P2PIQ - July 2020

JULY 2020

Path Purchase

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TO

E N D - TO - E N D S T R AT E G I E S F O R D R I V I N G C O N S U M E R D E M A N D

INSIDE EXCLUSIVE INSTITUTE RESEARCH: THE POST-PANDEMIC SHOPPER

PLANT-BASED PRODUCTS: EMBRACING THE ALTERNATIVES

MINTS WITH MASKS:

ICE BREAKERS’ PANDEMIC CAMPAIGN

STORE SPOTLIGHT: H-E-B TEXFEST 2020

FUTURE VIEWS The industry prepares for a new path to purchase

POWERED BY

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“The global economy is dynamic and tumultuous.

But, there is always an opportunity to innovate, collaborate, and delight today’s shoppers.”

— TANNER VAN DUSEN, CHIEF INNOVATION OFFICER, ENSEMBLEIQ

THE FUTURE TAKES FOCUS

NOW

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PathtoPurchaseIQ.com F O R M O R E I N F O R M A T I O N , PLEASE CONTACT ARLENE SCHUSTEFF, ASSOCIATE BRAND DIRECTOR, AT ASCHUSTEFF@ENSEMBLEIQ.COM

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Contents E N D -TO - E N D ST R AT E G I E S F O R D R I V I N G C O NS U M E R D E M A N D

16

Post-Pandemic Shopping

Exclusive Institute research identifies key areas to watch as the ‘new’ path to purchase takes shape.

12

22

Plant-Based Products

SPECIAL REPORTS

Lasting Effects More than 30 leading thought leaders from the Institute community reflect on the pandemic-driven changes they hope continue after the crisis ends.

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Retailers, large CPGs and challenger brands are jumping on the plantbased food bandwagon, raising the bar on product quality and marketing strategy.

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July 2020 VO LU M E 33 | ISS U E 7

NEWS

DEPARTMENTS 6

Editor’s Note:

Innovation, By Chance

11

8

P2PI Member Spotlight:

The Wonderful Co.

26

Activation Gallery:

Pet Products

30 34

P2P Toolkit Store Spotlight:

H-E-B TexFest 2020

8 Mints and Masks

Hershey Co.’s Ice Breakers created a lighthearted campaign that thanks consumers for wearing a mask during the pandemic but also cautions them about their own bad breath.

10Gillette Crowns Walgreens

38

Solution Provider News

42

Personnel Appointments/ Editorial Index

34

Procter & Gamble has launched a King C. Gillette line of facial grooming products that is exclusive to Walgreens.

10Allergen-Reducing Cat Food from Purina

PetSmart stood out among retailers supporting the launch of Nestle Purina Petcare’s Pro Plan LiveClear cat food.

43 Retail Intel:

S’mores at Walmart

Hershey modified marketing efforts to fit the reality of COVID-19 for its usual s’mores cross-merchandising activity at Walmart.

43

Path to Purchase IQ (USPS 4568, ISSN 2688-4984 ) is published 12 times a year, by EnsembleIQ, 8550 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., Ste. 200, Chicago, IL 60631. Subscription rate for the U.S.: $125 one year; $230 two year; $14 single issue copy (pre- paid only); Canada and Mexico: $150 one year; $270 two year; $16 single issue copy (pre- paid only);Foreign: $170 one year; $325 two year; $16 single issue copy (pre- paid only). Periodical postage paid at Chicago, IL 60631 Copyright 2020 by EnsembleIQ. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Reprints, permissions and licensing, please contact Wright’s Media at ensembleiq@wrightsmedia.com or (877) 652-5295. POSTMASTER: send address changes to Path to Purchase IQ, 8550 W. Bryn Mawr Ave. Ste. 200, Chicago, IL 60631.

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Editor’s Note

Editor-in-Chief Peter Breen, pbreen@ensembleiq.com

Innovation,

By Chance PETER BREEN, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Anyone looking for a silver lining in the unprecedented upheaval the retail industry has undergone in the last few months need look no further than page 12.

That’s where 33 of the industry’s foremost subject matter experts begin to provide insights into the lessons they’ve learned during the coronavirus pandemic. According to this illustrious group – recruited from the ranks of the Institute’s Advisory Board, League of Leaders and Distinguished Faculty, along with sister publication CGT’s Executive Council (and 2019’s CIO of the Year to boot) – the lessons have been plentiful and more than a little inspiring.

We specifically did not ask anyone to “predict” the future. That seemed contradictory to one of the lessons we most definitely learned in the first half of 2020: that predictions are a dangerous thing on which to rely. Instead, we asked everyone to tell us what recent change in shopper behavior or retail operations they most hope will continue after the crisis ends.

And that’s where we uncovered all the silver linings, because it seems pretty clear that our industry hasn’t just responded to the changes that were necessary during the pandemic, it has embraced them as catalysts for progress and innovation. Rather than sounding like they’ve resigned themselves to the current circumstances, our experts are all genuinely excited about leveraging them to propel the industry forward.

What are they particularly ready to embrace? Perhaps most notably, they sense a new spirit of innovation within an industry that too often has been slowed by rigid, traditional practices and “anniversaried” strategic thinking.

