all shoppers.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Research Digest

Inside Business

FOOD-TO-GO ‘TO HIT £23.5BN BY 2022’ The latest IGD research predicts that food-to-go will continue to be the key driver in retail sales growth over the next five years.

T

he UK’s food-to-go sector is in rude health and will be worth £23.5bn by 2022, up from £17.4bn in 2017, according to IGD, as shoppers’ preference for eating on the move shows no signs of slowing down.

IGD’s food-to-go research splits the market into five segments, with the organisation’s latest forecasts suggesting particularly strong growth among specialist food-to-go retailers (e.g.

Greggs, Subway, Pret, EAT and Leon), which are set to overtake quick service restaurants (QSRs) to become the biggest part of the market in the next five years.

2017 VALUE (£BN) 2022 VALUE (£BN)

WATCH SALES SOAR AS THE NATION BACK THEIR FAVOURITES 3 ORIGINAL FLAVOURS

Vs

3 BEST SELLERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

CAGR

2017-2022 Food-to-go specialists

5.1

7.7

8.4

Quick service restaurants (QSRs)

5.4

6.3

3.4

Coffee specialists

2.9

4.2

7.4

& other retailers

2.7

3.6

6.1

Supermarkets & hypermarkets

1.3

1.7

5.9

Convenience, forecourt

Total

17.4 23.5 6.2

Gavin Rothwell, Senior Insight Manager at IGD, said: “As shoppers become more sophisticated in their tastes and demands, so too does the UK’s food-to-go market. Across all our five market segments we’re seeing some highly innovative product and menu development, much of this inspired by shopper trends towards health and wellness and global flavours and tastes. Many operators are looking to tempt shoppers with ranges tailored to different times of day, while also improving the quality of their fresh food and coffee offers.

“Food-to-go specialists are really setting the pace on product innovation and range development, as well as expanding quite rapidly outside London, which is why we’re forecasting them to become the biggest part of the food-to-go market by the end of 2022. In addition to the well-known high street names, there are several new players emerging in this segment as well. Health and wellness is a particularly big focus for these specialists, with three-quarters (76%) of shoppers satisfied with the choice of healthy options available in-store, higher than any other segment of the food-to-go market.”

Convenience and forecourt retailers have spotted a great opportunity in the food-to-go market and are now becoming increasingly active in this area, either through their own ranges or by teaming up with well-known brand names to add credibility. Younger shoppers are particularly likely to drive growth in these stores, with 18-25-year-olds twice as likely to buy food-to-go in convenience stores compared to their older counterparts.

Rothwell added: “It’s common for shoppers to visit more than one store to complete their food-to-go shop. Suppliers therefore have a great opportunity to work closely with retailers and specialists to create winning ranges that will ultimately meet more shoppers’ needs.” www.slrmag.co.uk

HEAVYWEIGHT TV & DIGITAL SUPPORT IN-DEPOT DISPLAYS

STOCK UP NOW! VISIT WWW.COUNTSFORMORE.CO.UK & ENJOY THE BENEFITS.

The more points you earn, the more you can spend on your business FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @PEPSICO_UKTRADE #chooseorlose Promotion runs for a limited time only. T&Cs apply - See walkers.co.uk/chooseorlose for details

SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

23

Inside Business

2 Minutes | David Lonsdale, Director of the Scottish Retail Consortium

DAVID LONSDALE As Scotland undertakes to reform its business rates system, the Barclay Review has just been published offering key insight into how that reform may take shape. David Lonsdale considers the Review and what it may mean for Scotland’s local retailers.

SO, WHAT EXACTLY IS THE BARCLAY REVIEW?

FACTFILE David Lonsdale is Director of the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) and Head of Devolved Nations for the British Retail Consortium.

Prior to this he was Assistant Director at CBI Scotland for eight years until 2013, and previously worked at the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, rising from Policy Officer to become Head of Policy & Public Affairs.

His responsibilities at the SRC/BRC involve representing and promoting the interests of the retail industry and member companies to government, policy makers and opinion formers on a wide range of public policy issues.

24

The Scottish Government established an independent review of Scotland’s £2.7bn business rates system two years ago. Former RBS boss Ken Barclay was appointed by the First Minister in Spring 2016 to examine rates and make recommendations that seek to enhance and reform the business rates system to better support business growth and long-term investment, and reflect changing marketplaces. Evidence was gathered from ratepayers and the SRC while others provided oral and written evidence, with Mr Barclay also meeting with the SRC Board.

HAS IT PUBLISHED ITS RECOMMENDATIONS? The Review was published on August 22. It contains a lot that will interest Scotland’s local retailing community including 30 specific recommendations.

WHAT ARE YOUR FIRST IMPRESSIONS? Barclay has identified a path towards a better rates system, with a number of recommendations which – if implemented by Scottish Ministers – will ensure rates better reflect economic and trading conditions. It would also begin to deliver on Ministerial promises of a more competitive rates regime. However, we remain concerned that the burden of business rates will remain high despite the changes. Also, some of the ideas proposed for widening the tax base could prove politically tricky for Ministers.

WHICH KEY CONTENT CAUGHT YOUR EYE? Critically, the Review recommends far more frequent revaluations and reducing from two years to one the period between the valuation and implementation of the new valuation roll. This is what we have been calling for and is encouraging. Up until the start of this year independent retailers and others were paying bills based on valuations undertaken in 2008. If Barclay is implemented valuations will be more up to date and fairer. While it’s less relevant to a lot of Scotland’s smaller retailers, reform of the Large Business Rates Supplement as recommended in the

Review would be very welcome for the wider retailing community, benefiting every premises with a rateable value over £51,000.

HOW ABOUT THE MORE CREATIVE SUGGESTIONS MOOTED TO REFORM THE SYSTEM? Barclay is right to have knocked on the head suggestions about allowing councils to control business rates in their entirety, and notions about replacing business rates in whole or part with local sales or turnover taxes. However the idea mooted in the report of allowing councils to levy rates supplements on ‘out of town’ or ‘online’ businesses as a means of helping town centres is simply wrongheaded, and could even open the door to other barmy new taxes. Conjuring up a new online-only or out-oftown-only levy isn’t the answer to the exorbitant cost of business rates faced by shopkeepers located on our high streets. Government policy itself is directly contributing to the rising cost of maintaining stores, and in turn is making online investment more attractive as the cost and capability of technology improves and as customers’ shopping habits evolve.

SO, ALL IN ALL, A CAUTIOUS THUMBS-UP? Yes, very cautious, especially as we remain concerned that rates will remain high and onerous. Barclay struck a somewhat sceptical tone on small firms’ rates relief, so that it worth watching. That said, Barclay has put forward several welcome improvements and we now look to Scottish Ministers for early action on implementation.

IF IMPLEMENTED, WOULD THE REVIEW’S MANY SUGGESTIONS BE THE SOLUTION RETAILERS SEEK? Not entirely, no. We remain concerned about the overall rates burden, at a time when Scotland’s retailers are already having to grapple with a growing cumulative burden of government-imposed costs including the new apprenticeship levy, the national living wage and higher statutory employer pension contributions.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

NEWSTRADE

SEWLARRDS

R

SPONSORED BY

2017

RETAILER OF THE YEAR

JOANNA AND FRANCK ON SONG WITH CELINE! Milnathort husband-and-wife retailing team Joanna and Franck Casonato had the hottest tickets in town last month as they saw global superstar Celine Dion from the comfort of the News Scotland VIP box at the Hydro – proof once more that the SLR Rewards are the most rewarding in the industry!

The Giacopazzi business in Milnathort is one of the most inspirational success stories in independent retailing in Scotland in recent years. Run by Joanna and Franck Casonato, the Nisa business has gone from strength to strength and almost exactly a year ago saw the opening of the couple’s second outstanding store in nearby Kinross.

But it was the original Milanthort business that came up trumps in the Newstrade category at this year’s SLR Rewards for what the judges simply called “an exceptional commitment to the category and a breadth of vision that should act as an inspiration to other retailers across Scotland”.

News can be a challenging category to manage but remains absolutely fundamental to the overall success of most local retailing outlets in Scotland, a fact not lost on Joanna and Franck who have long operated a very sizeable Home New Delivery service for the local community.

“News has long been an important category for the business,” explains Joanna, “but with

the way the retail marketplace has evolved, we’ve been trying hard to ensure that we’re working smarter, not harder, to manage it efficiently.”

That commitment saw the business invest in a tailored news management software system that takes much of the timeconsuming admin work out of managing the category while bringing in a lot of extra features to enhance the service the store offers to its many news customers.

WWW.SLRAWARDS.COM

“It’s just fantastic to see a store really understanding the value of the newstrade to its business and investing in ways to improve the service it offers to its customers,” says Scott McCulloch, Business Development Manager at News Scotland. “The software system we saw in action is a great example of how to manage news really efficiently and well, and it’s always great to see a business with a solid home news delivery operation. It was also very clear that in-store routines are fantastic because the main fixture looked immaculate and the staff were very knowledgeable.”

For their efforts Joanna and Franck earned a night out in News Scotland’s plush VIP box at the Hydro to see global singing sensation Celine Dion. Joanna comments: “I just wanted to write to say a huge thank you to News Scotland and SLR for the fantastic Celine Dion tickets. A wonderful night was had by all. Even the supporting act was amazing but Celine Dion really was something special live in concert. The evening was just fantastic and the hospitality was first class.”

WOODLANDSlocal

Inside Business

26

Woodlands Local | Monthly Update

IT ALL BEGINS WITH PEOPLE...

ONLINE T CHANG

At Bolt, we create courses that should just be a ‘tick box’ exerc scenarios, immersive stories an behavioural change, ensure co

As we begin our revolution at Woodlands Local, we’ve decided to start with the most important asset the business has: its people.

L

ike so many clichés, the old one about retail being a people business has become a cliché because it’s true. So when we decided recently to rip the business up and start again we decided to start with our people – and that means one thing: training.

Since we took the store over we have had a reasonably settled core team, although we’ve been through probably 30 peripheral part-time staff over that period who haven’t lasted for a variety of the usual reasons.

Staffing remains the number one challenge in the business. But while having a strong core team is beneficial in many ways, it has also created its own problems as we try to harmonise procedures across the business.

When staff have been there a long time, they know how they do things and they want to keep doing them that way, even if it’s crystal clear that the procedures were far from optimal, and in some cases downright counter-productive. Change invariably means friction and the period since our new manager came in has been a difficult one with several key staff finding the process of change difficult, exacerbated by the usual problems surrounding a new boss.

Unfortunately that has meant yet more staff upheaval but we now have a solid team that gets on well, works well together and is willing to embrace the changes we are implementing at the store. The downside is that this core team is now too small to cover the 210 or so working hours we require every week, so the process of recruitment is back in full swing.

Recruitment has never been easy at the store and I don’t anticipate this wave to be straightforward either – but we are turning this problem into an opportunity by using the influx of new staff as a great excuse to implement our new procedures from day one. The rules will now be handed down from the management and all staff will be required to comply. This should wash away in one go the many sets of slightly different procedures that each individual current staff member currently operates.

We were very conscious that we would require some external input into that process and have engaged further with Paisley-based Bolt Learning to make use of their exceptional online e-learning solutions. I met up with Tom Fender and Katie Jenkins of Bolt last month to begin the implementation process – and was frankly very impressed with what they already have in place. The modules available already contain a mass of great procedures that basically save our management team from having to draw up procedures from scratch across a number of key subjects such as health and safety, food hygiene, fire safety, age-related sales, customer service and upselling skills.

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YOUR TEAM CAN BE LOGGE

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info@boltlearning.c

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

TRAINING WHICH GES BEHAVIOUR

get people involved. We don’t believe training cise. These ‘off the shelf’ modules contain realistic nd a multitude of interactions to actually inspire ompliance and drive productivity.

ips, Trips & Falls

Basic first aid

All members of staff, including those already trained, will be required to complete these modules online and present their completion certificates for presentation in the store. We are using this model as an initiation pack for new starts to ensure they hit the ground running without so much on-the-job learning required. The Bolt solution also provides some independent proof of our commitment to best practice and due diligence.

We are currently in the process of checking each of these modules out to ensure they fit our requirements precisely, or whether they may require minor tweaks to tailor them specifically to our unique set of circumstances in the store.

RE-LAY

ood safety – level 1

Food safety – level 2

re Safety – Warden

Basic health & safety

ustomer service

Age related sales

silo, or as building blocks to create a complete can be downloaded by trainees upon successful

ED IN AND TRAINING TOMORROW. WHY WAIT?

com

Inside Business

Monthly Update | Woodlands Local

As part of our revolution, we are planning to clear every shelf in the store and start again with a complete overhaul of every category. We shall first establish whether each category has the right amount of space, as dictated by historic sales, and will then also consider whether each category is sited in the right location in-store. We are also examining our use of special areas such as promo and themed bays, like big night in.

