SLR September 2019 by 55 North

NEW NAME

SAME CIGAR

SEPTEMBER 2019 | ISSUE 197

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FOR THE INFORMATION OF TOBACCO TRADERS ONLY

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NEW NAME

SAME CIGAR

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TANYA PEPIN

Leveraging data in local retail

SEPTEMBER 2019 | ISSUE 197

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ALASTAIR WILLIAMS

Are cigars the last tobacco opportunity?

GLASS NOT CLEAR CUT The proposed inclusion of glass in Scotland’s DRS in 2021 poses a daunting array of practical challenges for retailers.

RIP JOHN DRUMMOND

Tributes paid to former SGF boss

CCEP £23M SPEND IN SCOTLAND

SLR Reward winners join First Minister in East Kilbride

SCARY SALES Cash in on Halloween with bespoke NPD

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September 2019

Contents

Contents ISSUE 197

NEWS p6 p7 p8 p10 p12

p20 p22 p24

Deposit Return Scheme Industry unites to fight the inclusion of glass in Scotland’s forthcoming DRS. Scottish Grocers’ Federation Shock as former Chief Executive John Drummond dies suddenly. Low Income Families Scottish Government launches a discreet pre-paid card to replace Healthy Start vouchers. Wholesalers Filshill increases turnover despite challenging market conditions. News Extra Death Of The High Street A new report from the Federation of Small Businesses urges action to reverse the fortunes of Scotland’s ailing towns. Product News Ferrero unwraps a sackful of new products for Christmas and Rockstar gears up for an Xbox promo. Off-Trade News It’s time for convenience to reclaim Christmas from the mults, says Pernod Ricard. Newstrade Retailers cash in on cross-category promotions from the Scottish Sun and Irn-Bru Xtra.

INSIDE BUSINESS p25 Research Digest New forecasts reveal the UK convenience market is set to grow by £6.9bn in the next five years. p26 2 Minutes Of Your Time Alastair Williams The STG UK Country Director says the cigar category has a lot to offer. p27 #ThinkSmart3 With the #ThinkSmart3 festival just around the corner, we offer you an insight into some of the solutions that you will be able to see this month. p32 Industry Investment Three SLR Rewards winners visit CCEP’s recently-opened new production lines. p34 Cigars Does the cigar category represent the last remaining tobacco opportunity for Scotland’s local retailers? p36 Fascias Nisa’s Darren May lays out the benefits of joining the Co-op-owned symbol group. p38 Hotlines The latest new products for retailers to consider giving shelf space to. p46 Under The Counter The Curmudgeon-In-Chief dips an arthritic toe in the murky waters of the porn industry. FEATURES p40 Halloween The annual frightfest is a fantastic way to grow sales and profits by stocking themed products. p42 Leveraging Data Both retailers and wholesalers alike could benefit if suppliers really mined the vast quantities of data they purchase, says Tanya Pepin. p44 Breakfast A major new Kepak promotion is set to tempt shoppers into trying its All Day Breakfast Sausage Muffin.

ON THE COVER p16 Deposit Return Scheme The proposed inclusion of glass poses a daunting array of practical challenges for retailers.

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News DEPOSIT RETURN SCHEME Industry at loggerheads with public about glass

Mults must end misleading promotions, says Which? Which? has called on supermarkets to stop offering misleading discounts and special offers. The move comes after a year-long analysis of pricing data by the consumer group revealed multiples were still duping shoppers four years after a previous Which? investigation prompted the government to issue new guidance to curb the practice. The report will be sent to the CMA.

Ram raider holds hands up to five-figure Co-op heist A 26-year-old man will be sentenced this month for his role in an ATM ram-raid which caused substantial damage to a Co-op store in Gretna a year ago. Three balaclava-clad bandits smashed into the store with an agricultural telehandler before fleeing with a cash machine holding £86,000 in a specially adapted car. Jordan Still, of County Durham, admitted acting with others unknown to carry out the heist.

Ginsters owner unveils new food-to-go website Samworth Brothers has launched foodfornow.co.uk to support the Fresh Food for Now

Industry voices concern, as public backs glass in DRS Sixteen industry bodies, including the SWA, SGF and SRC, have supported British Glass in an open letter to Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Roseanna Cunningham, voicing concerns around the inclusion of glass within the Scottish deposit return scheme (DRS). The letter outlined 15 different worries from across the industry landscape. Those of particular concern to retailers included the extra storage space required; manual handling issues; increased capital expenditure; the impact on prices and sales; fears over fraud and theft; and the added burden on elderly and disabled consumers. Its publication follows that of a Zero Waste Scotland-commissioned poll which found almost seven in 10 adults in Scotland say glass should “definitely” be included in the DRS. The online YouGov survey of 1,019 over-18s also revealed that less than 5% thought glass should definitely be excluded. Calling on the Scottish Government and MSPs across Parliament to “exclude glass from the DRS at

this stage,” the letter suggested Holyrood should “consider an innovative approach which blends kerbside, EPR [extended producer responsibility] and bottle bank sites to recover the maximum amount of post-consumer glass.” The SWA, SGF and SRC sit on the DRS Implementation Advisory Group and have been working with the Scottish Government, Zero Waste Scotland and supply chain partners to try to deliver an effective DRS. Commenting on the publication of the open letter, SWA Chief Executive

Colin Smith commented: “We have consistently opposed the inclusion of glass which adds costs, health and safety concerns and logistical complexity to the supply chain for a disproportionate benefit in terms of recycling rates.” SGF Head of Policy and Public Affairs John Lee added: “We are seeing opposition to the inclusion of glass coming from right across the supply chain. The Scottish government and Parliament must listen to this and take glass out of the scheme.”

Company, which replaced the ﬁrm’s Ginsters-branded van delivery service. Retailers will soon be able to order products directly from the website, which offers a wide range of products.

CRIME Greenock USave raided twice

SUSTAINABILITY

Store endures two armed robberies one week apart

Henderson Tech cuts food waste

These include Samworth’s other brands and products from the likes of Dairylea, Fridge Raiders, Cheestrings and Del Monte.

General Mills launches convenience retailer panel General Mills has brought together 11 of the UK’s top convenience retailers to help raise awareness of the importance of the Better for You Snacking category. To bolster the panel’s efforts, a new 30-strong ﬁeld sales team aims to make thousands of calls across the country to offer tailored merchandising, POS, category

The USave store in Belville Street, Greenock was held up on two consecutive Saturdays last month. In the first incident, two members of staff – one of them a 15-year-old boy – were left badly shaken up after they were menaced by a man brandishing what appeared to be a handgun. The brazen bandit struck in broad daylight at around 3.15pm on Saturday 10 August. He is described as white, about 5ft 10in tall, aged in his late teens to early 20s, with a medium build. The thug, who made off with a twofigure sum of money, was wearing a

dark hooded top with the hood up, dark trousers and had a scarf over his face. Police conducted door-to-door enquiries and are reviewing CCTV footage in the wake of the robbery. In a separate incident the following Saturday morning, a robber armed with a screwdriver demanded money from staff but ﬂed the store emptyhanded. He then tried his luck at holding up a nearby off-sales but was again unsuccessful. A 27-year-old-man was arrested in connection with the screwdriver raids, which police stressed weren’t linked to the gun incident.

EPoS provider Henderson Technology has partnered with mobile app Gander to help stores sell more short-dated items. The Gander app displays reduced-to-clear food automatically and in real-time on users’ smartphones, with Henderson Technology’s EDGEPoS system pushing the items to mobiles as they are stickered in-store. Similarly, when a product is sold it is automatically removed from the app, providing an instant feed of all reductions in-store at any time.

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News TRADE ASSOCIATIONS Well respected industry figure passes away

Former SGF Chief Executive John Drummond dies Tributes have been paid to former Scottish Grocers’ Federation Chief Executive John Drummond, who has passed away suddenly at his home in Dundee aged 72. The highly respected Drummond served as Chief Executive between 2005 and 2015 and established SGF as an inﬂuential and very wellregarded lobbying organisation. He also oversaw the development of the SGF-Scottish Government Healthy Living Programme. Upon retiring from the role in 2015, Drummond continued to have strong links with the industry in his role as National Account Manager with the Healthy Living Programme. Kathryn Neil, Programme Director of SGF Healthy Living, said: “Myself and the SGF Healthy Living team were deeply saddened with the news of John Drummond’s passing. John worked with the programme for the past four years and was an

“A true gentleman” inspirational driver of the Healthcare Retail Standards work carried out in all NHS hospitals in Scotland. “John was a true gentleman and was highly thought of by everyone who met and worked with him, it was an honour to have worked so closely with him over the last few years. John will be greatly missed by all who knew him. Our thoughts go out to his daughter and the rest of his family at such a sad time.”

SGF Chief Executive Pete Cheema said: “I am shocked and stunned by this tragic event. Everyone at the Federation deeply sympathises with the family and friends of John and hope that they will get the privacy and peace they most likely need in their situation. For many of us, too, he was a friend whose loss we do not really understand. John was the Chief Executive when I was President of SGF between 2006 and 2008. He will be truly missed.” The wider retailing world was also saddened by the news. Among the many tributes on social media, Blantyre retailer Mo Razzaq said John “was a gentleman who had huge respect in the industry” while the Scottish Wholesale Association paid “great respect to a friend of the SWA who will be missed”. John is survived by his daughter Katherine. His wife Kay predeceased him in 2016.

BP debuts ultra-fast electric charger BP Chargemaster has installed a 150kW ultra-fast electric vehicle (EV) charger at a forecourt near Heathrow Airport, the ﬁrst of 400 it plans to roll out UK-wide by the end of 2021. The new tech offers drivers an expected dwell time of between 10 and 12 minutes. On average, drivers of petrol and diesel-powered vehicles spend around seven minutes on a forecourt.

Best-one unveils new rebate scheme Best-one has launched Core Rewards, a new initiative designed to increase a retailer’s awareness of the key lines best-one has identiﬁed to help drive sales. The Core Rewards range includes 232 products at launch. If retailers buy threequarters of these in a month then they qualify for a rebate of up to 5%. Alcohol is subject to a different rebate rate because of government duty.

TOBACCO As category declines, two giants consider joining forces

PMI and Altria discuss tobacco megamerger Philip Morris International (PMI) and Altria are discussing a merger to reunite the two tobacco giants 11 years after they parted ways. The deal would create the world’s largest tobacco group. When news of the talks initially broke, the stock market valued a merged business at over $200bn. Shares in both companies subsequently fell, however. With cigarettes in decline and the vaping category growing, a merged company would pretty much have all its bases covered no matter what direction the market for nicotine products took in the future. Altria has a 35% stake in JUUL, the US brand that is becoming increasingly dominant in vaping. PMI, on the other hand, sunk $4.5bn into developing reduced risk alternatives to combustible tobacco.

The major outcome of this was the Iqos ‘heat not burn’ system, which it markets alongside a range of more conventional e-cigs. On top of that, both companies produce Marlboro – the world’s biggest cigarette brand – with Altria supplying the US and PMI the rest of the world. According to industry analyst Bonnie Herzog, of Wells Fargo, Altria already plans to launch Iqos in the US. She also said PMI would be an ideal partner for JUUL in its drive for international expansion. The vaping brand recently attracted a further $325m from investors for that very purpose, following an initial injection of $1.25bn a year ago. Any deal would be subject to the usual regulatory and shareholder approval.

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SEPTEMBER 2019 | SLR

13/09/2019 12:17:09

News GOVERNMENT Discreet pre-paid card removes stigma for low-income families

McColl’s wobbles McColl’s fortune has taken a turn for the worse again in the third quarter, after its half-year results offered a glimmer of hope for the retailer. A trading update for the 13 weeks ended 25 August 2019 revealed like-for-like sales down 2.2% and total revenue down 3.6% for the quarter. By comparison, like-for-likes grew 1.0% in H1, while total revenue nudged up 0.1%. McColl’s blamed bad weather and Brexit for the lacklustre numbers.

PayPoint unveils next wave of national retailer survey PayPoint has launched the next wave of its national retailer survey, giving independent retailers the opportunity to share their thoughts on how the company is progressing and to help identify further areas for focus. The survey takes ﬁve minutes to complete and is being conducted by independent

Best Start cards replace Healthy Start vouchers The Scottish Government has launched a new Best Start payment card to replace Westminster’s Healthy Start food vouchers north of the border. The payment is for families with children under three who get certain low-income benefits or tax credits. Public Health Minister Joe FitzPatrick said replacing the vouchers with a card would “enable families to access this vital support without fear of stigma”. Customers are likely to start using the new preloaded chip-and-pin Mastercards from early September. Healthy Start voucher users are being invited to apply on a phased basis between August 2019 through to the end of March 2020. It is likely retailers will continue to receive vouchers until this time. Retailers in the Borders or Dumfries and Galloway registered for the Healthy Start scheme may continue to see vouchers used beyond then as a result of cross border usage.

The card will be used at the point of sale like a normal bank card and should be treated as such. Most of the time customers will pay using contactless when payments are under £30. They will only need to use the PIN when they spend more than £30, just like any other chip-and-pin card. While it is encouraged that customers use the card to buy healthy foods, please note that retailers are not obliged to monitor products purchased. The Scottish Government’s idea of healthy foods includes – but is not limited to – fresh eggs; milk (plain cow’s milk and first infant formula); fruit & veg (fresh, frozen or tinned – but not those with added salt and sugar); and pulses like peas, lentils and beans (dried, fresh, frozen or tinned). Registered retailers should still accept valid Healthy Start Vouchers. For more information email Best Start Foods Policy at welfarefoods@gov.scot or call 0131 244 8249.

research agency Savanta. GroceryAid will receive £1 for

BUSINESS RATES Both Westminster and Holyrood called on to act

every survey completed.

