PICKS OF THE WEEK

NPD AND MEDIA

IT’S NEW YORK OR NOTHIN’

THE NEW YORK BAKERY CO. DECLARES ‘THERE’S ONLY ONE WAY TO BAGEL’ IN ITS NEW £2M MULTI-CHANNEL CAMPAIGN: ‘NEW YORK OR NOTHIN’.

New York Bakery Co., the UK’s biggest bagel brand* , has unveiled a new £2m campaign by claiming to define the gold standard in bagels: it’s ‘New York or Nothin’.

The multi-channel campaign includes a 30" TV ad that debuted on Monday and features a New Yorker called George who reckons that anything other than a New York style bagel is a “lousy imitation”.

Over the past year, over 1.1 million new shoppers bought the New York Bakery Co. brand, bringing the highest share of incremental shoppers to the category*. Consumers of the New York Bakery Co. brand also buy 33% more frequently than those who buy any other bagel brand*.

The new campaign aims to tell the story of the brand whilst emphatically setting them apart from any other bagel.

WALKERS SPARKS CRISP SARNIE DEBATE

WALKERS’ LATEST MARKETING CAMPAIGN SEES THE BRAND REVISIT THE AGE-OLD CRISP SANDWICH DEBATE.

Walkers has kicked off a marketing campaign to help retailers win at lunchtime, called #crispIN or #crispOUT. The conversational and disruptive campaign seeks to reignite the age-old British debate around the crisp sandwich across multiple channels, as the brand encourages consumers to share their opinions on their lunchtime and sandwich habits.

The #crispIn or #crispOut advertising campaign launched on Friday and be active for nine weeks until 20 June.

Lunch is the number one snacking moment across the day and is responsible for 40% of all salty snacks consumption [Kantar, Jul 2020]. Since sandwiches and crisps go hand in hand, says Walkers, this campaign will encourage people to grab a bag of their favourite Walkers crisps with their lunch. With 78% of Brits already enjoying the occasional bag of crisps with their sandwiches [Forge Research, Jun 2020], the company sees a huge category opportunity to celebrate the love of the classic sandwich and crisp combination.

Philippa Pennington, Marketing Manager at Walkers, comments: “We all know that sandwiches and crisps are a match made in heaven, but there remains a very real, very heated debate about whether you should enjoy your crisps in or out of your sarnie! By tapping into the controversial (but fun!) world of the crisp sandwich debate, Walkers will be encouraging the nation to voice their thoughts – whether that be #crispIN or #crispOUT of the sandwich – and ultimately link the discussion to the Walkers brand.

“Regardless of how shoppers enjoy this lunchtime combination, the campaign will encourage them to pause and think about how their Walkers choice can add the flavourful crunch their sandwiches have been missing.”

The campaign will be rolled out across TV, social and PR. It will feature social media content from A-list celebrities.

As well as being inspired to create their own #crispIn or #crispOut sandwiches at home, consumers will have the ability to experience the choice in Subway stores across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. In a first of its kind collaboration between Walkers and the sandwich franchise Subway, Subway guests will be asked ‘WhichWay’ they want their Sub when ordering in-store until 25 May, and will able to choose to add Walkers Ready Salted Crisps as a topping on any Sub, wrap or salad from an extra 20p to create a #crispIN meal.

GRAZE HITS SMALL SCREEN FOR FIRST TIME

UNILEVER BRAND GRAZE HAS UNVEILED ITS FIRST EVER TV AD AS PART OF A £5M CAMPAIGN AIMING TO REACH 80% OF THE UK ADULT POPULATION.

Healthy snacking pioneer graze has launched its first ever TV ad for its retail range as part of a £5m media value plan for 2021 – the brand’s biggest investment to date. The Unilever brand aired on TV screens earlier this month with the ad set to reach around 40 million shoppers, equating to 80% of UK adults, as it looks to recruit new grazers.

The first burst will run until July and gives shoppers a behind the scenes glimpse into the work going on at the graze HQ, hosted by graze’s Chief Eating Officer (CEO) – a squirrel.

The ad features the brand’s Cocoa Vanilla Protein Oat Bites which graze says contain 45% less sugar than the average cereal bar, while maintaining great taste.

Pia Villa, Chief Brand Officer at graze, commented: “We’re on a mission to reimagine snacking and we won’t settle for just great ideas, we want graze ideas! For us it’s not enough to be merely healthier than unhealthy snacks, we want our snacks to be as healthy as they can possibly be, whilst never compromising on taste.

“With health front of mind and more people looking for healthier snacking alternatives, now is the right time for us to be ramping up the awareness of our graze retail range. This new campaign will see us reach 80% of UK adults, helping us on our mission to grow our loyal fan base of grazers by highlighting how we can help them enjoy healthy living every day.”