To help with this process, we invited Filshill’s new Retail Sales Director Craig Brown along to the store last month for his thoughts.

Craig spent an hour with us and gave us some really useful immediate feedback but has agreed to produce a set of anonymised sales data for all of the stores in the Falkirk area.

This should help establish any bigselling lines in the area that we may be missing in our store. We can then combine that with our own Epos data to establish a solid range of strong rate-of-sales lines – and ditch the under-performers. Craig has also agreed to have one of his development managers get involved in the process of re-laying the whole store. This sort of assistance is invaluable to us.

CHILL CHALLENGE +44 (0) 333 355 2658

www.slrmag.co.uk

We also spoke to Craig about making use of Filshill’s access to the Nisa chilled range, something we had been interested in a couple of years back. At that point we couldn’t be 100% sure of being able to meet

Nisa’s minimum drop of 100 cases a week and had hoped that the Filshill deal would allow us a back door in.

Unfortunately, the 100 case rule still applies, even when buying centrally through Filshill, and we are still not sure that we would require 100 cases a week, every week in life. (There is a penalty of £100 for failing to hit the minimum order.) So it’s a frustrating lack of progress on that front, which is disappointing as we are very keen to grow our fresh and chilled sales but we are obviously nervous about entering a long- term commitment based on predicted sales growth. If the growth doesn’t materialise, the penalties surely will.

We currently buy chilled through Costcutter and the range is good, but we have had mixed success with key areas like ready meals and fresh meat. Filshill has also upped its game in fresh with the launch of a relatively new chilled service via Lomond. The range is quite basic but we are trying a few lines here and there to see how our customers respond. There’s no question that getting chilled right in a smallish store is a really tough nut to crack with most wholesalers set up for either a huge range or a tiny one.

We lie somewhere in the middle and are caught between two stools. More thought and work is required.

HELLO EHO Last month also saw a visit from our Environmental Health Officer, who took great pleasure in going through the business with a fine-tooth comb.

The report was as expected; a few issues to deal with – several of them dealt with during the visit – but nothing that causes us any concern.

It was also a useful exercise purely for the team to have a short, sharp reminder that hygiene practices are paramount in a business like ours that sells hot and cold foods to go.

The only issue of any concern was a requirement to replace a part of the floor behind the counter which had been damaged – but we’ve decided to do things properly and simply replace the whole floor.

We have also decided that the store manager and I will attend a formal Cooksafe training session to ensure that we are as well trained as we can possibly be. If only there were a few more hours in every day...

SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

27

Inside Business

Woodlands Local | Price-Marked Pack Trial

WOODLANDSlocal

TO PRICE-MARK, OR NOT TO PRICE-MARK? THAT IS THE QUESTION!

28

As highlighted last month, Woodlands Local is working with Wrigley on an exciting instore trial to attempt to find out once and for all what difference price-marking makes in-store.

T

he price-marked pack (PMP) is now a core weapon in the local retailer’s armoury and while some love them and some hate them, there’s no question that they are here and they’re here to stay. But how well do they actually work? Do they increase rate of sale and drive up impulse purchases? And what impact does that have on cash profits? Do the extra sales generate enough profit to merit the extra work and often reduced individual margins? Or are we making busy fools of ourselves trying to pile it high and sell it cheap?

So many questions – and very few reliable answers.

Most solidly conducted data suggests that PMPs do indeed increase rate of sale – by as much as 50%, depending upon which piece of research you wish to rely on – but we decided to put the theory to the test in Woodlands Local with Wrigley.

Wrigley is the perfect partner as their lines tend to be high volume, meaning we can hopefully get some reasonably robust data out of our trial. As explained in the last issue, we simply sited a number of plan pack Starburst and Skittles lines in the store in places you’d expect to find them: at the till point and on the main confectionery fixture. Nothing more complicated than that as we wanted to the trial to be as a fair and representative as possible.

Then, at the start of last month we replaced these packs with price-marked lines. Again, all we did was swap the products out for their price-marked equivalents. We didn’t change the sitings or the number of facings in order to try to ensure the trial is objective and fair.

The results are below:

DATA FOR JULY (PLAIN PACK) V AUGUST (PMP) Starburst Fave Reds 150g: 31 v 56 Skittles Fruits 125g: 58 v 81 Skittles Crazy Sours 125g: 67 v 104 Skittles Fruits & Sours 100g: 34 v 39

OK, it isn’t the most scientific survey ever, but it was done properly and all the signs indicate that PMPs outperform plain packs on every front – without exception.

It is also very clear that the reduced margin we make on PMPs is more than compensated for by the higher rate of sale. The volume sales increases are such that the total cash profit for the trial products increased by 13.1% over the course of our experiment.

It doesn’t get much clearer than that. Case closed – and PMPs are the way go to go!

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

What’s New? | Woodlands Local

Inside Business

GOING BIG ON WALKERS ‘CHOOSE OR LOSE!’ CAMPAIGN With Walkers throwing its lot behind its massive ‘Choose or Lose!’ campaign, Woodlands Local is getting in on the act with a full in-store POS execution and the results so far have been excellent.

S

hoppers at Woodlands Local love a bit of NPD, something that’s undoubtedly true across the country, so big campaigns by major players like Walkers are always worth getting behind. The crisp giant’s latest ‘Choose or Lose!’ campaign is backed by a new TV ad featuring Gary Lineker that launched on August 28 and will be on air for six weeks.

We decided to get involved early however, and had Walkers visit the store to implement a full POS kit, including a flashing-light HOD and clips strips galore. Even though the TV ad hadn’t aired yet, the response from customers was enthusiastic with many commenting on how they’d heard about the campaign.

We dedicated the top shelf of our main crisps fixture to the campaign using a high impact headboard and sited the ‘competing’ flavours next to each other. (The principle is that customers have the chance to keep their favourite flavours or swap them for a brandnew flavour, the new flavours being firm favourites in other countries.)

The decision will be between three classic flavours and three new flavours: Q Salt & Vinegar will be challenged by Lime & Black Pepper from Australia Q Prawn Cocktail is taking on Paprika from Spain Q Smoky Bacon is up against Bacon & Cheddar from the USA. The outcome will be determined by the number of single packs bought in store (80%) and from an online vote (20%).

The new ad sees a woman who is selecting a packet of Walkers crisps from a store and doesn’t know which flavour to choose. She is thrown into a gameshow hosted by Gary Lineker with an audience split into two sets of supporters: Salt & Vinegar, and Lime & Black Pepper.

www.slrmag.co.uk

While the stock has only been in-store for a short time, there are some early indicators in Woodlands as to how the battles are playing out. A quick glance at the Epos data reveals that Bacon & Cheddar is by far the favourite of any of the flavours involved – so Smoky Bacon’s days may be numbered!

So far Lime & Black Pepper is pretty much neck and neck with Salt & Vinegar, though that may be simply down to customers wanting to try the new flavours, rather than an outright preference.

It also looks like Prawn Cocktail might have a fight on its hands because Paprika is currently outgunning it, perhaps driven by the fact that Paprika crisps will already be familiar to anyone who holidays in Europe where the flavour is pretty much ubiquitous.

Most encouraging of all, our total crisps sales over the last few weeks are up around 11% on our average weekly sales, so the campaign is clearly working for us.

Customer feedback also suggests however that there will be some very unhappy campers if Walkers does indeed kill the Smoky Bacon and Prawn Cocktail flavours as they’ve promised...

SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

29

Hotlines

Product News & Media Watch

Dolmio No Added Sugar Pasta Sauce Mars Foods The latest addition to the Dolmio range is available now in five flavours are available: Tomatoes & Basil, Tomatoes & Chilli, Tomatoes & Roasted Garlic, Tomatoes & Mascarpone and Tomatoes & Sweet Pepper. Each 350g jar has an RSP of £1.99 and contains no artificial colours, flavours, preservatives or sweeteners. A new Dolmio ad starring Dominic West is on screens now.

Sunbites Nut Mixes PepsiCo Walkers has launched new Sunbites Nut Mixes. The range combines the brand’s familiar look and feel with a selection of nuts, seeds and dried fruit. Nut Mixes are available now in 90g sharing packs (RSP £1.99) and 35g singles (RSP £1) in three variants: Nuts & Sun Ripened Raisins; Nuts & Sun Kissed Cranberries; and Crunchy Whole Nuts.

Herbal Essences bio:renew P&G Herbal Essences has launched a new range of seven shampoos and conditioners, each designed to deliver specific benefits to hair.

The bio:renew line up comprises Coconut Milk, Grapefruit & Mosa Mint, Cucumber & Green Tea, Argan Oil, Moringa Oil, Strawberry & Mint and Rosemary & Herbs. In the US, grouping bio:renew with the existing Herbal Essences range boosted category value by up to 5% and brand value by up to 31%.

30

Get B-ready for this: Nutella launches biscuit bar Nutella has moved into the Biscuits category for the first time in the UK with the launch of Nutella B-ready.

Available now as a single serve (RSP 56p) or multipack of six (RSP £1.99), Nutella B-ready features a light, crunchy wafer shell, Nutella filling and puffed wheat crispies in an individuallywrapped bar.

The launch will be supported by a £2.8m multimedia campaign spanning TV, video-ondemand, out of home advertising, social and in-store media, which kicks off this month. A full suite of POS solutions is available for retailers to order from Ferrero’s dedicated trade website (www.yourperfectstore.co.uk).

Nutella B-ready is already available in other markets and its international performance has led to a confident introduction in the UK. For example, it was named the best launch in FMCG since 2003, when it rolled out in Italy in 2015. It also picked up the Product of the Year award in Italy in 2016, where it is currently the number two SKU in the biscuits market.

Levi Boorer, Customer Development Director, commented: “Nutella B-ready is a complementary addition to the Ferrero range, offering shoppers more ‘sweet snacking’ solutions throughout the day. We see B-ready as the ideal mid-morning snack.

“Our initial UK trial has proved incredibly successful. We ranged at the till in a selection of convenience stores and Nutella B-ready ranked as the fourth-best performing sweet snacking line during the period. We also found that merchandising the single serve product separately to the multipack drove incremental sales.”

Oreo Choc’o Brownie Mondelez Brownie Batter took 43% of the votes in a survey asking the public what they would like as a new Oreo filling, resulting in the production of the Choc’o Brownie variant. The launch will be supported by a £2.5m media and sampling campaign.

Helen Potter, Senior Brand Manager for Oreo, said: “We hope this launch will drive excitement in-store in turn helping retailers drive sweet biscuit sales.” Oreo Choc’o Brownie is available now in outers of 16 x 154g, with an RSP of £1.08.

Olbas Nasal Spray LanesHealth Olbas has introduced a fast-acting nasal spray, ahead of the winter cold and flu season. The new spray is clinically proven to unblock the nasal passages and prevent the spread of viral infections and bacteria. It is available now with an RSP of £5.99. Each pack contains one 20ml spray bottle. For stock enquiries, contact LanesHealth on 01452 507458. The launch is backed by a large media spend including TV, digital, print advertising, public relations activity and POS.

Tic Tac Mixers Ferrero The flavour-changing Tic Tac Mixers range is getting a tropical twist with the launch of a new Coconut to Pineapple variant. The new variant will be available this month as an 18g pack (RSP 62p) and a 49g pack (RSP £1.41). The launch will be supported with a digital campaign, while clearer on-pack messaging communicates the sweet’s flavourchanging experience.

A suite of POS, including countertop and free-standing display units, can be ordered from Ferrero’s trade website.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Product News & Media Watch Mentos Say Hello Perfetti Van Melle

Banana Bar Snact

Mentos is getting a fresh look for three months, as the brand embarks on its new promotion, ‘Say Hello’.

Each sweet in the limited-edition packs will give consumers a challenge by means of a printed icon and message. The 34 different challenges range from moonwalking or telling a joke; to a game of rock, paper, scissors. Say Hello features alongside the current Me & You onpack promotion. The launch is backed by a £3.5m media spend, which includes a TV advert.

Cadbury Crunchy Melts Mondelez

Healthy snacking brand Snact’s new Banana Bar (RSP £1.39) has been created to help reduce the number (1.4 million) of edible bananas being discarded in Britain every day. Three flavours are available: Apple & Cinnamon, Carrot & Spice and Beetroot & Cacao. Wrapped in compostable packing, the bars are free-from gluten, flavourings, colourants or artificial sweeteners.

MEDIAwatch

N

‘Choose or Lose’ hits screens The latest Walkers campaign – which may result in classic core flavours being axed – gathers momentum with the launch of a new TV ad. The advert features a woman who can’t decide which flavour of Walkers crisps to choose from a store, who is then suddenly catapulted into a ‘Choose Me or Lose Me’ gameshow hosted by Gary Lineker.