Retailers urge Chancellor to ﬁx business rates

Sainsbury’s starts England’s ﬁrst glass deposit return trial A trial of reverse vending technology which accepts glass bottles, PET bottles and cans has launched at a Sainsbury’s store in Newbury, Berkshire. The trial is the ﬁrst of its kind in England thanks to the inclusion of glass and features a Tomra T-70 Dual reverse vending machine. Sainsbury’s is offering a 5p coupon for every qualifying drinks container returned.

EDGEPoS installed at Cooper Brothers Garage Cooper Brothers Garage in Newmains, North Lanarkshire is the latest retailer to install Henderson Technology’s awardwinning EDGEPoS system. Garry Gibson, Cooper’s Head of Operations, said the Jet-branded forecourt was already seeing the beneﬁts of the new till system. EDGEPoS was also recently installed into Westhill Service

The bosses of over 50 major retailers, including Scotmid CEO John Brodie, have united to demand the Government takes action to fix the broken business rates system. In a letter coordinated by the British Retail Consortium to the new Chancellor Sajid Javid, retailers called on the Government to put business rates at heart of its promised new economic package. Retail remains the largest private sector employer in the UK, employing approximately three million people. The industry accounts for 5% of the UK economy, yet is burdened with 10% of all business taxes, and 25% of business rates. Business rates north of the border are devolved to Holyrood and SRC Director David Lonsdale urged the Scottish Government to act in the wake of the letter’s publication. “The burden of business rates remains onerous here in Scotland too,” he said.

“The poundage/tax rate is at a 20year high and 20,000 commercial premises in Scotland – of which a quarter are retail – are paying more for the large firms’ rates supplement than competitors or counterparts down south. April’s increase in the poundage rate added £13.2 million to the rates bills of Scottish retailers. “Firm action is needed to reduce this burden, return the large business rates supplement to parity with England, and scrap legislative plans for a levy on workplace parking.” The letter comes the day after BRC-Springboard data showed that UK Vacancy figures had risen to 10.3%, the highest since January 2015. It also comes shortly after the BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor showed the 12-month average sales figures dropped to their lowest level on record, at 0.5%. Other signatories included Asda, the Co-op, Costcutter, Iceland, M&S, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Spar UK.

VAPING

Further funding for JUUL US vaping brand JUUL has raised another $325m to further fuel its rapid expansion in international markets. This latest investment follows the $1.25bn the company raised a year ago to kick-start its growth. Last December Altria Group paid in the region of $12.5bn for a 35% stake in the ﬂedgling business, founded in 2017. Investors for this funding round were not disclosed. The cash injection follows JUUL’s rapid rise to become the UK’s number one closed vaping brand after just eight months in the UK market. After moving outside of online and specialist vape shops in November, the brand now has a 6.8% share of the total vaping market in traditional retail and 36.8% of sales of the top four closed pod systems.

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23/08/2019

11:07

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News WHOLESALERS Filshill delivers “strong growth”

Valeo’s Tangerine investment threatens Big Bear with extinction The Tangerine Confectionery factory in York has been given a £7.5m cash injection by parent company Valeo Foods to boost production by 30% and create 90 new jobs in the region. However, Valeo also owns Big Bear Confectionery and production of its Fox’s and Poppets brands will move to York, leaving 200 staff at Big Bear’s factory in Leicester facing an uncertain future.

Self-service checkouts make Nisa debut The ﬁrst Self-Checkout (SCO) tills using Nisa’s Evolution EPoS system have been installed in a store near Salisbury. The two new SCOs complement two existing Evolution tills on the main counter, where the SCO attendant station is also sited; this means customers can be easily assisted, age related sales authorised, and transactions

Filshill increases turnover amid market challenges JW Filshill saw turnover increase 7.3% to £155m in the year ending January 31, 2019, up from £145m the previous year. The wholesaler said strong growth was reﬂected across all product categories and delivered alongside consistent gross profit of 8.3%. Keith Geddes, Filshill’s Finance Director, admitted “the Brexit process had added a level of uncertainty to the business as it has done across all industries”, but said: “We believe that we have taken the necessary steps to minimise the associated risks and take advantage of the corresponding opportunities.” Geddes said Filshill would offset the effects of the Living Wage, pension regulation and fuel prices through by improving operational efficiency and maximising the use of technology and data.

Hannah: “well positioned” Managing Director Simon Hannah pointed to a “highly competitive and challenging” independent retail marketplace with consolidation continuing apace. He said: “We seek to manage the principal risk of losing customers by aiming to deliver best-in-class customer service, and we are well positioned to continue to take

advantage of the opportunities we are creating and delivering growth.” Pointing to Filshill’s balance sheet, showing net current assets of £10.3m, up from £9.8m last year, Hannah said: “The directors are pleased with the company performance and are confident that profits will continue at a satisfactory level.” Filshill, which also supplies local craft beer, spirits and other grocery products internationally, recently announced plans to relocate to a purpose-built distribution centre at Westway Park, near Glasgow Airport. During the year the company continued to support many local community programmes and good causes as part of its ongoing commitment to corporate social responsibility. It also implemented several energy-saving initiatives.

transferred to the staffed till to complete if required.

Northern lights may go out at Muller depot Muller has announced a review of operations at its Aberdeen depot and has launched a 30-day consultation process. The move puts up to 50 jobs at risk, across distribution, garage, tanker and retail operations. The dairy producer proposes to relocate to existing sites in central Scotland, closer to the majority of its customers’ distribution centres. It said affected staff would be given the chance to relocate.

Philadephia’s ad fail Mondelez has become one of the ﬁrst companies to have a TV ad pulled for falling foul of new gender stereotyping rules. The Philadelphia commercial showed two bumbling new dads leave a baby on a restaurant conveyor belt. Ads which feature “harmful gender stereotypes” were banned in June. Ironically, Mondelez said the ad used two fathers to avoid the stereotype of

TRADING Not much to cheer about for retail chain

CHARITY

Brexit and bad weather behind McColl’s wobble

Spar Scotland marks centenary with £114k charity giveaway

McColl’s fortune has taken a turn for the worse again in the third quarter, after its half-year results offered a glimmer of hope for the retailer. A trading update for the 13 weeks ended 25 August 2019 revealed likefor-like sales down 2.2% and total revenue down 3.6% for the quarter. By comparison, like-for-likes grew 1.0% in H1, while total revenue nudged up 0.1%. As in previous updates, McColl’s said the lacklustre numbers reﬂected “the challenging retail trading environment and poorer weather across the summer”. The company said it was making further progress on its 2019 strategic priorities, with ongoing range reviews, further improvement in on-shelf availability and continued investment in the estate with the opening of four new stores. McColl’s boss Jonathan Miller commented: “As we outlined in our

Miller: “unseasonable summer” interim results, this has been a highly unseasonable summer for the retail sector and our sales performance reﬂects both this and the ongoing macro-economic uncertainty. “The fundamentals of the convenience channel are strong, and our focus remains on good retail execution whilst maintaining strong capital discipline. We continue to make operational progress and we anticipate results in line with expectations for the full year.”

CJ Lang will give 114 charities – one for every companyowned store the Spar Scotland wholesaler operates – £1,000 each as part of its 100th birthday celebrations. The general public, or charities themselves, have until 30 September to make a nomination on the Spar Scotland website. To be eligible, organisations must have a Registered Charity Number, and carry out activities in a Spar store’s local area. Spar Scotland will contact successful charities by email or phone within three months of the closing date. The lucky recipients will then be invited to a cheque presentation event at a central location.

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WAS £11.95 NEW PRICE

£9.35 RRP*

INTRODUCE TODAY’S CONSUMERS TO EMBASSY A NEW PRICE FOR THE ORIGINAL NUMBER ONE

FOR TOBACCO TRADERS ONLY. *RRP: FOR THE AVOIDANCE OF DOUBT RETAILERS ARE FREE AT ALL TIMES TO DETERMINE THE SELLING PRICE OF THEIR PRODUCTS. NEW RRP ON EMBASSY NUMBER 1 RED AND BRIGHT BLUE ONLY.

SLREmbassy SeptemberA4 2019.indd 11 with People (210x297).indd 1 V2 Key Visual

13/09/2019 12:17:12 19/03/2019 17:18

News Extra

Transforming Towns

NewsExtra LAST CHANCE FOR TOBACCO? – P34 BUSINESS Governments called on to make generational investment to revive dying high streets

Convenience Matters with the SGF It goes without saying that convenience retailing has been transformed in ways that the retailers who set up the SGF in 1918 could simply not have imagined. However, this process of transformational change has become an ever-present fact of life for retailers. We are seeing a signiﬁcant increase in the number of stores developing often quite extensive food-togo offerings. For the stores which can make this work, it really does seem to help them drive footfall and stay competitive. But this leads on to big questions. How far will stores take this? How far will they move away from core range grocery towards a full-blown deli-style operation? Last year people in Scotland spent £1.01bn on takeaway food! The change doesn’t stop there. The kind of products becoming available present challenges and opportunities. The growth of vaping offers real potential. But there are challenges about what to stock and crucially a challenge around the level of expertise retailers need to understand what customers want and to have informed conversations about this. We are already moving a stage further. One of the next potentially big markets is in cannabidiol products or CBD for short. The challenges are very similar to vaping. At one level convenience retailers seem very well placed to take on that wider education piece with their customers. But it means ﬁnding the time to do it in-store without interrupting the overall convenience for customers. Times change: it’s no longer simply about selling bread, milk and newspapers. Can retailers keep moving forward?

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Nine closures a month must prompt Scottish town rethink, says FSB A new report from the Federation of Small Businesses urges action to reverse the fortunes of Scotland’s ailing towns, including a decade-long £900m investment, a new government commission and help for independent traders to make the most of online opportunities.

At least 414 bank branch, shop and local premises closures have been announced for Scotland’s towns and villages by big business and the public sector since the start of 2016. The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) revealed the figure as it published a new report calling for a slew of measures to boost Scotland’s 479 local towns. Andrew McRae, FSB’s Scotland Policy Chair, said: “After the wave of recent closures, we need to rethink how we use our high streets.” The ‘Transforming Towns’ report (bit.ly/31U3Pet) urges the Scottish and Westminster governments to direct the Scottish National Investment Bank and the UK Stronger Towns Fund respectively to invest in the country’s dying high streets. FSB said these funds should set aside £90m every year over the next decade to invest in projects to make Scottish towns better places to work, live and run a business. McRae explained: “More people in Scotland live in towns than cities. That’s why governments in Edinburgh and London must make a generational investment in our towns to overcome their current

challenges and prepare them for how we’ll work and live in the future.” The report urges Ministers in Edinburgh to establish a commission to tackle the rise of vacant properties. It suggests creative solutions like turning offices into housing, or department stores into art galleries. It also calls on the Scottish Government to investigate rolling out a standard small business lease for commercial premises. McRae said: “We need to make it cheap and easy for independent businesses to take up high street property and we believe a standard small business lease could be part of this solution.” The report also argues for a new town-by-town business support programme to help high street businesses make the most of emerging digital technologies. “Many smaller businesses are at the forefront of using new technologies to boost their efficiency, productivity and most importantly sales,” said McRae. “But others may be behind the curve. Scottish Enterprise should develop a programme to give local traders a helping hand.” www.slrmag.co.uk

13/09/2019 12:17:13

KEL0227_Squares Unicorn Trade Ad_A4_AW1.pdf

19/08/2019

10:49

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Comment

GLASS ISSUE IS NOT CLEAR CUT EDITORIAL

The local retailing industry has a nasty habit of ending up on the wrong side of issues that are often portrayed to the world as straightforward moral dilemmas. The latest example is the inclusion of glass in the draft regulations for the forthcoming Deposit Return Scheme. Much publicised studies showing that 85% of consumers want to include glass in a DRS are at best unhelpful because all they serve to do is reduce a complex, multi-faceted debate down to a simple question: do you want to save the planet or do you not? The same basic principle applies to issues like the national minimum wage. That debate has been boiled down to another, similar question: do you think workers should be paid a good wage or do you not? Unfortunately, in the real world, challenges of this type aren’t overcome by simply wanting things to be better. There is a reality to deal with. Like it or not, we are where we are – and we can’t miraculously fix everything overnight by deciding that everybody should get paid another £3 an hour or by including glass in a DRS because we want to recycle as many containers as possible. Those are both commendable aims – and I would suggest that the vast majority of retailers out there completely agree with paying a good wage and getting recycling rates as high as possible – but unlike consumers or the Scottish Government, retailers have to operate within a commercial and practical reality. Make staff too expensive to employ and you’ll see stores close left and right and unemployment rates increase – and that’s exactly what’s happening. The latest PWC data shows that 2,870 British stores closed in the first half of 2019. ONS figures for May to July showed Scottish unemployment rose by 19,000 over that period. Include glass in a DRS when the infrastructure simply isn’t there yet to handle it and the consequences could be just as dire. Putting commercial concerns to one side, there are many very significant practical problems with including glass, not least the fact that Viridor, the only company that can currently recycle glass in Scotland, has already said that glass is ‘not a fit’ for the DRS and it is simply not ‘practical’ to include it. Then there are all the fundamental problems with the Scottish c-store network. Sixty per cent of convenience stores don’t have room for an automated DRS machine that includes glass, cans and PET – so they will have no choice but to manually handle them. Glass is heavy, it breaks, it’s dangerous to handle, it takes up lots of space that retailers don’t have. All these issues are entirely valid and have nothing to do with putting profit before the planet, even if they are unpalatable for the Scottish Government. Yet there are alternative solutions available, most obviously through better use of kerbside recycling. Postponing the inclusion of glass until a second phase would at least allow the industry the chance to build the requisite infrastructure while bedding-in the cans and PET system.

