NPD and Media

PICKS OF THE WEEK – FLORETTE

FLORETTE SIGNS SOCIAL MEDIA STAR FOR WINTER CAMPAIGN

The salad brand partners with Michelin-trained chef to inspire shoppers to create healthier food throughout the winter months.

Florette, the prepared salad brand, has formed a partnership with social media personality Poppy O’Toole – better known as Poppy Cooks.

Michelin-trained chef Poppy shot to fame last year after posting simple recipes and food hacks across social media, when the pandemic left her out of a job.

The campaign includes a series of recipes and videos created by Poppy using Florette, competitions and exclusive content, and seeks to inspire shoppers to make great-tasting, healthier food choices throughout the winter months.

Tessa Dunbar, Brand Manager at Florette UK, said: “As the clocks change and the cold weather draws in, soups, stews and casseroles are unsurprisingly among the go-to dishes for Brits this winter, however salads remain firmly on the menu. Research shows more than a third (34%) of Brits

continue to eat salad through the winter months, including side of plate servings and festive favourites such as the classic prawn cocktail (23%). We’d urge retailers to ensure they have a good selection available in store to meet demand.”

“We’re delighted to be partnering with Poppy, who has become a household name thanks to her tasty, fresh and inspiring posts – attributes we value as a brand. With her incredible following, demand will only increase as shoppers seek out the ingredients to replicate her inspiring winter warmer recipes.”

The six-week campaign will run throughout November into December.

Florette will also bring back its ‘Merry Crispy’ packs for the festive season. More than 1.2m limited-edition 170g packs of Florette Crispy were sold over a six-week period last year.

PICKS OF THE WEEK – KEPAK

RUSTLERS UNVEILS MEAT-FREE BURGERS

The product seeks to mimic Rustlers’ bestselling SKU – the Quarter Pounder.

Rustlers, the chilled ready meals brand from Kepak, is to introduce a meat-free burger.

The brand’s ‘Meatless Maverick’, which is made with pea protein, will tap into the booming plantbased market, meeting demand from shoppers following flexitarian and meat reducing diets.

The product seeks to mimic Rustlers’ bestselling SKU – the Quarter Pounder – complete with ‘Rustlers signature sauce’.

Adrian Lawlor, Chief Marketing Officer of Kepak Group, said: “The meat free movement has rapidly accelerated growth of the category, which is being driven by flexitarians as consumers seek more balance in their diets.

“It’s important for a brand like Rustlers, which has built its success on meeting clear consumer needs, to recognise this trend and provide solutions to meet it. For meat reducers, ‘Meatless Maverick’ provides an easy swap while behaviourally fitting existing habits, therefore requiring less of a conscious shift. Put simply, as a brand with significant equity around tasty meat-based products, we have strong consumer credibility to meaningfully mimic the taste of meat.”

He added: “Research shows there is a perception that products within the meat free category require long cooking times with not much in the way of tasty, quick and treat options. Meatless Maverick will offer a meat free alternative to Rustlers whilst bringing the taste, convenience and quality credentials associated with the brand to the audiences we have defined – moderate meat reducers, committed meat reducers and moderate vegetarians.”

Kepak says that merchandised within the meat free fixture in store, the product will generate incremental sales from convenience seekers, 55% of whom say they found the lack of convenience foods to suit their diet for snacking and eating on-the-go a barrier to purchase.

‘Meatless Maverick’ will launch in One Stop and the Booker Group in November, with an RSP of £2 – the same price point as Kepak’s meat products.

PICKS OF THE WEEK – SUN VALLEY

SUN VALLEY’S NUT MIXES ROLL INTO RETAIL

The brand, which previously supplied consumers directly, is looking for retailer and wholesaler stockists.

Snacking brand Sun Valley is to extend its Nuts For range from January with new non-HFSS, environmentally friendly snacks, which target consumer demand for healthy, sustainable snacks.

The new SKUs, Protein Pick-up and Berry Boost, are vegan-friendly and a source of plant protein. The new packs flag up nuts as a great source of minerals, such as copper, which supports immunity.

The third launch, Nuts For’s second Simply Dip’d option – Honey Cashews and Peanuts – will offer a taste of honey roasted nuts with more honey and less sugar. The new SKU will sit alongside a repackaged Simply Dip’d Dark Chocolate Almonds variant.