Eric – ‘le Scarecrow Suprême’ Vimto Millions Golden Casket

This second Cadbury biscuit from Mondelez is a chocolate chip cookie with a soft melting centre that can also be heated in a microwave oven. A 156g pack of six has an RSP of £1.89. Three variants are available: Chocolate Centre, Double Indulgence and Soft Cookie Centre. A £1.29 PMP is offered on the Chocolate Centre variant. The launch is supported by a brand-new TV campaign for Cadbury Biscuits.

Hotlines

This latest Millions variant targets teen consumers, taking advantage of Vimto’s popularity among 15 to 19 year-olds. The new flavour is available now, in a variety of formats, from a 40g countline to taper jars and a £1 PMP. The Vimto brand continues to be supported by ongoing marketing activity throughout the year.

Eric Cantona dresses up as a scarecrow for Kronenbourg 1664’s latest campaign, in which the former footballer has to protect the Strisslespalt hops used to make the French lager. In a groundbreaking move, the ad can be viewed on a bespoke branded Amazon landing page – one of the first brands to have built this in partnership with the retail giant.

Pom-Bear ends hibernation Pom-Bear is back on TV during September.

The month-long campaign is the brand’s first foray on the box since last year. The activity is part of a £1.5m media investment, which brand owner KP Snacks says will be spent on driving brand value through targeted, integrated campaigns. Pom-Bear is worth £29.2m, growing 7.4% year-on-year.

Coke gets its bottle back Dolmio Chicken Tray Bake Mars Foods Dolmio Chicken Tray Bake (RSP £1.49) is the brand’s first attempt at a chicken range. Each 150g pouch is designed to be spread over chicken and vegetables and cooked in the oven. Four flavours are available: Italian Herbs & Garlic, Lemon & Roasted Garlic, Sundried Tomato & Basil and Mushroom, Garlic & White Wine. Online video and social media advertising rolls out from midSeptember.

Pud In A Mug Banana and Choc Chip Dr. Oetker Pud In A Mug Banana and Choc Chip (RSP 85p) can be cooked in the microwave in 90 seconds to create a soft-textured banana-flavoured sponge with gooey chocolate chips. Jan McKee, Executive Head of Marketing at Dr. Oetker UK, said: “The convenient range has been hugely popular with consumers so far, and with the growing trend of banana bread, the new flavour was an obvious choice.”

Coca-Cola GB has created its first-ever ad made entirely out of its 100% recyclable packaging. ‘Love Story’ traces the journey of two plastic bottles who keep falling for each other when they get recycled. It will communicate its message about recycling to 35 million Britons by the end of the year via TV, cinema, digital and social media channels.

Quorn sets sights on family dinners Quorn is targeting the family meal occasion with a category-boosting, £2.5m media spend.

The investment will be spearheaded by a new TV ad complemented by digital support. The ad features Quorn Crispy Frozen Nuggets, the fifth best-selling SKU in the UK’s £290m meat free category. Quorn is on TV for 49 weeks of the year with nine 20 second adverts.

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

SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

31

Halloween

Feature

SOFT DRINKS AND CONFECTIONERY KEY TO HALLOWEEN PROFITS The American obsession with Halloween has gradually taken hold on this side of the pond – and that’s great news for retailers looking for a seasonal boost in autumn, says SLR.

I

t’s hard to believe it now but retailers who have been in the industry for a long while will clearly recall a time when Halloween hardly registered with shoppers.

Over in the States it has been a massive tradition for a long time and Americans take the festival seriously. That enthusiasm has gradually spread to the UK and Halloween now just seems to be getting bigger and bigger every year – which is great news for retailers who need all the seasonal sales opportunities they can get.

According to Mintel, Halloween has exploded in recent years in the UK with overall consumer spending on the occasion continually rising since 2009 – up an enormous 263% between 2009 and 2013 alone – and this trend

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SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Halloween

Feature

PERFETTI VAN MELLE OFFERS THESE TOP TIPS FOR SUCCESSFUL HALLOWEEN SALES:

shows no sign of slowing down. Halloween is now the third largest seasonal occasion in the retail calendar.

MULTI-CATEGORY OPPORTUNITY i

s

www.slrmag.co.uk

A huge benefit of the nature of Halloween that it brings sales opportunities in a wide array of important categories, but particularly in soft drinks and confectionery.

Amy Burgess, Trade Communications Manager at Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP), comments: “Halloween is a much-loved American tradition that has grown popular on this side of the pond, and a calendar moment that is increasingly celebrated by adults. Often enjoyed by friends at home, it provides an ideal opportunity for retailers to increase soft drink sales as consumers look to provide refreshments for guests.

“As statistics show that as many as 21% of adults in the UK are now teetotal [ONS, Feb 2015], soft drinks are playing an important role for retailers in the run up to Halloween. Sharing bottles such as the 1.75 PET bottles and 4x330ml multipacks are a perfect match for social gatherings, so stocking shelves with a variety of soft drinks in these formats can help retailers maximise sales.

“It is important to stock a range of well-known products and variants for shoppers that are kept chilled where possible, to allow for instant consumption for people planning impromptu gatherings.”

Similarly, Bep Dhaliwal, Trade Communications Manager at Mars Chocolate UK, sees Halloween as a vital opportunity for local retailers: “Confectionery was the number one purchased category at

Q Driving footfall is key to capturing sales – offer a broad range that will capture both impulse and planned sales, e.g. theatrical pieces like our Chupa Chups skull and Spooky Pizza, as well as sharing bags of individually wrapped sweets.

Q Visibility and theatre instore helps aid frequency.

Q £1 packs are very popular with shoppers: Q 20% of the top 10 branded lines are priced at £1 Q 74% of the top 15 lines at Halloween are £1 Q 40% of top 15 lines are portioncontrolled

SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

33

Feature

Halloween

Halloween last year with additional 1.3 million households buying in to confectionery at Halloween [Nielsen, Nov 2016].

“Seasonal occasions are a crucial time for retailers to maximise sales in-store, and Halloween is no different.

From late September people will be thinking about how to celebrate Halloween, so retailers should showcase the sharing packs and fun size packs they have available from then. Combining this with an in-store Halloween display is a great way to boost sales, and add excitement around the season.”

Dhaliwal believes the opportunity for retailers at Halloween is clear, with confectionery the perfect option for consumers regardless of their plans, whether that is trick or treating, preparing for trick or treaters, or hosting a Halloween party.

“Retailers should be sure to stock up on confectionery well in advance of the day in order to maximise sales,” she advises.

TRICK OR TREAT Irn-Bru manufacturer AG Barr urges retailers to ensure they don’t miss out on the Halloween opportunity by offering fun, affordable products to appeal to consumers stocking up for seasonal parties or trick or treaters.

Halloween is now worth over £300m according to Mintel and AG Barr Marketing Director Adrian Troy highlights the IGD Halloween survey in 2015 which shows that one in three shoppers buy soft drinks for the occasion.

“The Halloween occasion represents a significant opportunity for retailers to grow sales during what is now a key period in the UK retail calendar,” says Troy. “Soft drinks and confectionery are the biggest profit drivers [Platypus, 2012], with shoppers stocking up on take-home packs of soft drinks for parties and smaller packs to hand out to trick-or-treaters.”

34

Troy also highlights in-store theatre as vital to driving sales of seasonal products. He comments: “We would advise retailers to build exciting themed displays that will entice shoppers and drive footfall to the fixture.”

THEMED PACKS One trend which has been very helpful for retailers in recent years has been the growth of bespoke Halloweenthemed packs and products from major manufacturers.

The brightly coloured, eye-catching packs help drive impulse sales and create excitement and profits in-store.

CCEP recently announced its biggest ever Halloween campaign from Fanta, including exclusively-designed packaging, smaller 150ml can multipacks and an advertising and experiential marketing campaign, to help retailers make the most of the second biggest seasonal selling event for soft drinks in Great Britain [Nielsen, Nov 2016].

The new ghoulish graphics on packs of Fanta have been specially designed by renowned artist Noma Bar and will run from 16th September to 11th November, encouraging young adults and gatekeeper mums to stock up for the seasonal occasion.

The spooky packs will also include a code for consumers to unlock exclusive Fanta Halloween-themed Snapchat filters and lenses, which will change daily throughout the campaign to encourage repeat purchases.

As 60% of UK smartphone users are now Snapchatters, and with users aged under 25 visiting the popular app more than 20 times a day, the new on-pack promotion will engage shoppers by adding a fun dynamic to Fanta’s association with the Halloween occasion, helping to drive more transactions for retailers.

The packaging will appear on a range of plain and PMP formats, including 2L and 500ml PET bottles, 330ml and 6x330ml can multipacks, of Fanta Orange, Fanta Orange

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

WITH BARR SOFT DRINKS

PROFIT FROM THIS WICKED SALES OPPORTUNITY

Halloween

Feature

S ’ T A N FA EVER T S E G G I B

E N E LOW

HAL

.

N I G A P CAM

Zero, Fanta Fruit Twist and Fanta Fruit Twist Zero. The Halloween themed packs will also coincide with the arrival of the 500ml PET Fanta Twist bottle which made its debut in the 2L format earlier this summer.

The brand will also be introducing Halloween themed limited edition 12x150ml mini can multipacks of Fanta Orange Zero and Fanta Fruit Twist Zero. These formats are designed to appeal to consumers who are less frequent buyers of carbonated soft drinks but are looking to stock up on smaller formats for their Halloween festivities.

The Fanta campaign marks CCEP’s biggest ever investment in Halloween, and includes a multi-millionpound marketing campaign that will feature themed in-store visuals, point-of-sale material, digital out-ofhome advertising and experiential and virtual reality ‘Fright Night’ activity to drive awareness of the brand’s Halloween activities.

SPOOKY SKUS

Stock up now! It’s going to be a chiller!

Get in contact to find out more at connect@ccep.com or call 0808 1 000 000. ©2017 The Coca-Cola Company. All rights reserved. FANTA is a registered trademark of The Coca-Cola Company.

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Another manufacturer taking Halloween seriously is Wrigley with its range of themed products. The company has recently extended its seasonal range to five spooky Halloween SKUs. These include Skittles Fruits and Sours Tubs which carry an RSP of £5 and contain 29 individual 26g packs of Skittles Fruits and Skittles Crazy Sours, perfect for trick or treaters.

To support the new tubs, Skittles will be taking consumers back to the dark side for the third year running.

Containing five frightening flavours – Forbidden Fruit, Midnight Lime, Blood Orange, Pomegranate and Dark Berry – Skittles Darkside is again available in a pouch format (RSP £1), and new for this year, as fun size (11 x 18g, RSP £1.39).

The Starburst brand also features in the seasonal range too with its creepy ‘Trick or Treat’ limited edition sharing bags (RSP £1) giving consumers a tense surprise when they taste one of the sweet or sour edition flavours. The pouch formats and sharing bags are ideal for consumers looking to host their own Halloween parties.

The limited-edition range will be available for three months and will run alongside the Skittles Fruits Funsize which will be available to buy throughout the year.

Dan Newell, Wrigley Confections Marketing Manager, comments: “It’s so important that retailers get stocked up for Halloween. We are excited to have expanded our range this year and will be giving retailers everything they need to enhance in store theatre”.

That support includes Halloween-themed POS including dedicated cardboard units and clipstrips.

SUGAR SALES According to Mark Roberts, Trade

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Halloween

Feature

GRAB G N I H O E T M S

E D C K I W

Marketing Manager at Perfetti Van Melle, Halloween is a key occasion where sugar confectionery can come into its own. He says: “Unlike Easter or Christmas, where sales can be dominated by chocolate, Halloween is the occasion where sugar confectionery can really shine. In addition to impulse purchases, during this time, the category also benefits from a surge in planned sales. Shoppers will be actively stocking up for trick or treaters, fancy dress parties as well as looking for gifts and stunning centre pieces.”

Roberts is also frank about how important it is that manufacturers listen to retailers when planning innovation around Halloween. “Innovation remains key for Halloween, but at the same time there’s a need for manufacturers to listen to and act upon retailer feedback,” he says. “Seasonal stock isn’t always 100% successful, and if it’s not sold quickly it can end up costing more than expected. The space given to seasonal branded lines in total market declined 7.6% in 2016, and in line with this we’ve seen 20% less sales from Halloween branded lines [Kantar, Nov 2016].”

In response Perfetti Van Melle has widened its offering to ensure they are catering to both retailers who love novelty products, and also those who will still see a surge in sugar confectionery sales, but who may have less space, or want their products to have a longer shelf-life.

Roberts explains: “We’ve given our core range a spooky makeover.