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

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

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

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

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

ANTONY BEGLEY, PUBLISHING DIRECTOR

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Cover Story

Deposit Return Scheme

GLASS IS NOT CLEAR CUT While most retailers would on principle agree with the inclusion of glass in the forthcoming Deposit Return Scheme, the practical challenges of collecting and recycling glass remain daunting and potentially insurmountable for the industry in the time remaining before April 2021. BY ANTONY BEGLEY

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Deposit Return Scheme

ith the news that Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) is due to commence on 1 April 2021, it seems increasingly clear that the die has been cast on new legislation that potentially represents the biggest challenge Scotland’s local retailers have faced in many a long year. The draft regulations are subject to a consultation but keen observers of recent consultations will be forgiven for assuming that the findings of that consultation will have very little substantive impact on the final legislation. It will surprise no one if the enacted legislation bears a striking similarity to the Scottish Government’s position from day one. The only slight concession appears to be the inclusion of a possible exemption for smaller retailers who are in close proximity to other return points, something that the Scottish Grocers’ Federation (SGF) had been pushing for – and warmly welcomes. But for the SGF, as well as 15 other industry trade bodies, the elephant in the room remains the inclusion of glass within the scheme. Those 16 organisations – including the Scottish Wholesale Association, the Association of Convenience Stores and the Scottish Retail Consortium – recently sent an open letter to Roseanna Cunningham, Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform, outlining their concerns around the inclusion of glass. The letter outlined 15 different practical concerns from across the industry landscape including the extra storage space required, manual handling issues, increased capital expenditure and fears over fraud and theft. The letter called on the Scottish Government and MSPs to “exclude glass from the DRS at this stage” and “consider an innovative approach which blends kerbside, EPR [extended producer responsibility] and bottle bank sites to recover the maximum amount of post-consumer glass”. SWA Chief Executive Colin Smith commented: “We have consistently opposed the inclusion of glass which adds costs, health and safety concerns and logistical complexity to the supply chain for a disproportionate benefit in terms of recycling rates.” Smith also flagged up several other concerns about the scheme: “A Scotlandonly DRS will create a beverage trade border between Scotland and England leading to a restriction on free trade, a need for Scotlandonly SKUs, increased warehousing, ICT changes and more complex trading logistics”. He went on to say a spring 2021 roll-out for DRS was “unachievable” and suggested the Scottish Government learn the lessons from

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Cover Story

DRS DRAFT REGULATIONS The Scottish Government has published its draft regulations for how a DRS would work in Scotland. The regulations are still subject to consultation. Some of the key points are as follows: Q Implementation date is 1 April 2021. Q The deposit level will be 20p for all single-use PET bottles, aluminium cans and glass bottles. Q Retailers will be required to operate a return point at premises from which sales of scheme products are made. This includes accepting returns from consumers, and reimbursing and retaining the packaging for collection by or on behalf of producers. Q All containers between 50ml and 3-ltr will be included. Q All retailers who sell single-use drinks containers are included. Q Exemptions may be granted for smaller stores if existing collection facilities exist nearby. Q Failing to implement DRS could result in fines up to £10,000. Q DRS will be operated and run by a ‘scheme administrator’ funded by drinks producers. Q The administrator will be required to hit set targets:  recovering 70% of packaging in year one  recovering 80% of packaging in year two  recovering 90% of packaging in year three.

“The inclusion of glass adds costs, health and safety concerns and logistical complexity to the supply chain for a disproportionate benefit in terms of recycling rates.” COLIN SMITH, CHIEF EXECUTIVE, SWA

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Cover Story

Deposit Return Scheme

REAL-WORLD GLASS CHALLENGES FACING SCOTLAND’S LOCAL RETAILERS The Scottish Grocers’ Federation believes that a DRS which includes PET and cans offers a level playing field for small and large retailers. The inclusion of glass, however, would present three key challenges:

1. ONLY 40% OF STORES HAVE ENOUGH SPACE High rates of automation (90%+) are critical to the success of DRS systems in other countries. In Norway, DRS automation is 93%, while in Sweden it is 95% and Estonia 94%. Scotland has a high proportion of convenience stores in the retail sector compared to many DRS countries. Reverse vending machines (RVMs) that handle PET and cans start from 0.51sq m footprint and will fit in most Scottish convenience stores. RVMs that also handle glass are minimum 1.02sq m footprint and will not fit in stores under 1,000sq ft, which constitute 60% of Scottish convenience stores.

2. THE HANDLING FEE FOR RETAILERS WILL NOT COVER THE COST OF TAKING BACK GLASS The international norm is for the handling fee to be benchmarked on the costs of an ‘average’ store, which is usually a medium-sized supermarket. Given the greater cost-efficiencies of medium-sized stores, convenience retailers will be at a disadvantage. Small retailers in other countries usually accept this marginal gap between handling fee and actual cost as being manageable in a PET and can-only system. But if a DRS includes glass, the costs to smaller stores are significantly more and the gap much wider. Due to lower rates of automation and the complexity of handling and storing glass, the inclusion of glass in Scotland’s DRS will considerably increase the gap between actual cost of handling and the handling fee received.

3. INCLUDING GLASS WILL IMPACT INDEPENDENT STORES THROUGH PRICE INFLATION Including glass in Scotland’s DRS would add about £25m to the cost of operating the scheme. Recycled glass is a nearly worthless commodity, with material income of just £5 per tonne compared to PET at £380/tonne and aluminium cans at £1200/tonne, yet it is costly to handle and store. The increased fee for including glass in Scotland’s DRS will inevitably be passed from beverage manufacturers on to consumers in the form of higher prices. This will again be a blow to sales in the independent store sector.

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the rushed implementation of the recent Track and Trace tobacco legislation. At its heart, the debate is reminiscent of so many in the past in that a massively complex issue has been boiled down to what looks like a straightforward moral choice: do you want to save the planet or do you not? This is typified by a series of studies by Zero Waste Scotland asking consumers, for example, whether they think glass should be included. Entirely unsurprisingly, the vast majority (85%) said they did. When retailers then highlight the realworld challenges of recycling glass they immediately find themselves on the wrong side of the moral argument, despite the fact that these challenges are – for the most part – entirely legitimate and practical in nature and do not centre on commercial issues. Retailers find themselves portrayed as putting profits before the planet when all they are doing is flagging up the indisputable challenges that surround the collection and recycling of vast quantities of glass recyclate. This is broadly the same uncomfortable position that retailers find themselves in when discussing issues like the National Minimum Wage. Do you think staff should be paid a good wage or not? In both these cases, most retailers would agree that staff should be paid a good wage and that glass should be included in DRS – but the unpalatable reality is that there are enormous commercial and practical implications for how these issues are tackled. “I have absolutely no problem in principle with including glass in a DRS,” says Nisa Bellshill retailer Abdul Majid. “If local retailers can help increase recycling rates across Scotland, that’s fantastic and commendable. The problem I do have, however, is that the infrastructure just doesn’t exist yet to efficiently and safely recycle glass. It’s bulky and potentially dangerous for retailers and we know that there aren’t even enough recycling facilities in Scotland to actually recycle the volume of glass that the scheme will generate.” Abdul is referring here to comments made by Viridor Recycling Managing Director Paul Brown at a Cross-Party Group meeting at the Scottish Parliament in May when he stated that “glass is not a fit” for the new DRS. Viridor is at present the only company in Scotland with glass recycling facilities. Brown made it clear to MSPs in attendance, including Cabinet Secretary Roseanna Cunningham, that he did not view the inclusion of glass within the new DRS system as “appropriate or practical”. And it’s the practicality issue that is most relevant here. Wishing to fast-track recycling

“The inclusion of glass will be bad for the scheme overall and for convenience stores in particular.” JOHN LEE, HEAD OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, SGF

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Deposit Return Scheme

Cover Story

“I have no problem in principle with including glass in a DRS and if local retailers can help increase recycling rates, that’s fantastic. The problem I do have is that the infrastructure just doesn’t exist yet to efficiently and safely recycle glass.” ABDUL MAJID, NISA BELLSHILL

ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS

rates in Scotland is a worthy aim – but the infrastructure must exist to allow that to happen. We can’t simply wish it into existence and make all the seemingly insurmountable problems go away simply because it’s a Good Thing To Do. Included within the open letter to Cunningham was a set of practical alternative solutions to including glass in April 2021. These centred around, firstly, investigating proposals for a cost-effective alternative glass collection system to DRS which would be funded by Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). The letter outlined how a new UK wide EPR system due in 2023 is likely to significantly increase the capital and resource budgets available to Scottish local authorities to invest in better kerbside and bring-back (bottle banks) models as well as in antilittering campaigns. This less disruptive approach, said author Dave Dalton, Chief Executive of British Glass, would be to build on Scotland’s existing kerbside schemes and the new DRS for metal and plastic. This, he said, “would deliver an easy to understand single glass collection system which would boost recycling figures www.slrmag.co.uk

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and reduce the demands on consumers”. This approach would also reduce the complexity of the DRS system and therefore decrease costs and streamline the timetable. Dalton also pointed out that, as reverse vending machines have a typical five- to seven-year lifespan, if the alternative approach outlined above didn’t hit recycling targets then the DRS could be reviewed and glass added as a second phase. This would allow the DRS to be established at less cost and risk to the Scheme Administrators and other key stakeholders including consumers. “The inclusion of glass will be bad for the scheme overall and for convenience stores in particular,” concludes SGF Head of Public Affairs John Lee. “Glass is heavy, liable to break and takes up considerable space. It will also drastically reduce the number of stores which can use automated take back. The convenience sector needs a united front on saying no to glass.” The clock is ticking for retailers to have their say. The Scottish Government consultation runs until 10 December and it is vital that retailers make their voices heard. To have your input, visit bit.ly/2kut9b6.

In an open letter from 16 trade industry bodies to Roseanna Cunningham, Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform, an alternative set of more practical solutions was proposed: 1. Investigate proposals for a cost-effective alternative glass collection system which would be funded by Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). A new UK wide EPR system due in 2023 is likely to significantly increase the capital and resource budgets available to Scottish local authorities to invest in better kerbside and bring-back (bottle banks) models as well as in antilittering campaigns. 2. Build on Scotland’s existing kerbside schemes and the new DRS for metal and plastic. This would deliver an easy-tounderstand single glass collection system which would boost recycling figures and reduce the demands on consumers. This would also reduce the complexity of the DRS system and therefore decrease costs and streamline the timetable. 3. As reverse vending machines have a typical five- to seven-year lifespan, if the alternative approach outlined above didn’t deliver on Scottish Government recycling targets then the DRS could be reviewed and glass could be added as a second phase. This would allow the DRS to be established at less cost and risk to the Scheme Administrators and other key stakeholders including consumers.

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News

Products

Old El Paso makes some noise the Mexican way Old El Paso has announced its

ProductNews

biggest-ever marketing spend, with a £6m investment in its new ‘Make Some Noise’ campaign. Centred around how Mexican cuisine brings friends and family together to connect and create ‘good noise’, the campaign kicks off with a new 30-second advert on TV, video-on-demand and radio. This will be supported by targeted inﬂuencer activity and social media recipe content.

It’s time to ‘Trust the Lion’, say egg processors British Lion egg processors have launched a new digital advertising campaign to encourage retailers, wholesalers, food manufacturers and caterers to ‘Trust the Lion’ and grasp the opportunity offered by growing demand for British eggs this autumn. British Lion said research found that two-thirds of British shoppers have more conﬁdence in a food product made with British Lion eggs.

The kids are alright

UNEARTH SPOOKTACULAR SALES THIS HALLOWEEN – P40 CONFECTIONERY Category giant backs up slew of NPD with £6.8m festive marketing spend

Ferrero unwraps a sackful of ne Ferrero has unveiled an array of new products across its Thorntons, Kinder, Nutella and Raffaello brands for Christmas 2019, including novelties, figures and advent calendars. Its confectionery and spreads will also benefit from a £6.8m marketing investment for the festive season. Thorntons is launching a Continental Winter Markets box (273g, RSP £9.68). Every corner of Europe is covered in the selection, which includes flavours like Italian Panforte, Dutch Speculoos and Clementine Caramel. After the launch of The Cheeky Elf figure last year – the secondbiggest NPD in the novelties category – Thorntons is adding The Snowy Bear to its range of

figures, while also updating its newly-named Cheeky Reindeer. All three 200g figures RSP at £5.38. The Cheeky Elf character will also be available as a 29g selftreat (RSP 75p) in four shapes. The brand is also tapping into the growth in advent calendars

with yet another Cheeky Elf product, a 130g (RSP £5) offering that will come in a book format. Meanwhile Raffaello will be launching a new 100g round box with a decorative bow to offer shoppers a smaller giftable format that RSPs at £4.25. Shoppers looking for a cheaper gift may also like Nutella’s new Nutellino Christmas trio pack (RSP £3.20),

Errington Cheese is preparing to launch goat’s milk cheese this autumn after taking delivery of several Yorkshire Dairy Goats. The South Lanarkshire-based company is able to bring the

BREAKFAST Campaign to customise Weetabix returns

Any-Which-Way-A-Bix returns to screens Weetabix has brought back its ‘Any-Which-Way-A-Bix’ messaging, with a return to TV of the Nick Frost-voiced advert, as well as a social media influencer push and online campaign. The social media activity engages 48 influencers and aims to reach over 1.2 million people by tapping into the mass trend for customising food. There is also new in-store activity and POS across major retailers, including digital screens and branding at store entrances. The campaign ends in October.

product to market so quickly because of the short time it takes for lactic goat’s cheese to mature. An added beneﬁt comes from the fact that goats lactate all year round – unlike sheep – allowing Errington to provide regular employment.