The new lines come packed in 100% plastic free, compostable packs.

The Nuts For range available to retailers and wholesalers currently includes savoury nut snack mixes Punchy Smoked Paprika and Indian Spice Infusion, sweet mixes Rocky Road Riot and Chocolate Brownie Chaos that combine fruit, nuts and confectionery, and Simply Dip’d Almonds in Dark Chocolate – a lightly chocolate-coated almond snack. The five flavours come in single serve 30-35g bags, RSP £1. Three of the five current Nuts For range are non-HFSS.

Marketing Manager, Alison Robson, said: “We’re delighted with Nuts For’s disruptive design that delivers a loud and proud look with huge shelf stand out. Sure to catch shoppers’ attention, the range is packed with flavour and personality. Importantly for shoppers looking for great tasting, healthy snacks, our packs shout out the impressive product benefits including source of protein, high fibre content plus vegan credentials.”

PICKS OF THE WEEK – TETLEY

TETLEY CELEBRATES BRITAIN’S LOVE OF TEA

The brand’s new campaign launches with a national TV ad and social activity.

Tetley has launched a new 360 degree campaign that celebrates Britain’s love of tea.

The ‘For the love of tea’ campaign launches with a national TV ad and social activity that celebrates all the different ways that we enjoy tea, from taking a flask to a rainy sports match, to enjoying a cup of herbal in bed. It also includes an on-pack promotion that will give more than one million consumers buying a pack of Tetley Original the chance to send a free cuppa to a loved one along with a personalised message.

Customers must scan a QR code printed on the packs which links to a form they have to fill. It is the brand’s first on-pack promotion in six years.

The on-pack promotion is supported in store and in depot with pre-filled shippers and shelf strips. A mix of PoS is available to support the promotion within convenience, as well as a range of print and digital assets.

The campaign will spread and continue further into online and social next year.

Tuuli Turunen, Head of Marketing at Tetley, said: “We absolutely love this campaign, what a way to launch our new brand strategy. We are the only brand that truly has a tea for every tea lover, so the ‘For the Love of Tea’ campaign speaks to all our consumers in a connected and joyful way. This is the start of exciting things for Tetley.”

Jon Forsyth, Co-Founder of advertising agency Neverland, added: “Tetley is a truly iconic brand and there’s nothing more brilliantly British than coming together over our shared love of tea. This campaign puts Tetley back at its rightful place, reclaiming the throne of Britain’s most loved tea.”

PICKS OF THE WEEK

SWEET ADDITIONS

Bonds of London is relaunching its children’s sweet bags in new, reduced packaging. It has also introduced Choccy White Mice and Pink Hearts, Jelly Monkeys & Bananas, Cherry Pencils, Dolly Mix, Sour Cherries, Sour Worms, and Fizzy Apple Pencils to the range. RSP three bags for £1.

CHOC REFRESH

Mackies is relaunching its chocolate range with new-look packaging. Revamped packs feature a countryside illustration inspired by the view from the Mackies home-farm, paying homage to the brand’s heritage and illustrating that this is farmmade chocolate from Scotland.

SPIKY RED BULL

Red Bull is to make Cactus Fruit Summer a permanent addition to its range from November. The variant delivers the functional benefits of Red Bull, with a fruit and violet flower taste. The drink drove category growth within Sports & Energy throughout the summer. RSP £1.35 per can.

COCKTAIL HOUR

AB InBev is launching a challenger into the cocktail-in-a-can market, Cutwater Spirits. The range – that includes Tequila Margarita, Whisky Mule, Strawberry Margarita, Vodka Mule, and Rum Mojito – will be available this month from cutwaterspirits. co.uk. RSP £4 per can.

SLOE BOAT

Boatyard Distillery has released Christmas Boatyard Sloe Boat Gin (29.8% ABV). It has been created by steeping wild-harvested sloe berries for six months in a bespoke gin. It launches this month at The Whisky Exchange and other specialist retailers. RSP £29.50.

BLACK LAGER

Beavertown Brewery has launched a new black lager, Flesh, to accompany this year’s Halloween antics. To craft this new lager, Beavertown has taken its Bones lager to the darker side, with added dark malt for slight bitterness. RSP £2.30 for a 330ml can.