The packs simply feature Halloween artwork, giving retailers the opportunity to create theatre in-store without a risk of mark down post event. We’re bringing the focus back to £1

www.slrmag.co.uk

EXCLUSIVE ON-PACK SNAPCHAT FILTERS AND ENSES

L

Stock up now! It’s going to be a chiller!

Get in contact to find out more at connect@ccep.com or call 0808 1 000 000. ©2017 The Coca-Cola Company. All rights reserved. FANTA is a registered trademark of The Coca-Cola Company.

SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

37

Halloween

Feature

a

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lines, and our bags all include individuallywrapped sweets, ideal for trick or treaters.”

HEALTHIER HALLOWEEN? Perfetti Van Melle has also highlighted that, with 92% of consumers actively trying to reduce the amount of sugar they consume, retailers should expect to see some shoppers searching for confectionery that’s a little bit better for them. It’s worth ensuring that you prepare for this by introducing some reduced sugar, or completely sugar free lines in time for peak season.

With that in mind Perfetti Van Melle is offering retailers Fruittella 30% reduced sugar mini party mix, Chupa Chups Sugar Free lollipops (RSP 35p) and a Chupa Chups

Sugar Free lollipop bag (RSP £1.49).

New this year is the Giant Chupa Chups Skull with Fizzy Brain, a premium skullshaped lollipop with a unique fizzy brain taste and texture with an RSP of 35p, available in a centrepiece unit containing 45 lollipops.

Also worth checking out is the Chupa Chups Spooky Pizza, a new take on the popular candy pizza, themed with snakes and spiders in time for Halloween. The product comes in impactful shelf-ready packaging and free-standing display units are available for instore theatre and engagement. With an RSP of £5, these are the perfect centrepiece for any Halloween party and will help drive sales.

TOP HALLOWEEN MERCHANDISING TIPS FROM CCEP: Q It’s important for retailers to start preparing their Halloween displays from the beginning of October to build up momentum.

Decorations can be placed around the store to remind busy consumers to save the date in their social calendars, and potentially plan their own party to celebrate.

Q Halloween offers an opportunity for retailers to bring their stores to life by creating eye-catching themed displays surrounding the event.

Q Retailers should consider using costumes and props to highlight bestselling products, and to inspire consumers to stock up ahead of their event.

Q As the night nears, retailers can maximise their sales by promoting key categories like soft drinks and confectionery through various offers.

As sharing packs are a big hit for parties, deals on these products will prompt bulk buying and give the consumer perceived value for money.

Q There’s also a huge opportunity for cross-merchandising soft drinks with popular party foods, as well as Halloween costumes. This increases the convenience for the customer, whilst also helping retailers to grow their sales.

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SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

s e l a S r e i h t l a He ree F r a g u S h t i w

Government targets state retailers and manufacturers must reduce sugar content by 20% by 2020

Introducing 30% less sugar range from

NEW 90g Fruit Gums

Delicious chewy fruity gums

80g Fruit Foams

Soft mouth-watering foam chews

£2m m m

The government has set a big challenge for retailers to reduce their sugar offering byamount 20% by 2020.in the • 92% of consumers try to reduce the of sugars

meeddiiaa ssppeennd! d!

• Introduce new health conscious shoppers into the confectionery category foods they buy*

• Sugar-free confectionery growing +20%*

• Fruittella bag sales are in strong growth, up +24%†

• We only use natural flavours, colours & absolutely no artificial sweeteners

• Naturally sweetened with the extract of Stevia leaves

30% less sugar, 100% Fruittella • Convenient reclosable pouch for on-the-go snacking and treat occasion

*Source: IRI Sales Data w/e 20th May

*Source: Kandar World Panel 2015

†Source:

SIG Confectionery Market to 22nd July 2017

Feature

Sports & Energy

SPORTS AND ENERGY STILL GOING STRONG

The sports and energy sub-category has been the star of the soft drinks show for many years now and that trend shows no signs of slowing down with a further 10% growth predicted by 2020.

A RATIONALISE FOR THE RIGHT ENERGY RANGE Q Red Bull offers the following food for thought for retailers in Scotland to ensure they are stocking the right energy range to deliver maximum sales: Q Within Energy, sizes are driving category growth, with core continuing to contribute significantly to share. Retailers should rationalise their range to focus on the key SKUs, providing them with the right amount of space on shelf to drive growth and maximise sales. Sizes are driving category growth, with core continuing to contribute significantly to share. However, currently both core and sizes are under-represented on shelf vs. share of sales, yet flavours are highly overrepresented based on the sales delivered.

Q Core represents 42.6% of sales, whilst occupying just 30.7% space on shelf.

Q Sizes account for 14.3% of sales, with only 12.8% of space on shelf.

Q Flavours account for 21.1% of sales, yet currently receive 35.6% space on shelf.

40

s the number one sub-category in independents, symbols and forecourts, the Sports & Energy sector has continued to drive growth in the last three years to 2016, thanks to an increased spend from Functional Energy drinkers. This trend is set to continue with the category expected to grow 10%, to £1.4bn by 2020.

An indicator of just how important the category has become was the fact that in 2016, Red Bull Energy Drink 250ml became the new number one UK single serve soft drink, surpassing Coca Cola Original 500ml for the first time. Energy is big business these days, worth £134m in Scotland [IRI, Oct 2016], making it hugely important for retailers.

“Red Bull Energy 250ml has been one of the main contributors to the Red Bull brand’s 2016 successful growth story, contributing £5.6m to the overall brand, up 4.4% in value against 2015,” explains Rich Fisher, Category Development Manager at Red Bull UK. “This demonstrates that consumers are willing to pay more for a premium brand that delivers added value.”

Fisher also highlights that Red Bull is currently growing at 4.4% in value and 5.2% in volume year to date, while the Sports & Energy category also continues to grow at +1.4% in value and +1.9% in volume, cementing Red Bull as the leading functional energy drink.

FLAVOUR FASCINATION But while the sub-category is clearly flying, Red Bull says that there is room for even faster growth if retailers pay particular attention to the parts of the sector that are driving that growth – and give them more prominence in-store.

In particular, Fisher believes that retailers are committing too much space to flavour variants and not enough space to the size formats and core products that are actually behind the growth. He says: “It’s sizes that are driving category growth, with core continuing to contribute significantly to share. However, currently both core and sizes

are under-represented on shelf vs. share of sales, yet flavours are highly overrepresented based on the sales delivered.”

For example, core lines deliver over 42% of sales yet enjoy only 30% of shelf space. Conversely, flavours account for just over 21% of sales but have a significant 35.6% of shelf space.

Adrian Troy, Marketing Director at AG Barr, agrees that sizes are critical but believes that flavours still have a major role to play. He comments: “It’s true that big can formats are driving this growth at 13% [IRI, Oct 2016] but flavoured variants are continuing to drive significant growth.

“Rockstar is currently the largest big can flavoured energy drink in the Scottish convenience market and six of the top 10 flavoured big cans are Rockstar flavours, with Punched Guava at number one and Xdurance at number two [IRI, Oct 2016].”

Rockstar’s wide range of 11 flavours is the biggest in the energy drinks category and is a key motivator for shoppers to choose Rockstar, says Troy, “as it doesn’t define how an energy drink should taste”.

SUGAR FREE Just as in every other soft drinks sub-category, sugarfree is increasingly where the future lies. Growing at 11.3% to £29.8m, Red Bull Sugar Free 250ml is the number one diet energy drink, making it the only low calorie variant in the top 10 energy drinks, and the biggest-selling energy drink within total diet drinks, second only to cola variants.

Again, Red Bull’s Fisher highlights how “variant (original vs. diet) is a very important Size of energy decision within the functional sub-category in category and is consistently Scotland more important than flavour”.

Coca-Cola European Partners also sees sugar-free as vital for the future. Amy Burgess, Trade Communications Manager at CCEP, says: “Most recently, much of the new product development is focused on low or zero sugar variants, helping to appeal to consumers who are increasingly demanding healthier options within the energy sector.”

£134M

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Feature

Tobacco

SMOKING OUT THE REAL EFFECT OF EUTPD2 With over three months since the implementation of EUTPD2, SLR looks at the early impact of the gamechanging legislation on the local retailing industry in Scotland.

BY ANTONY BEGLEY

B

y now, Scotland’s local retailing community has gotten used to coping with and managing major upheaval in the tobacco category.

The last decade or so has, after all, seen a litany of profound change in the way that manufacturers can market their products and the way retailers can sell them in-store.

There is no doubt, however, that May 20 this year marked the biggest set of changes experienced yet by retailers as the full force of the EUTPD2 legislation began to take effect in every store selling tobacco in Scotland. So, with three months of the new regulations under our belts, how has the market coped with the latest bout of major upheaval for retailers and their customers?

SO FAR, SO GOOD Perhaps unsurprisingly, the short answer is ‘very well’. Retailers are nothing if not resilient and determined, as Imperial Tobacco UK Head of Field Sales Andrew Miller rightfully points out: “Despite the significant legislative changes in May, the tobacco category continues to prove both its resilience and continuing relevance as a vital part of UK retailers’ offerings. Anecdotal evidence from our retailers in the independent channel suggests that those who price competitively – either at, or below, RSP – continue to enjoy the loyalty and custom of their tobaccopurchasing shoppers, plus robust sales.”

Miller’s accepts that in a category like tobacco, change is the only constant. But he remains committed to working with retailers to continually find the best way forward.

He explains: “Legislative change is likely to remain a feature of the industry, but by ‘partnering for success’ with our retailers via initiatives including our START packs, trade engagement evenings and ignite membership incentives Imperial’s future confidence in the tobacco category is as strong as ever.”

There’s a similar realistic-yet-upbeat 42

message coming from JTI. A spokesperson for the company told SLR: “Now more than ever, thanks to the roll out of EUTPD2 legislation, getting the tobacco category right is paramount in driving incremental sales for local retailers. The restrictions enforced by the legislation have created tighter boundaries on the landscape making it a harder product to promote. But it remains integral to the success aof convenience retail as a sales and footfall driver.”

The reality, says JTI, is that retailers who follow best practice category management will continue to profit from tobacco – and the company echoes the message that retailers now more than ever should make it a priority to keep up-to-date and utilise the vast support resources available to them to continue making money from the category.

CIGAR MARKET OVERVIEW According to IRI MarketPlace Data to April 2017, cigars are currently worth £199.8m and STG UK is leading the way in the category, accounting for eight of the top 16 brands (as highlighted below) and over half of the entire category with a 51.7% market share. STG UK has a number of leading brands within its portfolio, most notably Café Crème which is the No.1 cigar brand in the UK, accounting for 37% of cigar sales making it a must stock for any tobacco retailer. Henri Wintermans Half Corona should be another big focus as it holds the position of the No.1 selling cigar in the Medium/Large sector in terms of volume and is also the sixth best-selling cigar overall in terms of value sales.

CIGAR OPPORTUNITY Although cigarette manufacturers have been hit hard by EUTPD2, cigars makers view the legislation in a more positive light, and seek to capitalise on the unique position they now enjoy on tobacco gantries across Scotland.

Jens Christiansen, Head of Marketing & Public Affairs at Scandinavian Tobacco Group UK (STG UK), says: “With the EUTPD2 restrictions now in place, the tobacco category is bracing itself for the potential impact of the changes but, only time will tell what the actual effect on sales may be. While all eyes are now watching for how the tobacco category may change as result of EUTPD2, cigars still benefit from being exempt from the restrictions around minimum pack sizes and standardised packaging. As a result, cigars can continue being branded beyond the product name, not be the standard green colour, or be restricted to a minimum pack size, meaning they can still be wrapped and sold individually or indeed in 10 packs.

“This means some cigars are now the cheapest option available on shelf, which may

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

DO YOU SELL E-CIGARETTES IN SCOTLAND? STORE From 1st April 2017, under the Health (Tobacco, Nicotine etc. and Care) (Scotland) Act 2016, all retailers of nicotine vapour products in Scotland are required to be registered by law.

If retailers do not register and continue to sell nicotine vapour products, they could face a fine of up to ÂŁ20,000 and could be sentenced to up to 6 months in prison.

ACT NOW! Retailers have until 1st October 2017 to register their business. Registration is QUICK, FREE and EASY. The simplest way is online at: www.tobaccoregisterscotland.org Alternatively, paper applications can be downloaded from the website, or obtained by telephoning the Scottish Government on 0131 244 2169

Feature

Tobacco

ACCESSORIES MERCHANDISING TIPS FROM REPUBLIC TECHNOLOGIES Q Stock a broad range of products: filters, papers, matches and lighters.

Q Carry the latest NPD to tap into changing shopper needs.

Q Space saving packs such as ZIG-ZAG King Size vertical packs (50% space saving compared to traditional King Size packs) and Poppell 45 packs help retailers to merchandise more effectively.

Q Be sure to stock a core range of papers (Green, Blue and Silver in both standard and King Size variants) plus other options such as Unbleached and flavoured and make sure you have multipacks available.