Adios Complimentos September marks the withdrawal of the Mentos Complimentos limited-edition packs, which offer a light-hearted compliment on every roll. Brand owner Perfetti van Melle pumped £1.6m into the three-month campaign. Reality TV stars Jack Fincham and Chris Hughes from Love Island have been drafted in for the latest burst of activity, sweet-talking members of the public in an

CONFECTIONERY Mondelez to cut calories from Cadbury’s children’s lines

Cadbury’s 100 calorie confectionery commitment Mondelez has pledged to bring the energy content of all its Cadbury chocolate and wider biscuit products typically bought by parents for children to under 100 calories. This will see Cadbury bars, Fudge, Curly Wurly and Chomp

as well as Barny sponge bears brought under 100 calories by the end of 2020. Cadbury Mini Fingers and Cadbury Animals will be under 100 calories from as early as September, with Oreo Mini snack packs and Freddo Face Cakes trimmed back by 2021.

Mondelez is also supporting Betreatwise, which was relaunched last year as an industry initiative with other confectionery companies to remind people that confectionery is a treat to be enjoyed as part of a balanced diet and active lifestyle.

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Products

News

Match & Win returns Cadbury has brought back its ‘Match & Win’ promotion for a third season. The 2018 campaign was Cadbury’s biggest ever onpack activity. The promo features

of new products for Christmas which contains 3 x 30g jars with seasonal designs. On the other hand, Kinder has pretty much covered every price point with its festive range, from the 220g Kinder Surprise Egg (RSP £12) to the 37g Kinder & Love (RSP £1.80). New for Christmas this year will be the Kinder Mix

Reindeer Headband (RSP £7). The 167g novelty comes with a selection of Kinder Mini Bueno, Kinder Mini Chocolate and Kinder Mini Chocolate with Cereals, as well as a reindeer headband. The 100g Kinder Surprise Egg has been given an overhaul in

wake of 126% value growth and will now feature new polar bear toys that have water shooting and colour changing features. The redesigned Kinder Mix Hexagon (152g, RSP £5.50) now offers more engaging features. Not to be forgotten, the Ferrero brand itself is also innovating with the launch of the Ferrero Collection Advent Calendar (271g, RSP £14). The premium product has what is described as a “unique opening” and offers a range of Ferrero Rocher, Raffaello and Rondnoir products within. Levi Boorer, Customer Development Director at Ferrero, said: “Ferrero’s diverse portfolio contains a number of bestselling, quality brands that help to drive category growth, offering shoppers great tasting products.”

on 170 million packs across singles; multipacks; medium and large bags; medium blocks; Big Taste and biscuits ranges. The campaign gives shoppers the opportunity to win VIP Matchday experiences, Premier League match tickets and a raft of Cadbury FC merchandise.

Stellar performance from Border Biscuits The Milk Chocolate Gingers produced by Border Biscuits have been awarded one star from this year’s Great Taste Awards for “food that delivers fantastic ﬂavour”. This latest accolade brings Border’s tally of Great Taste stars to four; Dark Chocolate Gingers and Lemon Drizzle Melts saw success last year while the brand’s Dark Chocolate Gingers & Orange won in 2017.

Match Attax kicks off 2019/20 season Topps has rolled out the latest

ENERGY DRINKS

Rockstar gears up for Xbox promo Rockstar Energy Drink and Xbox have unveiled plans for a new on-pack promotion in support of the upcoming Gears 5 video game release. The on-pack tie-up launches this month and runs across Rockstar Original, Xdurance and Punched Guava variants (outers of 12 x 500ml plain pack and 99p PMP) and features three original designs from UK-based illustrator Luke Preece. In addition to offering daily prizes of consoles and games, the promotion gives gamers the chance to unlock exclusive in-game items and free Xbox game pass access by entering ring pull codes. A range of POS is available from Barr Soft Drinks. Adrian Troy, the company’s Marketing Director, said: “Previous Rockstar on-pack promotions have seen huge success, with the Gears 4 promotion in 2016 growing sales by over 100,000 cases, so this is a great opportunity for retailers to drive incremental sales of energy drinks.”

HOT DRINKS

Carte Noire dials up intensity Carte Noire has added a new variant to its instant portfolio. Combining arabica and robusta beans, Carte Noire Intense is a dark roast blend with a richer and more intense character than the Classique variant. It is available from wholesalers now in 100g jars with an RSP of £3.99. Intense joins the re-launched Carte Noire Classique range, building on the richness and flavour that Carte Noire offers but with stronger flavour notes, a richness and a lingering aftertaste. The brand said it was “ideal for those who prefer a strong and robust coffee to kickstart the day. Carte Noire Intense combines expert coffee knowledge and delicious flavour to create a full bodied and perfectly balanced taste experience.”

edition of its trading card game Match Attax. Cards feature teams and players from the Champions and Europa leagues. Starter packs RSP at £5, as do multipacks containing a limitededition card. Mini Tins (RSP £7) and Mega Tins (RSP £10) are also available. Individual packs containing seven different cards are £1 each and 15 card packets will set back kids £2.

Win Haribo stock Haribo is giving retailers the chance to win £200 worth of stock in a convenience-exclusive competition. To enter retailers must buy a case each of Starmix, Tangfastics, Supermix, Giant Strawbs, Maoam Stripes and Maoam Pinballs then upload a copy of their invoice to promoentries.com/hariboretail. Thirty lucky winners will be drawn at random after entries close on 30 September.

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News

Off-Trade

Gin bubble far from bursting... Gin sales in the UK hit the

Off-TradeNews

£2bn mark for the ﬁrst time in the 12 months to March 2019, according to the latest Market Report from the Wine and Spirit Trade Association. British gin sales reached £2.3bn, with 76 million bottles of the spirit sold over the period. Sales of gin in the off-trade were worth almost £1bn, a 43% year-on-year rise, while gin sales in pubs and bars increased by 56%.

...as Gordon’s unveils new half-bottle Gordon’s has launched its Premium Pink Distilled Gin in a 35cl bottle. The gin boasts the highest rate of sale in ﬂavoured gin to-date, selling 37% more volume per week than its nearest competitor in the off-trade. Brand owner Diageo hopes the new fractional’s accessible

WAKE UP TO THE BREAKFAST OPPORTUNITY – P42 WINE Retailers drink to bigger sales

Spar uncorks Wine Club membership for retailers Spar UK has launched the Spar Wine Club, an incentive-driven initiative that seeks to raise the quality credentials of the Spar wine range, build sales in the wider wine category, and share best practice amongst retailers. A select bunch of wine retailers – including SLR Rewards winner Saleem Sadiq – gathered at the Wine Club in Manchester for a launch event. These retailers have been chosen to stock the core range,

support Spar national wine promotions and take part in all the club’s activities. A raft of benefits is available to members, including the chance to visit some of the world’s finest vineyards, specialist wine education and training, and exclusive invitations to consumer and trade wine shows. There are 30 members in the Spar Wine Club currently, and it will open for new membership applications in 2020.

price point (RSP £10.99) will encourage trial. Premium Pink is already available in 70cl and

RTDs

1-litre formats.

Global shakes up canned cocktails

Belhaven’s parent company taken over

Independent drinks company Global Brands has launched a new cocktail brand, Shake Baby Shake. Available in two flavours – Passion Fruit Martini and Raspberry Mojito (both ABV 4%) – the Shake Baby Shake RTDs are made using natural fruit juices and spirits to create “smooth on-the-go cocktails that capture the authentic tastes of a sophisticated bar-serve”. Both variants are available in 4 x 250ml multipacks (RSP £5) and as single cans. For the 250ml singles, Passion Fruit Martini RSPs at £1.95 and Raspberry Mojito at £1.50. The launch is supported by ‘#shakeitup’, a social media campaign with a focus on influencer marketing to showcase the Instagram-friendly animal print cans. This has already reached three million consumers, and has been featured by influencers such as Charlotte Crosby, Laura Anderson and Emily Atack. To further boost brand awareness, Shake Baby Shake is also running a Facebook competition to win a year’s supply of its cocktails. To find out more, call 01246 216000, visit globalbrands.co.uk or email info@globalbrands.co.uk.

Belhaven Brewery owner Greene King is to be sold to Hong Kongbased property company CKA for £2.7bn. As well as several other beer brands – including Old Speckled Hen – Greene King also owns around 2,700 pubs, restaurants and hotels in the UK. Shares in Greene King leapt by over 50% when news of the deal broke, which the company’s directors advised shareholders to accept.

Molson Coors cuts plastic Molson Coors is removing plastic packaging from its Carling and Coors Light brands, as it bids to make all its packaging reusable, recyclable, compostable or biodegradable by 2025. In a move costing around £7.5m, ﬁlm wrap from large multi-packs will be replaced with recyclable carton board by March 2020. Recyclable cardboard sleeves

GIN

Tobermory’s gin for whisky lovers Tobermory, the only whisky distillery on the Isle of Mull, has expanded its repertoire with the launch of new Tobermory Gin (ABV 43.3%). The gin, the ﬁrst in the distillery’s 200-year history, is available to order now in 70cl bottles with an RSP of £31. A giftbox (RSP £34) is also available). The launch is supported by a new marketing campaign that includes advertising, PR, social and sampling activity. For stock and other enquiries, retailers should contact laura.thompson@ distellinternational.com. Stephen Woodcock, Distillery Manager at Tobermory Distillery, commented: “Tobermory Gin is the ﬁrst established Single Malt distillery to use their name on a gin. Using a splash of spirit from our famous whisky stills, along with a mix of botanicals, some hand foraged on the island, Tobermory Gin really is something different for the gin market, with an interesting story to tell as well as a high quality and unique spirit.”

will replace plastic six-pack rings a year after that. KEEP UP WITH THE LATEST NEWS AS IT HAPPENS – FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @SLRMAG

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Off-Trade

News

End of the world for Scotch Highland Park has launched the ﬁnal part of its Viking Legend trilogy: Valfather (ABV 47%), a single malt Scotch Whisky that is the distillery’s most peated

PREMIUM SPIRITS Drinks giant identifies £15.5m opportunity for c-stores

Time to reclaim Christmas, says Pernod Ricard

release to date. It is available

Pernod Ricard has ploughed over £5m into its 2019 Christmas marketing budget – nearly 70% more than last year – with campaigns going live from October for Jameson, Plymouth, Chivas and Campo Viejo. The move comes as the drinks giant urged convenience retailers to give stronger visibility to premium wine and spirit brands over the festive season in order to win back share from grocery and capitalise on a £15.5m opportunity. Convenience grew its value share of Premium Spirits by just +3% in the last quarter of 2018, versus grocery’s +8%. Within Premium Spirits, there are five key categories Pernod Ricard UK recommends retailers focus on, as they lend themselves to key Christmas drinking occasions: Gin, Irish Whiskey, Blended Scotch, Vodka and Wine.

whisky maker, Gordon Motion.

now in 70cl bottles (RSP £60). The trilogy highlights the journey to Ragnarök, the battle at the end of the world that inspired the packaging and taste proﬁles of the whiskies created by master

Edinburgh Gin is on-trend With demand for citrus-flavoured gins and liqueurs growing tenfold, Edinburgh Gin has expanded its full-strength flavoured offering with the creation of Lemon & Jasmine (ABV 40% ABV). The new spirit combines the juniper-forward profile of a London Dry with natural flavours of fresh lemon and aromatic jasmine. It is

A lack of consumer confidence last Christmas meant more people spent time entertaining friends and family at home rather than visit pubs and restaurants. This has contributed to the rise of consumers wanting to re-create their favourite cocktails and mixed drinks at home; Google searches for the Espresso Martini have shot up by 156% over the last three years.

So why is convenience still missing out? As excitement builds over the festive period, so does the average spend on premium wine and spirits. However growth happens later in December for convenience, compared to grocery and the ontrade. Pernod Ricard said the key to festive profits is to encourage sales of Premium Spirits earlier in the month.

available in 70cl format with an RSP of £28.

New look for Frosty Jack’s Frosty Jack’s has been given a makeover, with a new pack design and identity that “builds appeal with existing consumers and looks to recruit new drinkers to the brand”. The new look comes in the wake of Frosty Jack’s downsizing to 2.5-litre PET bottles from a three-litre

BEER Heineken hopes new designs will lift ﬂagging sports fans

Rugby World Cup: Heineken bottles it Heineken has rolled out a limited-edition range of bottles for the forthcoming Rugby World Cup, which takes place in Japan from 20 September to 2 November. The new designs are available across Heineken (5%) 4 x 330ml and 12 x 330ml packs. Each features a national flag; there is a unique design for all 20 participating teams. The packs are supported by a multi-channel campaign across PR, digital and TV. The campaign communicates that, during the Rugby World Cup, everyone can be a fan regardless of their knowledge of the sport. Heineken Brand Director Nic Casby commented: “By creating excitement around the World Cup, as well as helping to promote it in store through eye-catching bottle designs, we aim to give retailers all the tools they need to have a successful Rugby World Cup activation.”

format. The switch is predicted BEER

Trooper’s new look is dead good Robinsons Brewery and veteran heavy rockers Iron Maiden have unveiled a new design for their Trooper beer. Timed for Halloween, the limited-edition bottles are available from now until the end of November and sees Iron Maiden’s Eddie mascot given a Day of the Dead makeover. The ABV 4.7% brew is available in cases of 8 x 500ml bottles with an RSP of £1.99 from Booker and Makro.

to remove 22 million units of alcohol from the UK market every year.

Five stars for Orkney Distillery Orkney Distillery, which produces Aurora and Kirkjuvagr gins, is celebrating after its visitor centre – which has only been open for just over a year – received a Five Star Quality Assurance award from VisitScotland at its ﬁrst grading visit. Orkney’s 11 staff run the distillery and also conduct tours twice a day for gin enthusiasts from around the world.