ROBINSONS TARGETS FRUITY SUMMER WITH £6.4M CAMPAIGN

ROBINSONS IS LAUNCHING A NEW DESIGN AND A ‘LET THERE BE FRUIT’ SUMMER CAMPAIGN INCLUDING TV, RADIO, DIGITAL, OUT OF HOME AND IN-STORE ACTIVATION.

Robinsons is launching a £6.4m ‘Let There Be Fruit’ campaign that will run throughout the summer to encourage shoppers to liven up their tap water.

The campaign includes TV, radio, digital, out-of-home and in-store activation. It runs from this month until September 2021, uniting the full Robinsons portfolio, including Robinsons Squash, Minis and Fruit Creations.

The marketing drive will also include a refreshed pack design across the Robinsons squash range with the depiction of fruit more prominent, enhancing the brand’s flavour credentials. The 1L double concentrate packs will feature bolder messaging highlighting their double strength and the number of serves the liquid provides.

The TV ad kicked off earlier this month and saw Robinsons squash back on screens for the first time in four years. Three versions of the ad will look at the day-to-day routines of people and the situations they encounter. The first ad features 1L Orange, Apple & Blackcurrant and Summer Fruits squash, while the second will hero Robinsons Fruit Creations Peach & Raspberry and the third will focus on Minis. Throughout the ads the Robinsons range and the ‘Let there be Fruit’ slogan is championed by children to liven up everyday occurrences.

Phil Sanders, Out Of Home Commercial Director for Britvic, comments: “Research shows that the number one need state for dilutes is taste [Kantar, Feb 2021]. The ‘Let There Be Fruit’ campaign will reinforce the messaging that Robinsons livens up the water occasion with great taste and real fruit. The campaign will also ensure that Robinsons is front of mind for shoppers when in store, and every product in the range will benefit.”

RUSTLERS DEBUTS ‘COOK IN BOX’ CONCEPT

RUSTLERS HAS LAUNCHED A ‘COOK IN BOX’ CONCEPT THAT LETS CONSUMERS HEAT THE BURGER WITHOUT EVEN OPENING THE BOX, ELIMINATING MESSY PREP.

Following the successful launch of its new range of food-to-go equipment solutions, Rustlers is aiming to help retailers grow their hot food to go sales with an innovative new ‘Cook in Box’ solution.

Rolling out this month across the convenience channel, Rustlers Cook in Box lets shoppers heat a fully assembled burger without even opening the pack, eliminating any messy preparation whilst also acting as a product carrier to enable easy consumption on the go.

Rustlers All Day Breakfast Sausage Muffin, worth almost £2m in convenience and with 22.2% growth YoY across independents and 37.5% total market [Nielsen, Mar 2021], will be available in the innovative format, served with cheese and brown sauce (RSP £2.50), aimed at the breakfast occasion.

New to the Rustlers range, and available exclusively as ‘Cook in Box’, the Supreme Cheese Melt burger topped with Rustlers’ signature sauce (RSP £2.50) will cater for lunchtime and evening shoppers.

Retailers interested in Rustlers’ food to go solutions can book a consultation by emailing foodtogo@kepak.com.

UNBORING CHOICE

Rubicon is launching two new products, Rubicon Raspberry & Pineapple Sparkling and Rubicon Spring Pineapple Passion in 330ml, 500ml and 2l. The launch is supported by a ‘Make The Unboring Choice’ comms investment strategy. RSPs: 69p to £1.49

BEEFEATER GOES RTD

Beefeater is unveiling three new RTD cans: Beefeater London Dry Gin & Tonic, Beefeater Pink Strawberry Gin & Tonic and Beefeater Blood Orange & Tonic. The 25cl slimline cans have an ABV of 4.9% and are available now. RSP: £2

SUMMER BLOSSOM

Treasury Wine Estates is launching a new pack design for its Blossom Hill varietals portfolio next month to recruit new and younger consumers into the wine category and attract new audiences to the Blossom Hill brand. RSP: £6

GOOD NEW LOOK

Goodfella’s is rolling-out updated packaging across its entire pizza portfolio, as the brand looks to reinforce its ‘Made With Respect’ platform. Packs embed the Italian- American brand positioning with a strong, block design and put product imagery to the fore.

HANCOCK’S MIX

Confectionery wholesaler Hancocks has expanded its pick and mix range in preparation for the relaxation of Covid regulations. The new confectionery includes something for all ages with gummy fruits, mallow treats and vegetarian sweets.

POUCH PERFECT

Ritter Sport has launched the brand’s first ever sharing pouch. The Mini Chocolate Mix Pouch features nine individually–wrapped mini bars (150g) in a variety of flavours, while Mini Nut Selection Pouch has seven mini bars (116g). RSP £2.50 (£2 at launch)