“Despite significant legislative change, the tobacco category continues to prove both its resilience and continuing relevance as a vital part of UK retailers’ offerings.”

ANDREW MILLER, HEAD OF FIELD SALES, IMPERIAL TOBACCO UK

see them attract existing smokers from other categories. While still available in 10 packs, cigars will mitigate the drop in footfall from cigarettes going to minimum 20 packs, as well as giving a higher margin than cigarettes.

“They will also benefit from much greater visibility than cigarettes due to their exemption from the Plain Packaging legislation. This presents a massive opportunity for tobacco retailers to use this to their advantage by stocking a good range of cigars, in all size segments, as some smokers look to switch to a value alternative to cigarettes, or indeed just a cheaper out of pocket price.”

IRI MarketPlace data to April 2017 shows that STG UK brands account for over half of the entire cigar category, including the No.1 cigar in the UK, Café Crème. This means STG UK is well-positioned to help retailers take advantage of this opportunity.

And while the accessories market is covered by EUTPD2, it’s worth noting that the category is actually in growth, as highlighted

by Gavin Anderson, General Sales Manager for Republic Technologies (UK): “Despite sweeping changes in the market, Scotland’s tobacco accessories category, worth over £25.7m [IRI, May 2017], remains in growth.

“NPD is driving category growth, with consumer demand such as that for slimmer filters making an impact.”

REASON FOR OPTIMISM So it seems there’s plenty of reasons for retailers to remain positive and optimistic about the category – but that has to be backed up by effort and commitment to the category, possibly more so than ever before.

And while it’s tempting to examine other creative tobacco gantry options, the major players are enthusiastically urging retailers to maintain the status quo and leave the category more or less as it was before May 2017.

A JTI spokesperson advises: “We recommend that retailers don’t make any 44

snap decisions about changing the position of tobacco and diminishing brand range and stockholding – those retailers who continue to invest in the category will reap the rewards. Tobacco should still be kept in an area where there is easy access to maintain the best level of service and retailers should ensure their gantries are easy to navigate in a post TPD2 environment. Multiple facings of best sellers will help maintain the space and ensure customer needs are met. With staff accustomed to where stock is currently merchandised, JTI also recommends that retailers maintain their current planograms to avoid confusion.”

This is important, says JTI, when it comes to maintaining range and availability at all times. The spokesperson explains: “Doing so is of vital importance to ensure that retailers become a destination store of choice as existing adult smokers and vapers will expect their brands to be readily available.

Research tells us that almost 27% [Ipsos, Q3 2016] of existing adult smokers choose to buy elsewhere if their brand is unavailable.

Therefore, it’s vital that retailers maintain full availability and range to ensure they do not lose out on sales. Now that 10s are no longer available, we predict that sales of 20s will increase, so keeping range and availability 24/7 is key. Multiple facings of 20s packs on your gantry will help to make sure you can meet your customers’ needs.”

Imperial is encouraging retailers to take a different approach by adopting ‘one brand, one shelf’ approach to merchandising – and also highlights the increasing importance of pricing competitively. ‘RSP or below’ is, in fact, the mantra from all the major manufacturers.

PRICE AND VALUE With a consumer focus on price seemingly more important than ever, it’s no surprise that the lower price sector – which includes Value, Super Value and Ultra Value segments – now

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Tobacco

Feature

TOP PERFORMING CIGAR BRANDS BRAND

SHARE % VALUE (£m) MAT TY MAT TY

Café Crème Blue Hamlet Miniatures Hamlet Moments Blue Café Crème Classic Royal Dutch Miniatures Café Crème Arome Filter Royal Dutch Miniature Blue HW Half Corona Moments Original

4% £35 9% £17.9 7% £37.2 4% £11.2 2% £14.3 6% £22.6 1% £6.8 6% £7.1 5% £3.9 2% £12.7 7% £0.8

Price continues to be a major focus for shoppers and Jens Christiansen, Head of Marketing & Public Affairs at Scandinavian Tobacco Group UK, expects the value for money trend to gain even further momentum.

He says: “With the Small Cigar segment worth £78.5m, but showing 15.4% decline in volume sales YOY, we believe with the right product there is a huge opportunity to capitalise on this demand for value and drive growth back into the category.”

STG’s Moments brand has already seen significant success in the Miniatures segment with its value for money positioning and in only five years has become the fastest growing cigar brand in the UK, accounting for a 15.7% market share of Miniatures.

Products such as Break Filter Cigarillos have also been setting the trend in the value for money arena by offering a range price marked at just £5.19 for 17 sticks. In addition, Break’s unique positioning as a filtered cigarillo means that the range is exempt from the changes that have been brought in under standardised packaging. This makes it an even more attractive proposition for retailers to take advantage of existing smokers looking for an affordable smoking alternative.

Christiansen encourages retailers to focus on top-sellers from each segment in their range so that they don’t miss out on sales. As the No.1 cigar brand in the UK, Café Crème Blue accounts for 22.4% of cigar sales singlehandedly, making it a valuable asset for any tobacco retailer.

Also topping the cigar sales chart is Moments Blue, which is ranked fourth bestselling overall and continues be the fastest growing cigar brand in the UK. Priced at £3.83 for a pack of 10, stocking Moments Blue allows retailers to take advantage of the sales afforded by this leading segment, whilst also responding to two of the major trends in the category: trusted brands and value for money.

STG UK is also set to reinvigorate the Small Cigar segment with its latest new product launch, Moments Panatella, available in packs of five with an RSP of £4.20, making it the cheapest product on shelf within the Small Cigar segment.

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holds a 64% [Nielsen, Mar 2017] volume share of the total factory-made cigarette market – and that share is growing, driven largely by growth in the purchase of sub-economy (the lowest-priced) tobacco products.

Overall, sub-economy products enjoy the largest FMC sector share with 42% of all cigarette sales in May 2017, according to Imperial Tobacco estimates.

Clearly, however, retailers should ensure they maintain a good selection of brands across all price segments to cater for the needs of their existing adult smoker customers and remain a destination of choice. Premium lines still represent a significant part of the market and enjoy strong loyalty, while delivering premium cash profits for retailers too.

RYO It’s a similar story in the RYO market with the Value RYO segment gaining share, now holding 22.8% of RYO volume sales [Nielsen, Jul 2016] as existing adult smokers seek out ways to reduce their tobacco spend.

A JTI spokeperson advises retailers to focus on larger packs to drive bigger basket spends while increasing the value proposition for cash-conscious shoppers. He said: “Larger packs, such as 50g, can provide existing adult smokers with the option of improved value for money which can be attributed to the growth of Amber Leaf and Sterling. With the current trend towards value set to continue, larger RYO packs are expected to become increasingly popular.”

Recent trends in the RYO market have also seen an increase in popularity for box formats.

Having increased sales value by 7.1% year on year, sales now account for 31.3% of RYO pack sales [Nielsen, Nov 2016].

To take advantage of this trend, JTI advises retailers to stock both pouch and box variants of RYO brands, where available, to maximise sales to existing adult smokers who are

looking to purchase their brand of choice in their preferred format.

ACCESSORIES TO SUCCESS “Accessories have traditionally delivered high margins to retailers, so we’d advise them to stock a wide range,” says Imperial Tobacco’s Andrew Miller. Imperial’s papers brand Rizla has recently released a new variant – named Natura – in the independent channel. Natura is a new approach to papers and tips crafted from hemp, designed to provide adult smokers with an authentic smoking experience.

Rizla Natura papers are available now in both Regular and King Size variants containing 50 and 32 papers. They retail for 27p and 75p per pack respectively. Meanwhile, Natura Tips retail at 74p for a pack of 120.

Republic Technologies’ Gavin Anderson says his company is also evolving to help retailers meet current consumer demands.

He comments: “Recognising the need for greater choice, we have launched Swan Ultra Slim, the thinnest-ever Swan filter and a premium quality product aimed at smokers looking for a smoother taste while reducing the amount that they smoke for health or financial reasons.”

The company also reacted to an increase in environmental concerns among shoppers with the launch of its first ‘Eco’ filter, the most environmentally-friendly Swan product ever. The Swan Extra Slim Eco Filters are biodegradable, featuring a naturally-coloured filter and unbleached paper wrap. Each pack contains 120 filter tips at an RSP of £1.03, with 20 packs per outer.

New for 2017 are Swan Kingsize Cigarette Tubes and tubing machines that allow consumers to make cigarettes with ease, with packs available featuring both 100 and 200 tubes in both Standard and Menthol variants.

RSPs range from 99p to £2.50 for the tubes, and £3.64 for the tubing machine.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

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Breakfast

HEALTH AND TASTE KEY DRIVERS AT BREAKFAST A vital sales opportunity every day, the breakfast products market has continued to evolve with healthier offerings that don’t compromise on taste driving sales, finds SLR.

W

TEA STILL KEY For millions of customers, breakfast is not complete without a cup of tea. According to the Tea Advisory Council, over 70% of the population say they are regular tea drinkers.

The tea market is worth over £33m annually and of the 165 million cups of tea drunk daily in the UK, over 100 million are consumed before 1pm. Surprisingly, given the huge array of flavours of tea now available, standard black tea still accounts for 89% of sales.

David Rich, Channel Business Manager UK & Ireland, Twinings, says that while breakfastto-go is becoming an increasingly important offering for retailers, hot drinks and especially tea, remain a key ingredient in meeting the needs of customers who still want to enjoy breakfast at home.

Twinings recommends making premium teas easy as possible to shop. Retailers will meet most of their customers’ needs if they aim for the following representation within the sector: Q Two best-selling Speciality Black teas: English Breakfast and Earl Grey Q Two best-selling Green teas: Pure Green and Green & Lemon Q Two best-selling herbal infusions: Pure Peppermint and Pure Lemon & Ginger

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hen it comes to unlocking the breakfast opportunity in-store, it will come as no surprise that the key drivers for modern shoppers are healthier lines that don’t compromise on taste. It’s a formula that is impacting on most categories in-store with more and more shoppers increasingly concerned with an improved but nonetheless enjoyable diet.

For many shoppers that means starting the day the right way, with a healthy, tasty breakfast – and the good news is that the trend towards making a point of eating breakfast more frequently continues.

According to the latest research by Kantar Worldpanel, the number of people starting the day by eating breakfast continues to grow with breakfast occasions rising by 0.7% in the past year to 2.1 billion.

That most traditional of Scottish breakfasts, porridge, pushes all the right buttons in terms of slow release energy, low fat and low sugar, as well as being relatively inexpensive – which may explain why porridge has become less and less wintercentric and more of a year-round purchase for many.

Alan Meikle, Managing Director of Hamlyns of Scotland, says porridge sales are now strong throughout the year, with much less of a winter peak than in previous years. He says: “Porridge has always been the favourite breakfast choice for healthy eaters, but the growing trend for breakfast on-the-go, satisfied by the wide range of instant porridge pots and sachets, and the huge interest in making overnight oats mean that porridge really is a year-round breakfast favourite.

“We used to ramp up production at our

mill in Boyndie over the build- up to winter and through the winter months, but we’re now working 24/7 all year-round to cope with demand.”

Hamlyns has also just committed to promoting healthier breakfasting with a further 12 months’ support for the Food for Thought programme, which is funded

by Business in the Community Scotland, Education Scotland and the Scottish Government. The programme helps spread the healthy eating message in Scottish schools. At the same time, it aims to provide a better understanding of the importance of the food and drink industry to the Scottish economy.

Over the past year Hamlyns has worked on a ‘Healthy Breakfast Challenge’ in primary schools across Scotland. The most recent challenge saw more than 140 children from P4–P7 from Heriot Primary in Paisley take part in a range of activities designed to educate them about the importance of starting the day with a healthy breakfast.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

an On th d sa TV ro m ug pl ho ing ut

20 17

a belVit ast. kf Brea ding a e l gory te e t a C t ra repea * 62%

The No.1 breakfast biscuit, and now the No.2 biscuit brand** Stock the range today For great category advice go to www.deliciousdisplay.co.uk Retailers are free to set their own prices. Non-PMP packs available. *Kantar data 2016. **The Nielsen Company , total coverage , sales value , MAT WE 15.07.17

Feature

Breakfast

Meikle comments: “Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day, especially for young people who need fuel for their brains and their bodies. The Healthy Breakfast Challenge helps participants to create a healthy breakfast habit.”

TASTE MATTERS But while shoppers want to feel good about eating a healthy breakfast, they still want those products to be tasty and enjoyable. Breakfast biscuits have done a great job of meeting those needs with a good example being belVita’s recent launch of a Duo Crunch Chocolate Hazelnut line.

The launch from the UK’s number one healthy biscuit brand [Nielsen, Jan 2017], contains two crunchy biscuits made with wholegrain cereals with a chocolate and hazelnut filling. The multipack of five has an RSP of £2.79 and comes in cases of eight.