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SEPTEMBER 2019 | SLR

13/09/2019 12:17:23

News

Newstrade

Pro rata increase from i newspaper A recent increase in the cover

News& Magazines

price of the weekend edition of the i newspaper has been accompanied by pro rata terms for retailers. NFRN National President Stuart Reddish welcomed the move and thanked the publisher JPI Media. The price of the iweekend rises by 20p to £1.20 and with the margin that retailers receive remaining at 21.5% – the second highest in the marketplace – i stockists will now receive 25.8p on every copy sold. Reddish said: “Independent retailers are facing everincreasing operating costs so pro rata margin increases are critical whenever cover price rises occur if NFRN members are to remain viable. “The NFRN is pleased that JPI Media is demonstrating that it wants to work positively with its retail partners, and I would like to reciprocate by urging NFRN members to give iweekend their full support. “It is equally pleasing to hear that the publisher is investing in the quality of the newspaper’s editorial, with a promise that readers ‘will notice a stronger “weekend” feel to their newspaper with additional focus

UNLEASH THE POWER OF DATA – P43 PROMOTIONS News UK team up with Barr Soft Drinks

RETAILERS CASH IN ON IRN-BRU XTRA ACTIVATIONS WITH THE SCOTTISH SUN Working with SLR, The Scottish Sun and Irn-Bru Xtra have been helping over 120 retailers boost footfall, sales and profits with some fantastic in-store cross-category activations. As part of News UK’s React Activation programme and working with SLR, The Scottish Sun and Irn-Bru Xtra owner Barr Soft Drinks have delivered over 120 in-store cross-category activations for retailers across Scotland. Based around The Scottish Sun’s high-quality merchandising units, the activity sees the shelving on the units fully stocked with Irn-Bru Xtra, helping to drive sales of both products and increase overall basket spends by leveraging the power of two of Scotland’s biggest brands. Dale Wilkinson, Divisional Sales Manager for News UK, oversaw the in-store activations, which all took place within three weeks. He said the activity proved extremely popular with retailers:

“My team carried out all of the activations personally in 122 stores across Scotland in just three short weeks. “It was a tremendous effort by them but it’s all worthwhile when we hear the great feedback we’re getting from retailers, who are reacting very positively to both the product and the activity.”

Spar retailer Saleem Sadiq’s 11 store in Renfrew took part. Saleem commented: “It’s a great initiative and it’s great to see huge selling Scottish products working 1 together for the benefit of local retailers. The activation looks great in-store and it’s definitely helping grow basket spend by driving impulse sales.”

on relaxation and indulgence’. With that in mind, I would also echo its appeal to retailers to remember that iweekend should remain on sale during Sunday too.”

APPOINTMENTS

Greg Deacon named COO at NFRN The NFRN has appointed Greg Deacon as its new Chief Operating Officer. Deacon was formerly Head of Field Sales at National Lottery operator Camelot and had previously worked with News UK and the Daily Telegraph. NFRN National President Stuart Reddish said: “I am delighted to announce that Greg Deacon is joining us. Greg has worked closely with the NFRN for many years, firstly when he was employed in the news industry and more latterly at Camelot, so he understands the challenges facing independent retailers. Greg joins at an exciting time for the NFRN as we come out of our centenary year and shape the next stage of our development.” The announcement came as NFRN confirmed that after 100 years of being based predominantly in London it is to relocate its head office out of the capital. A small number of staff, including Deacon, will remain in London but will work from smaller premises near to the current Farringdon headquarters. The NFRN’s helpline service, NFRN Connect, NFRN direct and its administrative departments, which are based in Gilesgate in Durham, will be consolidated into the new premises.

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

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www.slrmag.co.uk

13/09/2019 12:17:26

Research Digest

Inside Business

CONVENIENCE MARKET SET FOR 69% OF ‘£6.9BN GROWTH IN NEXT FIVE YEARS’ EMPLOYEES Despite the turmoil of Brexit and a raft of other challenges, new forecasts from IGD reveal that the UK convenience market is set to grow by £6.9bn in the next five years.

ith the massive uncertainty surrounding the potential fallout from Brexit, the IGD has nonetheless predicted that the UK convenience market is set to grow substantially over the next five years to reach £48.2bn by 2024. That represents growth of almost £7bn and IGD states that the channel will benefit from “lots of new store openings over the period, helping to fuel a compound annual growth rate of 3.1%”. Patrick Mitchell-Fox, Senior Business Analyst at IGD, said: “While we expect relatively muted store development across the sector as a whole in the next two years, with the sector undergoing a period of consolidation, we forecast key segments – in particular co-operatives, multiples and symbols – to benefit from strong store growth again from 2021.” Reviewing the current year in convenience, Mitchell-Fox said: “After a stronger 2018 (+3.2%), total convenience sales are expected to grow by 2.6% in 2019. This growth is being led by the cooperatives segment above all, driven not only by a focus on opening new stores, but also by outstanding like-for-like performance underpinned by strong private label development, better fresh and chilled ranges and more competitive value. “Multiples, though still seeing solid growth, are now opening new stores at a more modest pace. Meanwhile, after a year of slower growth, the symbols segment is beginning to pick-up again, though it remains restrained as it stabilises after a period of notable disruption and instability.”

THE FACTORS SHAPING THE FUTURE With the average shopper spending just under eight minutes in a convenience store [IGD Shoppervista, May 2019], IGD has identiﬁed three factors shaping the future of the UK convenience channel that will enable stores to give the shopper what they need, as quickly as possible: Q Driving top-up shopping: with 54% of shoppers citing a top-up shop the reason for their most recent visit to a c-store, this remains by far the most frequent reason people shop in this channel. However, retailers have traditionally struggled to implement ranges in-store with enough scope to meet a variety of shopper needs in a way that is space-efﬁcient and quick to shop. Increasingly, retailers are using shopper data to better understand these needs. Q Attracting new shoppers: with food-to-go and takeaway coffee now well-established, retailers are increasingly looking to incorporate new merchandising focuses, with coffee stations growing in importance as the destination for hot drinks and related purchases. Q Evolving the ‘mission-based’ shop: while the lunchtime meal deal is a familiar and successful driver of food-to-go purchases, similar deals are taking a bigger role in how shoppers are using c-stores, such as meal for tonight. Also, frozen meal deals also encourage participation for retailers with limited chilled space.

BRITS ‘STOCKPILE £4BN’ IN PREPARATION FOR NO-DEAL BREXIT

rexit uncertainty resulted in British retail sales flatlining in August, as shoppers cut back on nonessential products. Yet food purchases have not faltered as Brits begin to stockpile ahead of the October deadline, according to shopping app provider Ubamarket. British Retail Consortium figures show annual total sales growth fell to zero from the weakest July rise on record of 0.3%. The possibility of the UK leaving the European Union without a deal on 31 October has resulted in a decline in customer demand for non-essential products whilst they hoard products such as food and medicines, after fears that there will be short-term supply problems after Brexit. Ubamarket conducted nationally representative research across a sample of over 2,000 UK adults, revealing how Brits feel Brexit is going to affect food prices on their weekly shop: Q Brits currently spend an average of £50.40 per week on their in-store food shop. Q 30 million Brits – 59% – believe Brexit will increase the price of food and produce in supermarkets. Q 57% of Brits – 29.5 million – believe Brexit will make European goods in supermarkets considerably more expensive. There is concern among many UK shoppers regarding the prices and availability of products, something Ubamarket believes retailers can address by becoming more proactive in collecting relevant behavioural data on their customers. Will Broome, the company’s CEO and Founder, said: “Retailers need to think of viable and efficient ways to manage their stock. App technology may not be an alternative that retailers have previously thought of, however, by collecting data on consumers’ behaviours, it can track which products customers are most likely to buy, helping retailers to stocktake.”

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‘CAN DO THEIR BOSS’S JOB BETTER’ Managers should seriously consider giving their employees the reins for a day to test new research that indicates seven out of 10 employees worldwide (69%) say they can do their boss’s job better, despite nearly the same number of workers (71%) grading their boss’s competence a B or better. This research comes from Kronos Incorporated, which examined how nearly 3,000 employees from all around the world would grade their manager’s effectiveness across five factors: communication, competence, empowerment, professional development, and support. Findings included the fact that, overall, managers are rated as good at their jobs, with most employees grading bosses an A or B for competence (71%) and work ethic (70%). The older the employee, however, the more critical they are of their boss: Baby Boomers and Gen Xers grade managers more harshly with a C, D, or F for overall people management skills (37% and 38%, respectively). Worldwide, the employeemanager connection remains critically important: 70% of employees say their relationship with their manager is an extremely or very important factor when deciding to remain at their current job. These same employees think they could personally manage even more effectively, with younger Millennial (73%) and Gen Z (70%) employees most confident they could do better. At least one in three employees feel their manager could improve at handling work-life balance (37%); their ability to coach for better job performance (37%); handling performance-related issues (33%); and communication (33%). SEPTEMBER 2019 | SLR

13/09/2019 12:17:26

Inside Business

2 Minutes | Alastair Williams, Country Director, Scandinavian Tobacco Group UK

Alastair Williams The cigar category is actually in growth by value and has plenty to offer Scotland’s local retailers, says Alastair Williams, Country Director at category champion Scandinavian Tobacco Group UK (STG). THE LATEST DATA SHOWS THAT THE CIGAR CATEGORY IS IN SLIGHT GROWTH BY VALUE. THAT’S GOT TO BE GOOD NEWS FOR RETAILERS? Yes, I think that’s good news for all of us! The latest data we have illustrates value growth of just under a percentage point so it’s not huge but certainly a step in the right direction. As you might imagine, it’s very much being driven by the Miniatures sector. FACTFILE Alastair Williams joined Scandinavian Tobacco Group UK 13 years ago as a Key Account Manager, under the ownership of Henri Wintermans cigars. From then he had the opportunity to experience a variety of different and exciting roles in the organisation, from National Accounts and channel management to trade marketing and communications. He was then appointed Head of Sales before being names as Country Director.

FROM STG’S POINT OF VIEW, HOW IS THE CATEGORY DOING AT THE MOMENT, GIVEN YOUR DOMINANCE? The category is doing pretty well and we’re very fortunate to have a portfolio which ticks all the boxes when it comes to the UK cigar market. The jewel in our crown is of course Signature (formerly known as Café Crème), which is easily the biggest player in the category and the UK’s number one Miniature cigar. We also have Moments Blue, which is the UK’s fastest growing cigar and second bestselling Miniature cigar. In fact, we have a share of over 67% of all Miniature cigar sales.

AND THE MOVE FROM CAFE CREME TO SIGNATURE HAS GONE WELL, WE UNDERSTAND? It has indeed. Changing the name of such as well-known and well-established brand was not a decision that we took lightly but I’m pleased to say there has been no negative impact on sales so far, with both the trade and adult smokers seeming to understand that it’s the same great product inside!

IT WAS A BOLD MOVE GIVEN THE STRENGTH OF THE CAFE CREME BRAND. WHAT PROMPTED THE REBRAND? The rebrand was driven by a desire for global consistency

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as the name is changing to Signature in all our markets around the world. We carried out extensive consumer testing on the new name and it scored exceptionally well which gave us the confidence to proceed. I will admit to being nervous about it but the sales figures speak for themselves and it’s clear that we made the right decision.

WHAT ARE THE KEY TRENDS IN THE CATEGORY TODAY? IS IT STILL ALL ABOUT SMALLER CIGARS? The trends affecting the category have been consistent for a while and will certainly be familiar to Scottish retailers. It’s the continued growth in Miniature cigars which now account for nearly 74% of total sales, allied with the rise in quality value for money brands like Moments.

DO YOU HAVE ANY NEW NEWS IN THE PIPELINE YOU CAN SHARE WITH SLR READERS? As Cigar category champions we have a responsibility to ensure we are providing the market with great products which are on-trend, whilst also considering what’s coming next, and 2020 should have some exciting developments so watch this space!

WHAT PRACTICAL ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO LOCAL RETAILERS KEEN TO MAINTAIN AND GROW THEIR SALES IN THE CIGAR CATEGORY? Aside from stocking the right brands which I’ve already addressed, I think there are one or two other things to consider. Retailers should invest in upskilling both themselves and their staff to develop their understanding on the different cigars available in each segment, and what type of consumer they are most suited for. Combining their insights on the category with their knowledge of the local customer base is vital. It’s important to tailor the range to appeal to local tastes.

www.slrmag.co.uk

13/09/2019 12:17:27

#ThinkSmart3

Inside Business

A TASTE OF WHAT’S TO COME AT #THINKSMART3 With the unique #ThinkSmart3 festival of tech, data, digital and innovation just around the corner, we offer you an insight into some of the solutions that you will be able to see this month.

#THINKSMART3 25 SEPTEMBER TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION CENTRE, GLASGOW

ith technology, data and insight set to play a massive role in shaping the future of the local retailing sector, SLR is helping retailers, wholesalers and suppliers across the UK embrace the new world order with the third in its series of annual festivals exclusively for the convenience channel.

#ThinkSmart3 will see a top-quality roster of speakers and exhibitors who will offer a glimpse into what will be happening in convenience stores of the future – and what is available right now in order to take the first steps into future-proofing your business. To give you a flavour of what to expect, here are some insights into some of the companies presenting and exhibiting at #ThinkSmart3…

TO BOOK YOUR PLACE EMAIL EVENTS@55NORTH.COM www.slrmag.co.uk

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SEPTEMBER 2019 | SLR

13/09/2019 12:17:28

Inside Business

#ThinkSmart3

KAM MEDIA: TECHNOLOGY IS DATA

etail research specialists KAM Media will be discussing the impact of technology and data in the convenience retailing sector and why getting ahead of the tech and data curve represents a massive opportunity for local retailers. From improving internal processes to enhancing the customer experience, technology will play an ever more important role in the everyday operations of a store. It will allow retailers to do things they’ve never done before – but it will also allow them to do the things they’re best at even better. Technology can help convenience to protect its existing USP and also potentially, to create a new one. The presentation will also cover the ‘experience economy’, the latest trend that shows shoppers are increasingly more interested in buying things than in doing things. In-store experiences will become ever more important as well any contact your customers have with your store be that in the real world or online. This represents a huge opportunity for a channel that already enjoys a very close bond with its shoppers. Technology and data can help strengthen that bond even further. For more information, visit kam-media.co.uk.

MICONEX: THE FIRST PAYMENT CARD-LINKED CITY-WIDE LOYALTY SCHEME

i Rewards from Perth-based Miconex is the first payment card-linked city-wide loyalty scheme in the UK and was launched in Perth in September last year. It’s the first scheme to offer rewards that can be earned and spent across a whole city or area. What makes it unique is that participating consumers don’t need a loyalty card or an app to participate. The frictionless system means they simply link existing payment cards to the programme and when they spend money in participating businesses they are automatically rewarded. The scheme was created to encourage people to shop locally, rather than online or at another retail destination. It also helps stimulate additional spend when reward cards are redeemed and creates new ways for businesses to communicate with their customers. The data also allows them to gain a greater understanding of how consumers shop. There is no joining fee, no staff training is required, and no additional hardware or software is necessary. The cost to participate is 1% of qualifying card transactions; this 1% goes to customers who will earn 1 point per £1 spent. Accumulated points can then be spent back at the participating businesses. For more information, contact Colin Munro at Miconex on 01738 444376 or colin@mi-cnx.com.

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HENDERSON TECHNOLOGY: SOLUTIONS BY RETAILERS FOR RETAILERS

y retailers, for retailers, is the guiding principle of Henderson Technology, part of the Henderson Group in Northern Ireland, one of the only companies on earth that actually uses and develops its own solutions in its own stores. Centred around its EDGEPoS system, Henderson Technology has developed a suite of fantastic, innovative tech and data solutions that integrate seamlessly with the core EDGEPoS system and offer retailers plug and play access to solutions that can help transform their businesses. These include: Q EDGEPoS Self Checkout – the self-checkout is simply bolted onto existing EDGEPoS tills and requires no additional counter space. Q EDGEPoS APPetite – full function app specific to your store which allows customers to process orders for either Click & Collect or Home Delivery. Fully integrated with the EDGEPoS Back Office for stock visibility online and full reporting. Q EDGEPoS Queue Buster Tablet Till – a static till, a Queue Buster till, a multiuser back office and a portal for analytics all in one handy portable tablet. Q EDGEPoS Loyalty – a powerful customer and staff loyalty scheme through the Azpiral authorised partnership. With over 2.5 million customers using the Azpiral system, this loyalty partnership allows retailers to understand, engage, reward and retain their customers and staff. Q EDGEPoS Analytics – real-time graphical interface that enables retailers to keep track of their business remotely, providing key information and alerts in an easy to read format at the touch of a button with real-time reporting. Q EDGEPoS Café – full solution for retailers offering sit-in or takeaway food, facilitating more accurate transaction detail and reporting, including different taxes. Q Scales Integration – EDGEPoS is fully integrated with Mettler Toledo scales, allowing a full reporting transparency on department and article sales, profit and stock control. The Receipt Resolution function allows multiple items to be selected within one transaction, allowing for more accurate reporting and stock management. Q Third Party Integrations – EDGEPoS has a plethora of thirdparty integrations such as PayPoint, BPme app, Azpiral, cigarette vending machines, EFT Card Services (hosted by Sagepay) and all fuel cards to name a few. For more information, visit henderson.technology.

www.slrmag.co.uk

13/09/2019 12:17:29

#ThinkSmart3

Inside Business

QUEUECHEETAH: SMART ‘SCAN, PAY AND GO’ APP

he QueueCheetah app is a highly creative solution that allows shoppers to effectively skip the queue while instore. All shoppers have to do is scan their selected products and add to cart, pay from their mobile with VISA or MasterCard, receive their verification and leave the store. It’s that simple. Queues currently cost the UK economy £3.4bn with 10% of walk-outs by customers who are basically dissatisfied with wait times. When a consumer sees a long queue it puts them off coming into a store. This happens mainly at peak times like lunch and evening. QueueCheetah provides the ideal solution to that problem. With customers focusing on the value of their time more than money, QueueCheetah aims to help. Peak-times see a large increase in queues, which put off the peak time customer. A simple lunch time transaction can become frustrating to the customer having to wait and pressure on the staff to be quicker. QueueCheetah eliminates this giving control to both parties ensuring a smooth, stress-free experience. For consumers it saves time, reduces effort - unpacking and repacking, is zero cost, eliminates queuing and improves the shopping experience. It also means they can receive special deals in real time. For retailers, the solution reduces costs, increases revenue, influence purchases in real time, increases footfall and shopper conversion. Additionally, QueueCheetah has no technical hurdles, no big infrastructure costs and allows retailers to minimise waste by incentivising perishables. For more information, visit: queuecheetah.com

MYSTORE+: BRINGING RETAILERS AND BRANDS CLOSER

yStore+ is an innovative new app launched by The Sun and The Times publishers News UK and Glasgow-based field marketing and sales solutions agency McCurrach that aims to bring brands and local retailers closer together than ever before to deliver business growth for all. The app, described by its creators as “the biggest tech innovation in convenience retail”, aims to help brands and retailers grow their business together by enabling retailers to access category and brand advice, offers and rewards. MyStore+ enables retailers to access category advice to help them stock the right products and planogram their space to maximise sales. Retailers can also then access exclusive offers and rewards from brands for executing activity in their store and for sharing that insight with brands – typically by sending a photograph of the finished fixture or display. For brands, MyStore+ will help drive engagement by providing retailers with new content, offers and rewards to access all the time. MyStore+ has been developed to make it simple and cost effective for brands to provide retailers with the advice, offers and rewards that drive execution and sales in-store. This makes connecting with convenience retailers accessible for all brands. News UK will work with McCurrach to engage with the 12,000 retailers they visit through their retail sales team and the 35,000 convenience retailers who sell news every day of the year. The MyStore+ app is available across iOS and Android platforms and is available to download from the Apple App Store and Google Play. For more information, visit: mystoreplus.com.

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SEPTEMBER 2019 | SLR

13/09/2019 12:17:30

Inside Business

#ThinkSmart3

MHOUSE: THE HOME-GROWN SOLUTION

otherwell-based MHouse Solutions is one of Scotland’s leading Epos providers, delivering systems that can report on and manage every aspect of a local retailing business from pricing, promotions, staff, security and stock to ordering, merchandising and advising on what’s selling, what will sell best and where to put it on your shelves and in your store to sell it faster. MHouse can demonstrate an uplift of 3% in gross profit using their system by giving storeowners much greater control over a wider range of store procedures. The company is constantly developing and improving its product, adding new features with time- and money-saving ideas, making operations faster and more efficient and making the life of the store owner more secure and easier. The sleek, easy to use touch screen at the counter is backed up by a powerful back office system that delivers in-depth reporting and analysis on every aspect of the store’s operations. The system also offers direct data links to the major suppliers allowing downloading of supplier price changes, invoices and promotions, one click order generation and stocking with increased control. To find out more information, please visit mhousesolutions.com.

UWS: TRANSFORMING WHOLESALE AND RETAIL

nited Wholesale Scotland is in the midst of a ground-breaking new programme of technology and innovation-driven activity currently taking place in both the wholesaler’s flagship depot and with its retailers. The depot is being transformed with a range of technologies including the installation of digital shelf edge signage and enormous digital signage in the depot that will help improve both the customer experience and the efficiency of the business. Under discussion will also be new initiatives set to enhance the performance of UWS’s retail partners including a comprehensive plug-and-play home delivery service. For more information, visit uniteduk.co.uk.

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www.slrmag.co.uk

13/09/2019 12:17:30

#ThinkSmart3

Inside Business

TWC: INSIGHT-DRIVEN DECISION-MAKING

ith over 50 years’ experience spread across retail, wholesale, buying groups, convenience and foodservice, TWC (The Wholesale Company) is firmly focused on delivering transformative business results for clients. Critically, the business is all about harnessing the power of sales data, insights and smart technologies to drive sales and growth. TWC aims to harness the power of customer data, enabling clients to adopt a “data-led” approach to their channel strategy. The key is putting sales facts at the heart of decision-making. The company’s background is in merging disparate wholesale data to deliver cutting

edge reporting. The rise of digital means that TWC has extended its reporting solution to bolt into customised products that create a digitally enabled enterprise. The development team has expertise in digital innovation and delivery and its IT solutions for wholesalers, convenience retailers and suppliers are all underpinned by the principle that great digital execution is only achieved from excellent insight. TWC is currently working with Unitas to create a sales data reporting initiative to help suppliers and members understand market influences and opportunities to facilitate faster commercial growth. This gives members and suppliers visibility on Unitas’ sales to customers, (including

sales by named members). The results furnish stakeholders with valuable insights, show previously unknown data and present a reliable read on what is happening across independent wholesale and individual categories therein. Tools such as heat maps identify underperforming regions and depot scorecards highlight opportunity by branch. Suppliers also have access to reports that summarise 13-week, year-to-date, and movingannual-totals. “Never has data been so important in understanding market trends, insights and influences in order to ‘get ahead’,” says John Baines, Director of Trading for Unitas. For more information, visit twcgroup.net.

WISESHELF:TRANSFORMING SHELVES TO IOT

ell merchandised, appropriately stocked shelves are a fundamental in retail yet the problem of on shelf stock availability is as big an issue today as it has always been. So what if you could reduce out of stock events by up to 50% and increase shelf replenishment efficiency by up to 40%? What if you could ensure product facings are maintained, planogram accuracy is supported and staff are directed to focus on what is most important? What if you could even reduce average stock holding for certain lines because you knew with confidence what was needed and when, to keep shelves adequately merchandised? With the smart shelf solution from WiseShelf you can… and more besides! WiseShelf’s smart shelving solutions are based on patented technology and have been proven to improve stock availability, increase replenishment efficiency and support planogram accuracy. The smart shelf utilises unique light sensor technology that can detect 1,000 light levels meaning that the connected software can understand, in real-time, the difference between an actual product and shadows, opacity of liquids and where exactly items are on the shelf. The solution provides actions, alerts and analysis at store, regional and head office levels for both retailers and their suppliers through its cloud-based SaaS software.

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International clients and partners include Super Pharm, Dansk Supermarked, X5, Coca-Cola and Albert Heijn. Having launched recently in the UK, the company ran a successful project for Iceland Foods in the bread and soft drinks categories. Not only did out of stocks reduce substantially, additional insights were uncovered such as the key times of the day, and days of the week when certain lines came under pressure and risked lost sales. Iceland was also able to identify opportunities to improve ordering and replenishment processes. Jim Clifton, Head of Merchandising for Iceland, stated: “We ran a successful project with WiseShelf in our Buckley store and demonstrated measurable improvements in the availability of key products in the bread and soft drinks categories. The benefits were strong enough to justify us to look at substantial extension of the solution to more stores and look to increase the functional scope of processes to include ordering and theft reduction. The WiseShelf team built a strong relationship with us and we continue to be impressed with the level of innovation and creativity from them.” Later this year, the company will be launching the next version of the solution which will include inshelf wide-angle cameras for enhanced planogram monitoring and the ability to manage products in shelf-ready packaging. For more information, contact David Morgan at david@wiseshelf.com.

JUUL LABS: TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION

rom a standing start in 2015, just four years ago, JUUL Labs has grown faster than almost any business in history and is now one of the world’s largest tech companies with a valuation of around $15bn. After launching into traditional retail channels, it took JUUL just eight months to become the number one closed vaping brand in the UK. JUUL is, however, first and foremost a technology company. At #ThinkSmarts3 JUUL will be discussing the primary role technology plays in its business and will be discussing its latest tech solutions including C1, a world-first mobile app solution allowing users to monitor their consumption and to lock their JUUL device to prevent anyone but the owner using it. For more information, visit: juul.co.uk SEPTEMBER 2019 | SLR

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Inside Business

Industry Investment

SLR REWARDS WINNERS JOIN FIRST MINISTER AS CCEP UNVEILS Â£23m INVESTMENT IN EAST KILBRIDE xxxx

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon tours the facility.

One of the two new Capri-Sun lines in action.

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Dan Brown declares the new lines officially open!

www.slrmag.co.uk

13/09/2019 12:17:33

Industry Investment

Inside Business

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon recently opened new Capri-Sun production lines at CCEP’s East Kilbride site – and the first to see them in action that day were three SLR Rewards winners.

Nicola Sturgeon commemorates the £23m investment.

BY ANTONY BEGLEY

The SLR Reward winners and their CCEP hosts.

T Abdul Majid takes his recycling seriously...

Kitted out and ready to go.