Daniel Kessler, Senior Brand Manager for belVita, says: “Mondelēz International is committed to investment in NPD and each new product has a distinct purpose to bring new consumers to the belVita brand. belVita Duo Crunch Chocolate Hazelnut is the next step in this journey with a new taste and textural experience.

“From other belVita platforms we have in the UK, chocolate is the most popular flavour so we were keen to introduce it into the Duo Crunch range. This flavour is the number one SKU in our Duo Crunch range in France so we’re confident that it’s going to be a hit in the UK as well – for retailers and consumers alike.”

Since launch, belVita Breakfast has led the segment by expanding into new formats that satisfy consumer need states and is now worth £79m [Nielsen, Dec 2016], currently growing at 11% growth [Nielsen, Dec 2016].

ON-THE-GO Consuming food on-the-go is one of the megatrends in recent years and breakfast is no exception. The overall food-to-go market is now worth a mammoth £3.9bn annually and accounts for 894 million trips to store every year [HIM CTP 2016]. So there’s never been a better time for retailers to review their on-the-go breakfast offering to make sure they’re maximising this growing sales opportunity.

Vincent Brook, Head of Retail UK at Aryzta Food Solutions, explains: “In recent times, breakfast has become an increasingly important meal, particularly for those people whose lives have become busier and who are on the lookout for food that can be enjoyed on the move.

“The importance of hot on-the-go breakfast items cannot be overlooked, with the Pierre’s food-to-go solution enabling retailers to meet the need for hot, fresh breakfast options that can be eaten on the move.”

Brook says more and more independent retailers are also looking at dual-siting their in-store bakery fixture next to a coffee machine to give added appeal for shoppers looking for an all-round breakfast solution on the move. It’s a simple but effective way to boost on-thego breakfast sales, he believes.

Brook recommends having a good selection of hot and cold breakfast items that can be enjoyed on-the-go, as convenience and choice are key factors for shoppers when making their selection.

Aryzta Food Solutions offers several hot breakfast items under its Pierre’s solution, such as the Bacon Roll, Sausage Roll, Croque Monsieur, Ham & Cheese Croissant Wraps and Bacon and Sausage Baps, as well as a range of pastries under its Cuisine de France 50

in-store bakery concept. These include traditional favourites such as all-butter Croissants, Danish Pastries, Pain au Chocolat, Chocolate Twist and Maple Pecan Plait.

The company has also recently launched a new Thaw & Serve range delivering an average margin of 35%. It includes a fullybaked croissant, raisin swirl and chocolate hazelnut croissant all with RSPs of 70p.

CEREAL THRILLERS Cereals remain a core element of the breakfast-at-home offering with over 95% of the UK population have bought cereals in the past year [Kantar, Feb 2017], which translates to 19 billion occasions annually [Kantar, Nov 2016]. In total, the cereals category is worth £1.3bn in the UK [Nielsen, Mar 2017].

Eric Williams, Quaker Oats Marketing Manager, comments: “Eating breakfast at home is the biggest opportunity for retailers in terms of breakfast occasions although the on-the-go (OTG) breakfast occasion is growing the strongest at 27.7% [Kantar, Dec 2016].

Retailers should therefore consider how they can cater to the out-ofhome and OTG occasion, with 49% of people eating breakfast out of home, 30% of which are OTG [Mintel, Jul 2016].”

To meet these demands, Williams recommends retailers mix a range including Porridge Pots, Porridge Sachets and Traditional Loose Oats. A new opportunity also exists to stock Overnight Oat Pots, a convenient way for customers to enjoy oats by simply adding milk in the

HOT BREAKFAST-TO-GO MERCHANDISING Aryzta Food Solutions offers the following advice to ensure retailers maximise profits from hot breakfast products to go: Baking ‘little & often’ helps reduce wastage and meets consumer demand for ‘fresh’ products.

With many people now skipping the traditional breakfast at home, and with the continued rise of coffee, there’s a key opportunity for retailers to implement a link purchase such as a coffee with a croissant or pain au chocolat to maximise the breakfast-to-go occasion.

One third of shoppers buy on impulse so positioning counter top and floor standing units near to a coffee offering, retailers can generate additional sales. Aryzta’s coffee solution for Seattle’s Best Coffee has been designed for the convenience retailer, and integrates two stands to hold both morning products and afternoon sweet treat products such as cookies, muffins and doughnuts, enabling retailers to increase their basket spend and upsell to shoppers whilst they are waiting for their coffee to pour.

evening, refrigerating, and then consuming chilled in the morning.

Quaker owner PepsiCo has also recently introduced new Oats So Simple Protein Sachets to tap into the protein cereals segment, which has grown by 274% over the last year [Kantar, Jan 2017]. The company believes the launch will allow retailers to maximise their cereal sales by offering a fast, convenient, nutrient-packed format for existing Quaker shoppers as well as appealing to a new audience looking for a high protein option.

The company’s Fruit & Oat Squeeze pouches have also been relaunched with a new recipe made using a combination of natural yoghurt, fruit and oats, with no added sugar. Containing no colours or preservatives, the 200g pouches (RSP £1.39) are available in three flavours: Red Fruit, Apple & Cinnamon and Blueberry.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Feature

Fascias & Franchises

STRONGER TOGETHER? With the cost of doing business rising relentlessly for local retailers and the market far from buoyant, the case for joining a fascia group or franchise has arguably never been stronger, and the choice has never been wider.

THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING A SYMBOL GROUP

Q Are there any initial costs?

Q What ongoing fees are there?

Q Are there delivery charges?

Q Is there a minimum spend?

Q Is there a minimum percentage of buying through them?

Q Is there a minimum length contract?

Q Will I have to purchase any new equipment, such as Epos?

Q Do they allocate stock and are certain lines sent out automatically each month?

Q How frequent are the deliveries?

Q How quick are the lead times for deliveries?

Q What are their wholesale prices like compared to your existing suppliers?

Q How extensive is the product range?

Q Do they provide development support and in what form?

Q Do they provide a chilled & frozen range?

Q Do they offer advertising support – either nationally or locally?

Q What kind of consumer offers do they run?

Q How will they help me to stand out against the competition in the area?

Q Is there an own-label offer?

Q Do they have a loyalty scheme?

Q Will they invest in my store and in what way?

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F

or many independent local retailers in Scotland these days, the choice is less whether to join a fascia group or franchise and more about which one to join. Battling it out alone as an unaffiliated independent is unquestionably getting tougher and tougher as every year rolls by – and with the increasing likelihood of the likes of Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s joining the fray in a variety of manners, life only looks set to get even more competitive.

The continually rising minimum wage, huge increases in rates and ballooning compliance costs across the board mean that for many the only option is to gain the support that comes from being part of a buying group of some shape or form.

The stats bear this argument out: according to the 2016 Local Shop Report, the UK’s 15,100 symbol group stores generated £14.2bn in sales in 2016. The 19,100 non-affiliated independent convenience stores managed less than half of this figure, generating £6.3bn in sales over the same period.

Symbol groups have grown their share of the convenience-store market from 22% in 2002 to almost 40% in 2012. According to IGD data, this could rise to 50% by 2020.

Whether you are considering joining one of these groups for the first time, or are considering moving from one to another, this guide will provide you with the key data you need to make a fully-informed decision as to which fascia is right for you.

The great news is that the range of choices available has never been greater. As well

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Fascias & Franchises

as the traditional symbol and fascia groups like Premier, Nisa, Londis, Costcutter and Landmark, there are newer franchise models available from the likes of Subway and The Post Office.

Each has its own particular strengths, but one thing that they all offer is buying power, a household name above the door and a comprehensive support network covering everything a retailer needs to remain competitive in today’s retail environment.

Choosing a symbol group can seem an intimidating task. It is a big commitment, especially if you are already tied into a contract or faced with joining fees – whether this is in the form of an admin charge, buying shares or paying for signage or delivery. But there is no doubt it can pay huge dividends.

How to decide which symbol group is right for you will ultimately depend on your shoppers and what they want you to offer them. It might come down to the kind of store standards you are prepared to meet and the ways of working. If, for example, you are simply looking for a way of running promotions effectively then you might want to consider joining a cash & carry-based symbol group where you would normally go into depot and pick up the goods yourself.

The pros for retailers considering joining or switching symbol groups are numerous, not least because of the support a fascia can offer in every aspect of running your convenience store, from exclusive discounts and buying power to staff training, running a social media page and availability of new technologies. www.slrmag.co.uk

Being part of a symbol group gives you the backing and the know-how – from promotions to posters and displays – along with the merchandising system and product knowledge to help make your business a success.

Groups will send several reps and provide supplier contacts. They can offer an in-depth analysis of what you should stock, where you should stock it and how much you should be making.

The support and advice that is given regarding store development should soothe shop owners who are nervous of change, and groups may introduce their own recommended shopfitter to assist with project planning and store layout.

Many also have their own consultants who can do detailed reports on potential or increased turnover.

These can be simple or very detailed, taking into account the demographic area around the shop and local competition. Sometimes there will be a fee, but it may be worth the cost as often it gives additional industry-specific information that will support any finance application. This information, when backed by a symbol brand, can add an influential supporting voice when talking to your bank manager.

Retailers should ask themselves whether remaining unaffiliated is detrimental to their potential as a business. Whatever level you decide to go in at, it is best to do your research before determining which symbol group is right for you.

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AVERAGE ANNUAL INVESTMENT PER STORE TYPE INDEPENDENTS

£7,632 £10,716 SYMBOL GROUPS

TOP REASONS FOR JOINING A SYMBOL GROUP Q Wide range of products Q Promotional activity Q Regular communication Q Marketing in trade press Q Recognised brand above the door Q IT and HR support Q Dedicated trade website Q Buying power SEPTEMBER 2017 | SLR

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Fascias & Franchises

WHY NOT JOIN THE BIGGEST AND BEST IN THE UK?

P

remier is the UK’s number one symbol group with over 3,300 stores nationwide. The group is committed to delivering more profits for retailers and a better shopping experience for consumers. Premier has delivered double digit growth for fourteen consecutive years.

Premier continues to advertise on TV.

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Premier is advertised every day which will be seen over 100 million times. The TV advert features Premier’s famous Mega Deal promotions along with retailers to emphasise the local aspect of Premier Store.

As well as this, retailers also benefit from a full promotional programme covering all categories of fresh, frozen, grocery and impulse to ensure great value for shoppers to drive footfall into stores. This market leading promotional package, along with own-label and price-mark-packs, really drives the value message to help Premier retailers grow their business.

Premier works hard to ensure that retailers have the best choice of products to suit their individual store. This includes both Euro Shopper, Booker’s entry level exclusive ownbrand and Happy Shopper, the mid-tier option. This is complimented by working closely with branded suppliers to ensure the best choice of price marked packs so shoppers

can clearly see the great value available.

Backed by Booker, the UK’s leading food & drink wholesaler, Premier retailers can take advantage of delivery at cash & carry prices, as well as having the ease and convenience of shopping at any Booker branch. ‘Spend & Save,’ where retailers can save up to 4% on their non-tobacco purchases, is also popular with Premier members as this delivers real savings and adds to their bottom line. Premier does not operate any membership or joining fees and installs the fascia and imagery free of charge. A wide range of additional services such as recycling, energy savings, free Epos and drop shipment are also available that have been specifically created to add value and keep operating costs low for Premier members.

The group continues to go from strength to strength and its relentless focus in increasing choice, lowering prices and improving service has helped Premier members deliver fantastic convenience stores.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Shopper’s Favourite Symbol Retailer of the Year 2017

MORE FOOTFALL MORE CASH PROFIT It’s absolutely free to join us!

• Free EPOS • Free delivery at cash and

carry prices

• Earn up to 4% Spend & Save

discount *

• Enhanced fresh range

available • Free fascia and window imagery “Premier makes me more money by providing a fantastic choice of products, at great value prices so I can offer a great service to my shoppers that drives footfall.”

Tony Mallaban, Premier Avon Gold Supermarket, Bristol.

MEGA DEALS

FOOD TO GO

SOCIAL MEDIA

• Free membership • Free POS and personalised

leaflets

EURO SHOPPER

DISCOVER THE CHOICE

FA R M F R E S H

Become a part of the Number 1 Symbol Group

Call us today! 01933 371246

*Terms and conditions apply.

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Fascias & Franchises

BENEFITS OF NISA MEMBERSHIP

N

133 No. of stores in Scotland that Nisa currently supports

isa retailers have the option to operate under one of four symbol fascias: Nisa Local, Nisa Extra, Loco or dual branded, whereby a member can maintain their own local identity whilst also benefiting from the strength of the Nisa brand. Alternatively, a retailer can also choose to retain their own branding and trade under their own independent fascia whilst still receiving the great range of benefits available through Nisa membership.