Walter, Dan and Abdul get the full tour.

www.slrmag.co.uk

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here are many great benefits to winning an SLR Reward as retailers Walter Bryson, Dan Brown and Abdul Majid discovered recently when they were invited to visit the Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP) site in East Kilbride on the day First Minister Nicola Sturgeon officially unveiled a £23m investment in the facility by the soft drinks giant. The site now boasts two new state-of-the-art production lines for the Capri-Sun brand which represent a significant commitment to the area by CCEP. In addition to the new Capri-Sun lines, other investments include a £2.3m water treatment plant, saving nine million litres per year. Welcoming Sturgeon to the site, CCEP Vice President & General Manager Leendert Den Hollander said: “We are proud to be a truly local business and the investment at East Kilbride marks a landmark year in its 55-year operational history and is a great example of the legacy that our local sites can provide our communities as well as supporting the manufacturing and distribution network in Scotland more broadly.” The investment will create 18 roles and additional investment to upskill the 170-strong workforce. It takes total investment in the site to £42m since 2010. The first people to see the new production lines in action (after the First Minister!) were Scottish Local Retailer of the Year Walter Bryson, Scottish Young Local Retailer of the Year Dan Brown and Outstanding Industry Achievement award winner Abdul Majid. The trio were given a full tour of the site and were hosted by Julian Hunt, CCEP’s GB Vice President for Public Affairs, Communications & Sustainability, and Gordon McSkimming, the company’s Sustainable Packaging Manager. Walter told SLR: “It was fascinating to see the inside of the factory and it’s a very, very slick and impressive operation. The two new Capri-Sun lines are really impressive. It’s also great news that CCEP are investing so heavily in Scotland and I was delighted to be invited along to be among the first to see the results of the investment.” SEPTEMBER 2019 | SLR

13/09/2019 12:17:36

Inside Business

Cigar Category

ARE CIGARS THE LAST REMAINING TOBACCO OPPORTUNITY? Remarkably, the cigar category in the UK is actually in growth by value – so does it represent the last remaining tobacco opportunity for Scotland’s local retailers? SLR talks to Alastair Williams of category champions Scandinavian Tobacco Group UK to find out. BY ANTONY BEGLEY

“By stocking these three core brands – Signature, Moments Blue and Henri Wintermans – retailers should be able to perfectly meet the needs of each and every one of their cigar customers.” STG UK COUNTRY DIRECTOR ALASTAIR WILLIAMS

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t’s an inescapable fact of life that the tobacco category is in terminal decline. Volumes are falling every year as a combination of factors combine to drive adult smokers to either quit or switch to other categories to get their nicotine hit. The Scottish Government’s oft-repeated desire for a smoke-free Scotland is also having its effect. It’s increasingly common to see cigarette gantries disappear from behind the counter as retailers embrace this shift and seek out growing categories to focus on instead. Yet amidst this picture of gloom and doom, one category remains remarkably resilient: cigars. Almost unbelievably, IRI data shows that the total UK cigar market is actually in growth by value. Granted, it’s small growth – 0.9% – but it’s growth nonetheless. Within the wider category, the stats are even more striking. The Miniatures segment is growing by 4.6% while the Medium/ Large segment is up by 2.7%. So is there still a profitable opportunity for local retailers willing to spend a bit of time on the category? Scandinavian Tobacco Group UK (STG) Country Director Alastair Williams certainly thinks so. As the biggest player in the category by a country mile, STG is perhaps the best placed commentator on that opportunity and Williams is convinced there is still a lot of profit left in the cigars for retailers if they can get it right. “The UK Cigar market may not be as dynamic and fast moving as something like vaping, but it is still worth just under £200m in annual sales and the products within it typically offer three times better profit margins than cigarettes, so it’s absolutely one that is worth getting right,” he says. www.slrmag.co.uk

13/09/2019 12:17:37

Cigar Category

Inside Business

“I’d be lying if I said there was no nervousness when it came to changing the name of such a ubiquitous brand like Café Crème to Signature but we have seen no noticeable impact on sales so far.” First, let’s have a look at the facts. The key trends in the cigar category have remained pretty consistent over the last few years. There is the continued rise in Miniature cigars, which now account for nearly 74% of total sales. This is up 5% on last year, and features Signature, the jewel in STG’s crown, which is the number one cigar brand and easily the best-selling miniature. Secondly, for a while now there has been consistent growth in adult smokers looking for good quality, value for money propositions. Williams cites STG’s Moments brand as proof of that, as it’s currently the UK’s fastestgrowing cigar. But what do retailers need to do if they want to capitalise on this opportunity? “It’s all about education,” says Williams. “Our research has showed that shoppers want retailers to help them choose what products are right for them, especially if their usual brand isn’t in stock. “If you take the time to forge a greater understanding of the products on offer and pass this knowledge onto your staff so they can effectively engage with shoppers, you will reap the sales rewards as a result.” By combining insights on the cigar category with knowledge of your own local customer base, you can identify what cigars are right for your store. It’s important to tailor your range according to your shopper needs. But it’s not quite as simple as it sounds. Williams explains: “Even when looking at the established value for money trend, this can mean different things for different people, so shape your range with your specific customers in mind.” Williams also highlights another opportunity that perhaps doesn’t get exploited as often or as well as it might: the fact that cigars are exempt from the EUTPD2 restrictions on standardised packaging and 20-pack minimum. Cigars can still be branded beyond the product name and can be wrapped and sold www.slrmag.co.uk

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individually, or in 10-packs; this means some cigars are now the cheapest option available on shelf, which may attract existing smokers from other categories. “This means that when the gantry doors are opened, the eye-catching designs may attract the attention of shoppers, offering them reassurance of a recognisable brand they know and trust,” he advises. “By grasping their attention, this presents an opportunity to engage with the shopper on the cigar products on offer, which can in turn lead to higher cigar sales.” STG takes its category champion status seriously and, with the biggest brand of them all in Signature, it has consciously attempted to lead from the front. “Signature (formerly known as Café Crème) is easily the biggest player in the category and Scotland’s bestselling cigar. In fact, when it comes to cigar sales in Scottish Independents and symbols, Signature SKUs have three of the top four places.” Williams admits that last year’s rebrand from Café Crème to Signature to deliver global consistency did cause him the odd

sleepless night, but the success of the rebrand speaks for itself. And Williams can now sleep a lot more soundly. “I’d be lying if I said there was no nervousness whatsoever at our end when it came to taking the decision to change the name of such a ubiquitous cigar brand like Café Crème to Signature,” he admits. “However, we have been really encouraged to see no noticeable impact on sales so far, with both trade customers and adult smokers seeming to understand that the product inside the tins is identical and very much still the UK’s favourite cigar.” In addition to Signature, STG is also seeing huge success with its Moments Blue brand, something Williams sees continuing: “Moments Blue is the UK’s fastest-growing cigar and second best-selling Miniature cigar. And we also have our Henri Wintermans Half Corona which holds the position as the UK’s favourite Medium to Large cigar. “By simply stocking these three core brands retailers should be able to perfectly meet the needs of each and every one of their cigar customers.”

BUILD A PROFITABLE CIGAR CATEGORY: THE BASICS COVER ALL SEGMENTS Make sure you include the top-selling brands from each segment as a minimum: l Miniature cigars: Signature and Signature Blue (previously known as Café Crème and Café Crème Blue) as well as Moments Blue l Panatella/Small cigars: Moments Panatella, and Hamlets l Medium/Large cigars: Henri Wintermans Half Corona and Corona Sumatra

KNOW YOUR CUSTOMERS l You know your customers better than anyone else and there will always be regional

differences in product performance. By paying attention to what your customers are buying and reviewing your sales data, you can see what’s performing well and stock accordingly

MAINTAIN STOCK LEVELS l Without a doubt the simplest, but most effective piece of advice to follow is to stay stocked

up. If a product isn’t in stock, consumers can’t buy it so make sure you monitor stock levels carefully to avoid this happening.

SEPTEMBER 2019 | SLR

13/09/2019 12:17:38

Inside Business

Symbol Group Membership | Nisa

YOU’VE GOT TO BE IN IT TO WIN IT! In today’s ultra-competitive world with the cost of business rocketing, being part of a symbol, fascia or franchise is becoming more and more of a no-brainer. SLR catches up with Darren May, Format and Development Manager at Nisa to find out the benefits of Nisa membership.

he retail environment has arguably never been tougher than it is today and one of the few decisions a retailer can make that can yield instantaneous positive results is choosing to join a symbol group, or to move to another symbol group that perhaps better suits their needs. Darren May, Format and Development Manager at Nisa, believes his symbol group is “the proven partner of choice for independent retailers”. He comments: “With multi awardwinning stores including Ardeer Services, Greens of Markinch, Pinkie Farm Convenience Store and Giacopazzi’s Milnathort, Nisa is the proven partner of choice for many marketleading, independently minded retailers in Scotland.” With Nisa, retailers can operate under a choice of symbol fascias: Nisa Local, Nisa Extra and dual-branded whereby a retailer maintains their local identity whilst benefiting from the strength of the Nisa brand. Alternatively, retailers can trade under their own independent fascia if they wish. “Nisa provides a complete retail support package to its retailers to ensure they remain competitive in the marketplace,” says May. “This comprises a strong retail focused team, covering retail development managers and regional retail managers, in addition to fresh food development managers and store development managers. Also offered is an enhanced category management system, a bespoke staff training facility and a comprehensive marketing package.” This is on top of an award-winning supply chain, a strong award-winning own label range and over 13,000 SKUs. Nisa also offers a quality EPoS solution – Epositive Evolution. With the ability to access promotions, stock lists and point of sale in a simple, touch-screen system it is, believes May, a complete business management tool. Nisa’s Evolution store format has seen great success and those retailers who converted in 2018, achieved, on average, a 12% sales uplift. “Nisa’s flexible model providers its retailers with an unbeatable breadth of range and an 36

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excellent availability rate,” says May. “This is supported by Nisa’s award-winning own label range, Heritage, which provides retailers with some 800 great quality products at affordable prices.” Another big draw for Nisa retailers has been access to almost 2,000 of Co-op’s high-quality own brand products across all categories. May explains: “Since the Co-op completed its acquisition of Nisa Retail Limited in May 2018 work has been focused on ensuring our independent retailers can experience the benefits as quickly as possible through their strong relationship with Nisa as their primary supplier. With newfound business stability and improved financial strength, Nisa partners can trade their businesses in the independent way they have always enjoyed, backed by competitive prices, promotions and a deeper own brand range which is so

important in today’s market in order to drive a real point of difference. “This is all conveniently 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. “By joining Nisa, retailers can source local products and have them invoiced centrally, creating a simpler and time efficient process. All orders are placed directly with individual suppliers, deliveries are made direct to store, but invoicing and administration is managed centrally, taking the hassle from the retailer.” Retailers can join the Nisa group through the partner website and can rely on superb support from the skilled in-house staff involved in the joining process. Complete the form on join-nisa.co.uk/contact-us or contact the development team on 0800 542 7490. www.slrmag.co.uk

13/09/2019 12:17:39

O T D E T T I M M CO

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

“It’s the range that’s available to us through Nisa that sets the group apart from all the others, especially the fresh range and even more so since the arrival of the Co-op own label. It allows us to compete at a higher level and we can target shoppers and get them through our doors without them having to think about going to a supermarket.

We receive a very high level of service from Nisa with really reliable deliveries that I don’t think can be beaten elsewhere and we also enjoy the freedom of independent retail that we retain by working with Nisa.”

Working with Nisa enables us to compete at a higher level. Dan Brown, Pinkie Farm, Musselburgh

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Hotlines

Product News & Media Watch Quorn sandwiches & wraps Adelie Foods Quorn has launched a new range of sandwiches and wraps in partnership with food-to-go brand Adelie Foods. The range comprises four sandwiches – Vegetarian Chicken & Stuffing, Vegetarian Chicken Salad, Vegetarian Ploughman’s and Vegetarian Ham Salad – and two wraps – Sweet Chili and Caesar. Recommended selling prices start from £3.29. For more information call Adelie Foods on 0333 003 7843 or visit adeliefoods. co.uk.

Star Wars Frubes General Mills Yoplait has teamed up with Disney UK to launch a brand-new Star Wars Frubes range. An on-pack competition give shoppers the chance to win a trip to Florida. Packs are available from now until the end of September with an RSP of £2. The launch is supported by an updated TV advert and videoon-demand. To find out more, visit frubes.co.uk.

Dairy-free ice cream Equi’s Equi’s has added Strictly Strawberry, a dairy-free and vegan-friendly ice cream, to its range. Made from a blend of coconut oil and strawberry puree, Strictly Strawberry contains 97 calories and 3.1g of fat per 100g with no dairy products used in its manufacture. It is available in a variety of formats including 2-litre tubs for food service and 120ml single scoop tubs for retail. For enquiries and prices, call 01698 282 494.

Halls Proactive Mondelez These new sugar-free Halls sweets have added Vitamin C to proactively support the immune system. Two ﬂavours are available – Orange and Pink Grapefruit – in outers of 8 x 65g resealable pouches (RSP £1.50). The brand also has a new marketing campaign lined up for November. For further enquiries, call Mondelez on 0870 600 0699, email retailer. services@mdlz. com or visit deliciousdisplay. co.uk.

myblu Intense Starter Kit Imperial Brands Imperial has extended its myblu portfolio with the launch of a new Starter Pack featuring its Intense Liquidpods. Available now, the kit includes a myblu pod-mod device and USB charger, along with 2 x Intense Liquidpods, at an RSP of £19.99. The Intense Liquidpods within the kit include both Menthol and Golden Tobacco variants. Retailers seeking further information should contact 0800 014 9355.

Otis Halloween Muffin Aryzta Food Solutions Otis is getting into the spirit of Halloween its latest limited-edition launch. The chocolate muffin is filled with vanilla cream, topped with a pumpkin-shaped decoration and wrapped in a Halloween-themed case. With an RSP of £1.49 the product is supplied frozen for thaw and serve, in case sizes of 30. To find out more information, retailers should call 01698 844 884 or email retail.ordersGB@ aryzta.com.

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13/09/2019 12:17:41

Product News & Media Watch

MEDIAwatch

Hotlines

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Coke’s new ad is tongue-thing else The first of two new ads from Coca-Cola follows a woman drinking a Coke and reminiscing, all the while accompanied by a giant animated tongue that illustrates “how the distinctive Coca-Cola taste behind each sip features in fond memories”. ‘The Magic Taste of Coca-Cola’ is supported with out-of-home, digital and PR activity.