Nisa recently launched its new Store Evolution format, offering a greater degree of flexibility to retailers and moving towards a more modular development format which accommodates the individual demographic and shopping missions of each store.

Nisa provides a complete retail support package which comprises a strong retail focussed team, an enhanced category management system, a bespoke online staff training facility under the Retail Academy banner, and a comprehensive marketing package incorporating bespoke leaflets, point of sale material and national advertising.

Nisa’s flexible model provides retailers with an unbeatable breadth of range comprising over 13,000 SKUs, to ensure they can provide a single destination shop for all their customers’ needs. This is supported by Nisa’s award winning own label range, Heritage, that provides retailers with over 850 SKUs which offer great quality products at affordable prices. This is all delivered by Nisa’s industry leading supply chain which retailers can trust with an impressive 99.9% of deliveries made on the day and 95% successfully made on time.

The launch of Nisa’s Direct to Store online platform this month will also enable members to order a wide variety of products from local suppliers, from local ales and meats to speciality products, alongside their main order via Nisa’s member order capture system, further reducing administration for the retailer and improving the invoice process.

To allow members to keep up to date with the latest technology, Nisa’s state-ofthe-art in-house Epositive Evolution system

is continuously updated with new and innovative features that will save retailers time and deliver valuable business insights.

Evolution is a complete business management tool exclusive to Nisa members which can be customised to meet individual retailer’s needs, and the hardware is designed to fit any store environment saving time, delivering insights, driving business and improving store security.

Nisa has its own insight team which allows Nisa retailers to truly understand their customers, enabling them to modify their offer to match the ‘local’ demographic.

Retailers can use this insight in conjunction with Nisa’s category management service to create bespoke planograms, layouts and propositions within their individual sites.

Nisa provides retailers with a comprehensive marketing package incorporating social media and PR support, bespoke leaflets, which can be personalised to include local offers, events and community news, as well as a personalised Nisa FM which provides retailers with a strong radio network for their store.

Nisa has a comprehensive field based support team who work closely with retailers to ensure they continue to drive their business forward, comprising retail development managers and regional retail managers, in addition to fresh food development managers, who encourage retailers to make the most of this important category, and store development managers who help Nisa members to further develop their stores and proposition.

Finally, Nisa recognises the importance of community involvement, and as such retailers are able to support good causes in their local area through Nisa’s Making a Difference Locally charity, which in 2016 donated over £1.4 million to charities and good causes throughout the UK. The process to join the Nisa group is made as stress-free as possible through the enhanced member website and the support that retailers receive from the skilled and trained in-house staff across all areas of the joining process.

COMPLETE THE FORM ON WWW.JOIN-NISA.CO.UK/CONTACT-US TO JOIN OR CONTACT OUR FRIENDLY RECRUITMENT TEAM ON 0800 542 7490.

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SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

O T D E T T I M M CO

, G N I C I R P GR EAT AVAILABILIT Y & DELIVERY COMMITTED TO OUR RETAILERS SINCE 1977 “We’re now trading under the Nisa Local banner and the store has been fitted out to the Store of the Future 2 format, which has gone really well. We decided it had to be Nisa.

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

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

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

Join the family... visit www.join-nisa.co.uk

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

Barry Chandi, Nisa Local, Buckden, St Neots

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Fascias & Franchises

MAKE MORE AND SAVE MORE WITH LONDIS

L

ondis is part of the Booker Group, the UK’s leading food and drink wholesaler and is one of the UK’s leading symbol convenience store brands with over 1,800 members across the UK. Londis works in partnership with its independent retailers to provide local communities with all they need in convenience shopping, close to their home.

As well as the strength of a nationally recognised brand, Londis supports retailers with better pricing, market leading ranges, strong promotions, store development advice and a leading supply chain service to help them compete and succeed in today’s rapidly expanding convenience market.

Londis is a flexible symbol partner that has a fully delivered service and support package to suit ambitious independent Scottish retailers with stores from 500 sq ft. up to 2000 sq ft. As a new Londis retailer you will benefit from partnering with Booker Group, the UK’s leading

food and drink wholesaler.

Londis offers true value with the right range of products at the right prices. We aim to ensure our prices are the most competitive by price checking the Top selling 300 lines on a weekly basis. We provide an industry leading fresh offer with over 1,250 fresh and chilled lines, including fresh food-to-go, fresh produce ranges and meal-for-tonight solutions. Combine this with smart planning, local area knowledge, range optimisation and the symbol group’s expertise in merchandising, so any store can be turned into a highly efficient business that makes more cash profit.

We are committed to helping our retailers Make More and Save More and in 2016 helped our retailers Make and Save an extra £21k.

We continue to focus on delivering Better Choice, Price and service for our Independent Retail Partners and supporting them to grow their business locally.

THE BENEFITS OF THE LONDIS OFFER INCLUDE: Q Free Membership Q Competitive cost of goods.

Q Loyalty discounts of up to 4% on all purchases (Excludes Tobacco) Q Award winning Fresh range with over 1,250 lines.

Q Award winning own brand ranges Euro Shopper, Happy Shopper and Farm Fresh.

Q A best in class online web ordering system (Londis Webshop).

Q Market leading promotions every 4 weeks

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Q Free Promotion Leaflets and FREE store point of sale support.

Q Support from our dedicated Store Development and Retail Development teams.

Q Tri Temperature fleet delivering all your ambient, fresh and frozen needs on one delivery.

Q A best in class forecourt package with a dedicated forecourt team.

Q Free Membership of the ACS.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

“Londis provides a fantastic “Londis has helped me package.

It’sprofits helpedwith me increase my increase my pricing profits, and so a competitive I’m happy!” great range just right for my store!”

Bryan Craig Bryan Craig Londis Crianlarich

Join Londis today and watch your profits grow FREE

Membership

FREE

Leaflet Scheme

FREE

EPOS System

NEW

Discount Scheme

A new and LOWER cost Londis that’s SIMPLER to do business with Be part of the success and call us today!

Call 0808 178 8644 and quote ‘JOIN 05’ or visit joinlondis.co.uk

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Fascias & Franchises

HELPING INDEPENDENT RETAILERS TO THRIVE

O

ur mission is to help independent retailers thrive, giving them the support they need to grow their businesses by meeting the changing needs of their local shoppers.

Following the most in-depth study of shoppers in its 30year history, Costcutter Supermarkets Group has launched its new Shopper First Programme, a transformation programme bringing together new brand and store design, shopper insights and sales driving range initiatives.

Every retailer has detailed shopper profile information for their store, including details of our five core shopper personas. This enables them to better understand their neighbourhood and use this to develop a truly local offer to bring new shoppers into their store. This approach is supported by our range of over 9,000 lines, 300 direct to store and local specialist suppliers and an award winning Independent own brand. Our new food-to-go offer gives retailers a framework around which they can create a fully tailored offer, both in size and product mix, to meet the needs of their local shoppers and take advantage of this growing opportunity.

Our all-new Costcutter brand and store design has been created to connect with shoppers, stand out of from the crowd and transform the in-store experience. The new Costcutter store design is a step change in convenience retailing with a selection of stunning exterior and interior finishes that appeal to today’s shoppers. The fully flexible modular approach allows retailers to invest at a pace that suits their individual needs and focus on the key shopper missions. This new look Costcutter sits alongside the Mace brand, which will also be updated later in the year, and the awarding winning Simply Fresh brand to allow us to offer retailers the right brand for their store; all underpinned by shopper insights.

With two-thirds of adults in the UK owning a smartphone and 90% of 16-24 year-olds having one a strong social media presence

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is key to reaching shoppers. We have taken the lead on social media and proximity marketing in the convenience sector and our training courses help our retailers to get online and engage with their customers to drive footfall and sales in their store.

We place technology innovation at our retailers’ fingertips, transforming modern retail with state-of-the-art systems that make life easier. We offer the latest in-store technologies that shoppers demand like easier payments via Apple Pay, Contactless and Self-Service check outs. Our cutting edge Activ Technology systems, including ActivCPoS, ActivOC and retailer portal ActivHUB, have been developed to make the ordering process hassle free and our ActivMOBILE app allows retailers access to all of this information on the go.

By putting the needs of shoppers first, we are providing our retailers with the ability to meet changing shopper expectations and buying habits, delivered through innovative unique brands that engage with shoppers.

TO FIND OUT HOW WE CAN HELP YOU, CALL THE TEAM ON 01904 488663.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Reason

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#

We Help You Fight Back 75% of people now shop at Aldi or Lidl.

*Nielsen 2016

We’re here to help you win back your customers.

Our competitive prices and range of 10,000 lines deliver great margins for you and great value for your shoppers.*

Discover more reasons for us to talk‌ Call 01904 486 543 or visit www.costcuttersupermarketsgroup.com

Reasons to talk

Feature

Fascias & Franchises

RUN YOUR BUSINESS YOUR WAY BACKED BY THE BEST SUPPORT IN THE BUSINESS LIFESTYLE EXPRESS FAST FACTS Q Average store size: 800 square feet Q Average store turnover: £12,000 per week Q Available fascias: Lifestyle Express, Lifestyle Extra, Lifestyle Value Q Number of UK stores: 1,492, including more than 300 Scottish stores Q Cost of joining: there is no cost to join or membership fee Q Minimum store size/turnover: there is no minimum requirement to join Lifestyle Express.

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hether you’re competing against other independent retailers, symbol stores, the supermarkets or the discounters, it’s vital that you stand out from the competition. At Lifestyle Express we understand this, and this is why we provide our retailers with the very best support, industry expertise and benefits of a national symbol group, while you maintain your independence and run your business your way.

At Lifestyle Express we offer retailers a comprehensive, award-winning retailer package with a proven track record, including bespoke store planning, industryleading planograms and ongoing advice on range and store merchandising. Our popular, great-value own brand ranges offer excellent margins to retailers as well as offering a strong point of difference. We also offer a range of fantastic money-saving deals on store services, but with no membership fees or hidden costs. And there’s no minimum store size or minimum turnover required, just the potential to grow.

And that’s not all. Lifestyle Express retailers can also benefit from regular Cash Back, as well as being able to buy goods at cash and carry prices. We run regu-lar promotions to help you compete locally and these are proven to build busi-ness and increase your sales and profits.

In 2015 we launched two brand new premium store formats: Lifestyle Extra and Lifestyle Value. These contemporary-style stores provide retailers with the perfect format to best reflect their trading location. In 2016, we also launched a Premium grey fascia which has been a huge hit with retailers, providing a fresh, modern look with instant kerb appeal.

Offering a nationally recognised fascia and branding, Lifestyle Express helps you to compete within the convenience market where we know first impressions really count.

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HOW TO JOIN To join Lifestyle Express and get your business moving in the right direction, it couldn’t be easier: Q Either visit your local Landmark Wholesale Member Depot and ask to speak to someone about joining Lifestyle Express and they’ll provide you with all you need to know.

Q Or call John Farrell on 07852 248120 or email john.farrell@lmkcc.co.uk Q Or visit our website at www.lifestyle-express.co.uk where you’ll find every-thing you need to know. Fill in an enquiry form and someone will be in touch shortly.

WITH LIFESTYLE EXPRESS YOU CAN BENEFIT FROM: Q 30% growth in sales On average, independent retailers achieve a 30% increase in retail sales after joining Lifestyle Express. We’ve carried out extensive research and identified a comprehensive range of bestselling products. By stocking these, and using our industry-leading planograms, you won’t fail to see a surge in sales.

Q Essential ongoing support We have a team of Core Range Advisors who work with retailers to identi-fy opportunities to boost your sales and profit. By working with our advi-sors, you’ll know you have a fantastic mix of key products at different price points to suit all your customers’ needs. Retailers also have access to a Retail Development Manager who will provide expert advice on how to successfully grow your business.

Q Earn Cash Back Lifestyle Express is the only symbol group to reward retailing excellence. We run regular incentives for our retailers, all with the opportunity to earn Cash Back, just for stocking the bestselling products, displaying POS and adopting best retail practice.

For retailers, it’s a win-win situation.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

No other symbol group gives you more

I want to make my own decisions about how to run my business and with Lifestyle Express I get the best of both worlds: the freedom to do things my way, but with a fantastic own brand, incredible promotions and the best support in the business.

Uzair Ali Lifestyle Extra, Motherwell

Lifestyle Express retailers enjoy: n Average sales growth of 30% n A choice of premium fascias n Full promotions programme to help you compete locally n Regular cash back n Ongoing business development expertise and support n No hidden fees

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Landmark Wholesale

Landmark Wholesale

Lifestyle Express

Landmark Wholesale

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Lifestyle Express

Favourite Delivered Wholesaler

Favourite Cash & Carry Wholesaler

Favourite Wholesaler for Customer Service

Responsible Retailer of the Year

Best Cash and Carry

Digital Innovation

Wholesale Service to Caterers

Customer Support

Best Retailer for Beers Wines and Spirits

Responsible Retailer of the Year

www.lifestyle-express.co.uk

T G he ro S up ym fr bo om l

To realise your full potential, come and talk to us.