Pie’s the limit for Delia Coke, the Official Soft Drink partner of the Premier League, has also unveiled a new version of its ‘Where Everyone Plays’ advert to welcome Aston Villa, Norwich City and Sheffield United to the top tier. The updated ad features fans of the newly-promoted clubs, including Norwich City supporter and director, Delia Smith – in one of her famous fish pies.

Maoam dances back onto screens Maoam has resurrected its 2016 ‘Full On… Till It’s Gone’ advert for a £1.5m campaign that sees the confectionery brand on TV until early October. The ad – featuring a somewhat overenthusiastic dancer – is expected to reach 1.6 million consumers during the campaign, which highlights Maoam Stripes, Pinballs and Joystixx.

Bake Off back… and Dr. Oetker too Dr. Oetker is back on TV screens with a campaign to coincide with the new series of The Great British Bake Off. The home baking brand has brought back its cake characters to showcase products and has unveiled new character Bianca – the soulful smooth buttercream cake. The ‘singing cakes’ ads run for 10 weeks throughout the competition.

Walkers – too good to share The Walkers snack range is back on TV for the first time in more than 10 years with a brandnew ad that sees parents across the nation stashing packs of Quavers, Wotsits & Monster Munch in hiding places around the house – in sock drawers, loo roll holders, lampshades and even under ﬂoorboards – so their families can’t find them. The ad airs until mid-October.

est product news, head to slrmag.co.uk/category/product-news/ www.slrmag.co.uk

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SEPTEMBER 2019 | SLR

13/09/2019 12:17:43

Feature

Halloween

GET YOUR TEETH INTO

HALLOWEEN Halloween is now one of the biggest occasions in the local retailing calendar and is a fantastic way to grow sales and profits by stocking themed products from major manufacturers and supporting it with in-store theatre.

SPOOKY NEW LINES FOR 2019 FANTA DARK ORANGE This is CCEP’s biggest Halloween innovation to date, a first of its kind blood orange ﬂavour soft drink with a dark twist. The dark colour and wolf on-pack graphics will catch shoppers’ attention and drive purchases. Fanta Dark Orange is Soft Drinks Tax exempt and will be available in 500ml plain and price-marked packs.

HARIBO DUO PACKS

alloween has become a big deal in recent years. So big in fact that Halloween is now, after Christmas, the second biggest occasion within the candy category making it a major opportunity for retailers. Making a success of Halloween has never been easier thanks to a wave of NPD from the major manufacturers that make building a special Halloween range simplicity itself. Back that up with a dedicated fixture, a bit of in-store theatre and some activity on social media and you could be well on the way to a scarily profitable season. Susan Nash, Trade Communications Manager at Mondelez International, advises: “Halloween’s popularity as a season in the UK shows no sign of slowing down, with total Halloween confectionery sales up by 1.3% to £35m in 2018. Within this growth, candy has been the biggest driver with sales topping £30m and growing ahead of total, at 4.7% – showing just how important brands like Maynards Bassetts are at this time of year.” [All data Nielsen, Nov 2018] As Nash suggests, Maynards Bassetts is helping its retail customers tap into the Halloween opportunity this year with two new products for the 2019 season. Maynards Bassetts Soft Jellies Scary Safari is a ‘bag of bags’ product that contains 17 x 16.7g mini bags, making it the perfect fit for trick or treating. With an RSP of £2, each bag contains a variety of soft jelly sweets in fun animal shapes, in a range of fruity flavours. The Maynards Bassetts Soft Jellies range is currently worth £2.6m and these new bags tap into the growing trend for permissibility in confectionery products, with each mini bag containing only 54 calories. Also new is Maynards Bassetts Dead Chewy, available in 162g bags containing individually wrapped chews in a variety of fruity flavours. They tap into the growing desire for chews at Halloween – sales of which grew 26.8% in 2018. The new bags have an RSP of £1. Finally, Mondelez is also launching a new Cadbury Oreo product developed specifically for the Halloween season. Cadbury Oreoooo is a 256g bag of Oreo Mini Filled Eggs with spooky Halloween branding. The line carries an RSP of £4.19 and features individually wrapped products that are perfect for sharing and for trick or treating. 40

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Haribo is inviting retailers to ‘Share the Scare’ with its new Halloween exclusive – the Haribo and Maoam Duo Pack. The Duo Pack combines top-selling gums and jellies with the category’s leading fruity chews for the very first time. Packs contain 32 treats, mini bags and individually wrapped chews including Starmix, Tangfastics, Supermix and Giant Strawbs Gone Mini, alongside Maoam Stripes, Pinballs and Joystixx.

CHUPA CHUPS SOUR INFERNALS The new Chupa Chups Sour Infernals range includes scarily sour lollies, jellies, gum and chews, all carrying a £1 RSP. Sour products are now a £42m market and are growing +21% MAT so these extremely sour Lemon, Cola, Apple & Strawberry ﬂavoured products should be popular this Halloween.

OTIS HALLOWEEN MUFFINS Ssweet bakery brand Otis is getting ready for fright night with the launch of a limited-edition Halloween Muffin featuring a rich, chocolate muffin with a smooth vanilla cream, topped with a pumpkinshaped decoration; all wrapped in a Halloween-themed case. RSP is £1.49 and the product is supplied frozen for thaw and serve, in cases of 30.

www.slrmag.co.uk

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13/09/2019 12:17:46 15/07/2019 15:02

POWER! Leveraging Data In Retail

KNOWLEDGE IS

Feature

If suppliers really mined the vast quantities of data they purchase, they could give unrivalled support to both their retail and wholesale partners in a much more progressive closed loop, says Tanya Pepin.

n today’s age of technological and digital progression, we now have unprecedented access to a rich vein of data and insight. These insights offer organisations potential for advancement and growth in an increasingly competitive marketplace. Take the mults, which are now more and more adept at using data and associated insight to run their loyalty clubs, promotions and online tracking and ordering. Yet, as processes evolve, it has taken a while for some businesses in the supply chain to catch up with what digital experts have known for a decade – that knowledge is power! And, whilst some suppliers are still not taking full ownership of the shipment data that they mine – or purchase – they are reliant on data as it is supplied to them. This is normally in pre-determined reports provided by a third party – often through their wholesale and distribution partners who open the gates to retail. There are vulnerabilities that come with this disparate ownership. It makes suppliers vulnerable to the potential loss of data that comes with provider-change or business collapse. If data is not downloaded and stored (as raw data), then they risk losing all shipment information that cannot be recovered. Palmer & Harvey is a case in point! Imagine a shift in thinking, where forwardthinking suppliers are no longer reliant on third parties for the format of their data. Instead, they have the protection of taking in raw data which they would then own in perpetuity. Suppliers would then be taking control of their data journey by driving the agenda on how they mine and store the raw data they purchased from either a wholesaler and/or from their retail partners. Consider the competitive advantage to a supplier who builds their own data set and uses the insight from this data to drive new strategies, whilst giving unrivalled, tailored support to its retail partners by actioning bespoke insights in each store or through wholesale route to market and customer business type.

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But, inherent in a data strategy of this nature is a bond of trust. Retailers and distributors have long been wary of sharing data – believing correctly that it is one of their biggest assets. If they are to entrust suppliers to take ownership of their data to build a joint strategy, then it is incumbent on the supplier to treat the data responsibly. Of course, retailers and wholesalers can still be selective about what data they share – customer names and addresses can be withheld, and anonymous account numbers shared instead. The trick is in sharing enough so that suppliers can invest in basket analysis, complex distribution research and customer behaviour trends. This work may be beyond the reach of most suppliers right now because the data is not currently delivered in a way that enables detailed transactional analysis. As the sector changes and the digital age creeps inexorably onwards, effective use of data is going to become an imperative. Maybe the suppliers who take the step to build their own data set and then work in partnership with supply chain operators to share learnings from the data will be the ones with a real competitive advantage in how they work with retailers in the future – not just because of the data driven sales they acquire but because they have found a way to deliver continuous growth year-on-year in an ever-competitive marketplace. Tanya Pepin is Chief Executive of specialist insight consultancy firm, TWC. www.slrmag.co.uk

13/09/2019 12:17:47

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Are you tired with the lack of support and service from your current EPOS supplier? Work with a team who can deliver the most progressive system today and discover how EDGEPoS can prepare your business for the future. Visit www.henderson.technology to learn more. +44 (0)28 9094 1900 | sales@henderson.technology |

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13/09/2019 12:17:48

Feature

Breakfast

ARE YOUR SHOPPERS ‘UP FOR IT’?

A major new ‘Up For It’ promotion from Kepak Convenience Foods kicks off later this month that will tempt shoppers into trying its All Day Breakfast Sausage Muffin - and offer them a second one free if they enjoy it!

epak Consumer Foods, the company behind the market-leading Rustlers brand, is rolling out a nationwide ‘Up For It’ campaign to tempt shoppers into trying the All Day Breakfast Sausage Muffin, driving trial among new audiences and increasing product penetration. The Rustlers Breakfast Taste Challenge ‘Up For It’ will centre around an on-pack promotion that offers shoppers a second free All Day Breakfast Sausage Muffin when they buy, try and enjoy the product. The offer will also be promoted on packs of Rustlers Quarter Pounder, encouraging fans of the brand’s No.1 SKU, to trial the breakfast product. An amazing 15 Rustlers Quarter 44

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Pounders are bought every minute [Nielsen, Jun 19]. The promotion will run from 23 September for one month and is estimated it will reach 2.8m shoppers. It will be supported by in-store activation and a national sampling campaign in partnership with student sampling company, Dig In. Using the kitchen takeover method, 16,000 Rustlers All Day Breakfast Sausage Muffins will be placed directly into the fridges of students at eight universities across four cities. “Widely viewed as the most important meal of the day, breakfast, whether at home or on the go, is eaten by 95% of the UK,” says Monisha Singh, Shopper Marketing Manager at Kepak Consumer Foods.

“This figure has risen 6.9% in the last four years and now accounts for 16% of occasions [MCA HIM 2019], highlighting the opportunity for Rustlers to meet the growth in demand with hot, quick and tasty breakfast options. “Since the product launched last year, the All Day Breakfast Sausage Muffin has quickly risen to become one of the most popular SKUs in the Rustlers range, worth over £10.2m and purchased by 1.2m households [Kantar, Jun 19]. With our own research showing that 74% of existing micro-snacking shoppers are likely to trial a Rustlers breakfast product, the breakfast consumption occasion still represents a major opportunity for the brand.” www.slrmag.co.uk

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13/09/2019 12:17:50 13/08/2019 15:39

UTC

BRUSSELS SPROUT GIN. JUST NAW.

They say that the older you get the quicker time goes – which partly explains UTC’s difficulty with accepting that it’s almost Christmas again. According to him, Christmas only happened about a fortnight ago. Bland turkey, over-cooked veg, having to spend all that time with the family. Not his bag. And neither for that matter are Brussels sprouts. Or gin. So words cannot convey the disgust on the auld yin’s wizened face when he learned of a new launch for this Christmas from Pickering’s: Brussels sprouts ﬂavoured gin. Edinburgh-based Pickering’s says its ‘legendary’ gin baubles – their choice of words, not ours – are receiving the “ultimate Christmas twist” which apparently involves distilling 10,000 Brussels sprouts from Arbroath to deliver a gin with “an unmistakably sprouty aroma with a surprisingly sweet, slightly nutty taste with a green, herbaceous and peppery twang”. UTC’s thoughts? “Naw. Just naw.” On a positive note, proceeds from the sale of every bauble of sprout gin are going to Contact the Elderly’s Community Christmas campaign. Monies raised will fund Christmas lunches for those who would otherwise spend Christmas on their own. “Chance would be a fine thing” was the only comment the old boy had about the prospect of spending Christmas alone.

FROM HEADINGLEY TO PUTNEY Not being a huge fan of rounders, UTC normally lets the Ashes pass him by. That was, however, until he saw a classic ‘from the sublime to the ridiculous’ press release featuring England fast bowler, Stuart Broad. The lanky cricketer had just come from playing an heroic role in the third Test at Headingley, a match widely hailed as the best Test match in history - only to find himself days later signing bottles of wine in an Asda in Putney. Broad was helping to launch Hardys ‘Win dinner with a cricket legend’ promotion. UTC was unfortunately unable to get a comment from him but imagined that he would have said something like: “You know, winning that third test match against all odds in one of the best matches in cricketing history was special. Very special. But nothing can ever compare to signing a bottle of wine with a magic marker for Big Bob in that Asda in Putney. It will stay with me until the day I die.” Something like that. 46

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PORN STAR’S DAYS AT M&S NUMBERED

It’s not every day that we get the chance to put the words ‘porn star’ and ‘M&S’ in the same sentence, but today’s our lucky day. The reason for this unlikely link-up is the fact that the joyless bunch at the Independent Complaints Panel have just ruled that M&S have to change the name of their Porn Star Martini product following a complaint from a member of the public. Said member of the Great British public was apparently concerned that the words ‘porn star’ imply ‘sexual success’ because “porn stars are idolised as people who have sexual success and are paid for doing so”. Call him a sceptical auld so and so, but UTC wasn’t buying the idea that anybody out there actually ‘idolises’ porn stars. Jealousy, possibly. But idolatry is a step too far. And presumably every bar in the country will also have to change the name of the UK’s most popular cocktail.

www.slrmag.co.uk

13/09/2019 12:17:52

SLR September 2019.indd 47

13/09/2019 12:17:53

SLR September 2019.indd 48

13/09/2019 12:17:54