Give John Farrell a call on 07852 248120 or email john.farrell@lmkcc.co.uk.

Or, to find out more about Lifestyle Express, visit www.lifestyle-express.co.uk

n Free online training

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Fascias & Franchises

JOIN THE DISCOUNT REVOLUTION

F

amily Shopper is a discount format for independent retailers that brings together the strength of symbol retailing with the great value available in the discount channel. It has been specifically developed to help independent retailers capture the growing sales and profits from the discount sector.

The discount format provides retailers with everything that shoppers would expect from a convenience store including chilled, alcohol, grocery and tobacco along with services such as Lotto and Paypoint. This is then combined with the best of the discounters, covering a wide range of £1 nonfood items such as stationery, kitchen utensils, plus a broad seasonal offer. Providing comprehensive disciplines, all Family Shopper stores offer a simplified range that removes duplication. Also merchandising in full trays makes the format easy to operate while minimising back stock and easing cash flow.

Family Shopper is constantly reviewing its range to ensure that retailers have the best choice of products to suit their individual store. This includes the own brands Euro Shopper and Happy Shopper.

Selected branded products are also available to ensure shoppers have a ‘best’ choice. As well as four weekly promotions, there is exceptional value in key footfall areas of the store, offering the consumer a true bargain every day.

Backed by Booker Family Shopper retailers can take advantage of delivery at cash & carry prices, as well as having the ease and convenience of shopping and ‘topping-up’ at any Booker branch. A wide range of additional services such as recycling, energy savings, free Epos and drop shipment are also available and specifically created to add value and keep costs low.

The group continues attract interest from independent retailers nationwide. By continuing to focus on choice, price and service, the group remains committed to helping Family Shopper retailers grow their sales and profits.

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SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

Unique discount format Simple to run & operate High cash profit

“I love the simplicity of operating a Family Shopper. It offers my shoppers the best of convenience in a discount format, where they really can get bargains everyday. Having a rationalised range, that still offers choice at low prices, means I run an efficient store and eases my cash flow. Plus the Booker team supports you every step of the way.�

Mr Kumar, Glynneath.

Simply building sales & profits for you Call Family Shopper today:

01933 371757

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Fascias & Franchises

NEW CAREER, NEW YOU – DISCOVER FRANCHISING WITH THE SUBWAY BRAND

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ecoming your own boss is a career ambition held by many, inspired by both the mobility and responsibility it brings, as well as the opportunity to build your own team. However, taking the plunge to start out on your own can be an intimidating prospect, from creating a business plan and recruiting, to making sure all the legal requirements are in place, there are numerous aspects to consider.

Haj Atwal is a Regional Development Agent for the Subway® brand and, with his business partner and brother, Narinder Atwal, he is a franchisee of 32 stores and Development Agent for over 85 stores across East, North and South Scotland.

Having worked for the Subway® brand for more than 15 years, as both a franchisee and Development Agent, Haj is a franchising expert and here shares his top tips for business success:

IS FRANCHISING FOR YOU? “The Subway® brand owes much of its success to the strong support systems it has in place for all franchisees. The great thing about a franchised business is that you are operating in a tried and tested system with excellent training and a solid support structure. This support has proved to be very successful and the fact that over 70% of all new Subway® franchises sold worldwide are sold to existing franchisees, speaks volumes.”

make sure you go armed with questions. Investing in a franchise can be a life-changing business choice, so it is vital to make an informed decision.”

MOTIVATION MATTERS “An understanding of the dynamics which motivate individuals is a real bonus in the franchising business. As a quick service restaurant franchise, the Subway® brand is always faced with the ingrained perceptions of working within the ‘food to go’ industry. Attracting reliable, customer-focused staff and retaining them is a key issue within the industry and it is essential that you can offer potential employees real motivating factors to keep them challenged within the organisation.”

MANAGE YOUR MONEY “Once your business is up and running and becoming well established in the local area, it may be tempting for franchisees to start to spend their profits. At the Subway® brand we would caution our franchisees to temper this inclination, to look after the money that is coming in and think ahead to any possible drains on these resources. Good business people will be thinking three to six months ahead and have the ability to anticipate the ebbs and flows of cash-flow, putting a strategy in place to address these potential pitfalls. Taking this mind-set will help you build a solid and successful franchise.”

HAVE YOU GOT WHAT IT TAKES? “To run a successful franchise, it’s important you know your business inside out and are prepared to ‘work the line’, which in our business means working as a Sandwich Artist™. Mastering all aspects of your business, from behind the counter serving customers to managing the everyday running of the store, is invaluable. You must be willing to get hands-on with the business – it enables you to empathise with your staff and customers, giving you the overall knowledge to direct the business effectively.”

DO YOUR RESEARCH “The first step will always be to research the franchise fully. Most franchises have websites packed full of information for potential franchisees, including online seminars, training guides and background information. Make it a priority to read the franchise trade press and attend any local franchisee exhibitions and seminars in your area – and 66

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Q Tel: 0800 0855 058 (UK) or 1800 413 076 (Eire) Q Email: franchiseopportunities@subway.co.uk Q Web: www.subwayfranchising.com

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Over 750 Subway® stores now open in non-high street locations

l High rental returns l Flexibility in terms of space and design

including convenience stores,

l Full menu on sale every hour you trade*

forecourt sites, transport

l No need for grills or fryers

hubs, visitor attractions, universities and colleges

l Proven control systems l On-going training and support (*subject to local authority permissions, licenses and approvals)

To find out more visit

www.subwayfranchising.com or contact Alice Chalmers 07908 548559 Subway® is a Registered Trademark of Subway IP Inc. ©2017 Subway IP Inc.

Feature

Fascias & Franchises

POPULAR AND CONVENIENT There are currently over 1400 Post Office branches in Scotland and most are located in shops; 540 are open on Sunday.

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he Association of Convenience Stores’ 2017 Community Barometer shows that for the third year running Post Offices and convenience stores are the nation’s favourite – felt to have the most positive impact on an area.

COMPETITIVE EDGE The Post Office brand gives retailers a competitive edge, bringing new customers through the door for mails, banking, pre-ordered travel money, Local Collect, mobile top-ups and much more. Offering Post Office services will get customers crossing the road to visit your store.

Research shows 78% of people using the Post Office bought something in the shop, and Post Office pays a fee per transaction.

EXCITING OPPORTUNITY There are currently five exciting opportunities for retailers to take on

WHAT POST OFFICE ARE LOOKING FOR one of Post Office’s larger branches in Scotland – East Kilbride, Glasgow (Springburn Way), Drumchapel (Hecla Avenue), Edinburgh (Morningside), and Falkirk – as a single franchise or a combination of Main and Local branches, in several retail outlets. Contact postoffice. opportunities@postoffice.co.uk For a Main Post Office retail premises would need to accommodate two or more open plan counters plus a small combi counter alongside the retail till. A Post Office Local is operated from the combi counter during shop opening hours: offering a smaller range of services at the combi means trained staff can serve all customers. On average, it takes less than 60 seconds to serve a customer.

Vacancies are advertised on the Post Office website; and in places where there is no Post Office nearby, retailers can now apply to add one to their shop, visit: www.runapostoffice.co.uk

Q Entrepreneurs with a vibrant retail business, in a convenient location Q Space for dedicated Post Office counters and a combi till on the retail counter Q Disabled access to premises Q Well-maintained premises that are owned or leasehold

POST OFFICE BENEFITS Q There is no franchise fee Q 99% of UK bank customers can access their accounts at the Post Office Q Post Office is the leading provider of travel money and travel insurance Q Post Office is the access point for Royal Mail services

WHAT POST OFFICE PROVIDES Q The counter, signage and Post Office EPOS kit with a new dedicated phone line Q Design and project management of installation Q Training for retail staff and ongoing support Q Delivering stock and cash Q Promoting the new Post Office Q All the retailer needs to provide is power and a telephone socket for the Paystation, and fit-out time.

“ZCO are currently operating a number of Main Post Office branches, including Cumbernauld, which was formerly a Crown Post Office. Our branches include a range of retail offers depending on location; we are delighted with the way business can grow, with the two offers complementing each other.

A Post Office means you become a destination of choice, and we are looking to increase our estate when opportunities arise.”

TAN MUSA, OPERATIONS MANAGER, ZCO

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SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

A Post Office drives * your retail sales

78% Research* shows

of people using the Post Office bought something else in the shop runapostoffice.co.uk *

Him! Research 2016

UTC

A FAMILIAR RING?

Thanks must go to SLR contributor Karen Peattie for forwarding a press release with the most arresting opening line UTC has ever read: “Luxury global men’s jewellers Esculpta have launched a new range to complement their extensive range of penis rings”. A new range of whit?, said the auld yin to himself, very loudly.

“While cock rings might have previously been considered dull and tacky,” the press release went on, “Esculpta have long been on a mission to revolutionise this image.” Everyone at SLR Towers confidently agreed that the launch of the new ‘Whalebone Bulge-Booster Pro’ would certainly help achieve that aim.

Best of all in a world where we are all seeking great value, the Esculpta range also “doubles as stunning ornamental jewellery, so can be worn around the neck when not ‘being flaunted’ elsewhere”. The Heimlich manoeuvre had to be performed on the auld yin to remove a partially digested roll and sausage he was in the middle of eating when he read that line.

And to prove were not making this up, feel free to visit www.esculpta.com, but ideally not in front of an audience. Meanwhile, the auld yin is currently pursuing a line of enquiry as to how Karen was on Esculpta’s mailing list in the first place.

IT’LL NEVER STAND UP IN COURT UTC was left dumbfounded once again last month when he learned of an Asda shopper who clearly found a trip to his local supermarket more stimulating than the auld yin does when Mrs UTC drags him out of the bookies to go and do the big shop.

A certain Mr Timothy McTighe, 51, was caught, in the words of the Evening Times website, “performing a sex act on himself in the car park while his wife was shopping in Asda”.

In his defence, it was Valentine’s Day, so perhaps he was simply flushed with love and amorous thoughts – although the dog that was sitting in the car next to him was unlikely to have found the show very edifying.

His lawyer, a man by the unlikely name of Ed Fish, explained that “one thing had simply led to another” and then pulled out the old classic defence. Timothy, said Fish, “had been suffering from an undiagnosed medical condition causing pins and needles and numbness in his limbs.” The oldest chestnut in the book.

But when you’re caught with your trousers at your ankles, in this case literally, any excuse is better than none.

The auld yin had surprisingly little to say on the matter.

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DIGEST THIS...

To celebrate the airing of a prime-time documentary on national television hosted by Gregg Wallace and Cherry Healey revealing the epic journey of one of McVitie’s Chocolate Digestives, McVitie’s has published the top 10 interesting facts about what are among the nation’s favourite biscuits.

UTC deemed some of these insufficiently interesting and has exerted some editorial control, trimming the list down to a Top Five. [That’s my job, not yours. – Ed] Here goes...

1. According to McVitie’s, the chocolate side of Chocolate Digestives is the bottom of the biscuit.

2. As original McVitie’s Digestives were made with baking soda, it was thought that they would help with digestion, hence the name.

3. It takes seven minutes to perfectly bake a Digestive biscuit.

4. Victorians disapproved of public biscuit dipping, as they believed it should only be done in the privacy of one’s own home.

5. Biscuits were the first item of food to reach the South Pole with the explorer Roald Amundsen in 1911.

SALES PITCH TARTED UP AS RESEARCH #759 As part of his regular series of articles on sales pitch press releases tarted up as legitimate research, UTC was largely uninterested in a piece from gambling company Wink Slots stating that their research had uncovered the remarkable finding that 83% of Brits “would not tell their boss about a substantial lottery win”.

UTC wholeheartedly agreed with the 83%, mind you.

“I wouldn’t tell you because I wouldn’t be telling you anything because you’d never see me again”, as he unwisely told his boss on a work’s night out after a few too many Grouse.

Unlike UTC however, it would take “at least £5.4m before the average Briton would give up their day job”. And you can just imagine his response to that.

SLR | SEPTEMBER 2017 www.slrmag.co.uk

What are you doing to help grocery people who struggle to

survive? Get involved and show that you’re not buying debt too.

Call 01252 875925 or visit www.groceryaid.org.uk

GroceryAid is the trading name of the National Grocers Benevolent Fund. A registered Charity Reg. No 1095897 (England & Wales) & SC039255 (Scotland). A company limited by guarantee, registered in England & Wales no 4620683

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