Correspondingly, they’re excited about retaining the agility that has helped them

Managing Editor Charlie Menchaca, cmenchaca@ensembleiq.com Associate Director/Content Patrycja Malinowska, pmalinowska@ensembleiq.com Associate Editor/Content Cyndi Loza, cloza@ensembleiq.com Associate Editor/Content Jacqueline Barba, jbarba@ensembleiq.com

respond quickly and effectively to rapidly changing market conditions.

To a person, they’re also thrilled with the accelerated growth in e-commerce, a shopper trend that will require organizations to continue the aforementioned innovation and agility that has helped them get through the crisis. They’re also ready and willing (and soon able, we hope) to listen more closely to shoppers, and to respond to evolving needs in more relevant but also more efficient ways.

It’s been an inspiring experience for us to collect these thoughts from our industry leaders and realize that, despite the exceptionally dark period we’re still working our way through, there is plenty of reason to be looking forward to a very bright future.

But please note that the subject matter expertise doesn’t end in this month’s print edition. We actually asked these 33 SMEs (plus a few more notable executives) four questions related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on business, and we’re showcasing all of their answers on the Institute’s website at P2PI.org. Because we feel their insights will be so valuable to the future of the industry, we’re making this particular content free to non-members as well.

Elsewhere in this issue: It’s not quite clear how many silver linings shoppers themselves have discovered during the crisis. (I, for one, wouldn’t mind permanently keeping store aisles one-way.)

But we are sure they’ve learned some new ways of finding and buying products, as the proprietary research presented on page 16 will attest. The data points to five key shopper behaviors that brand and retailers should be watching closely.

It’s a good thing our industry seems up to the challenge.

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Executive Editor Tim Binder, tbinder@ensembleiq.com

Editor Emeritus Bill Schober, bschober@ensembleiq.com Director – Production Ed Ward, eward@ensembleiq.com Creative Director Colette Magliaro, cmagliaro@ensembleiq.com Art Director Michael Escobedo, mescobedo@ensembleiq.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Erika Flynn, Ed Finkel, Michael Applebaum, Chris Gelbach, Dawn Klingensmith, April Miller, Samantha Nelson, Tom Di Nome

SALES & P2PI MEMBER DEVELOPMENT Managing Director Tanner Van Dusen, 312.518.5000, tvandusen@ensembleiq.com Brand Leader Joe Territo, 973.727.7338, jterrito@ensembleiq.com Associate Brand Director Arlene Schusteff, 773.992.4414, aschusteff@ensembleiq.com Associate Sales Director Lisa Hirata, 630.400.8951, lhirata@ensembleiq.com Senior Account Executive Katrina Lopez, 813.732.5281, klopez@ensembleiq.com Senior Director/Member Development Patrick Hare, phare@ensembleiq.com Director/Member/New Business Development Todd Turner, tturner@ensembleiq.com

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Consumer Engagement

Ice Breakers Pairs Mints With Masks During Pandemic

functional benefit of mint and gum as well as breath confidence. “Consumers’ needs are changing and we’re constantly looking for the consumer insights that can help and also deliver the business,” says the senior director of social strategy & content.

“This notion of mask breath was very compelling,” Riess says. “It was a real insight, is a real behavior, is new and different and it’s something that our product can deliver against.” A strong knowledge of the business, coupled

BY E R I K A F LY N N

i u G n o i t u l o S g n i m o c p u r e h t o e e n s i z e a h t g a s s i m Q I e s a Don’t m h c r u P o t h t a P n i only

Face masks emerged as a new normal during the COVID-19 pandemic, and consumers likely didn’t anticipate the “mask breath” that can come along with them. The Hershey Co.’s Ice Breakers mint and gum brand uncovered this insight thanks to a company employee and a member of his family who works in the healthcare system.

In response, the company created a lighthearted campaign that initially thanks consumers for wearing a mask when around others, but also cautions them to think about the possibility of the consequences of their own bad breath.

The company encourages consumers to #MintBeforeYouMask with a national effort that centers on a 15-second TV spot that began running on May 18 and also appears across social channels. The ad, which took less than two weeks to create, was concepted, developed and executed

by Hershey’s in-house agency, C-Sweet.

The brand team embraced the insight and initial ideas very quickly – literally, over a weekend. Michelle Villarroel, director

of sweets, refreshment, snacks and grocery at Hershey, says the way the organization is structured with its in-house agency made it all possible. “When you have something that you’re very excited about and was so right for the time, there were no formalities. We just went as quickly as we could.”

According to company reports in April, demand for mint and gum dropped 40% to 50%, in a category that is very functional, says Villarroel. “When consumers were staying home and practicing social distancing, the need for fresh breath and confidence when interacting with others simply didn’t exist.” She adds that sales began to recover as U.S. states started to open up. The team looked to adjust some of its media spend, based on which brands within the broader Hershey portfolio could better use some of that funding. “Upon the development of the campaign, we made a call and 100% of our media is now focused on ‘Mint Before You Mask,’” she says.

As head of C-Sweet, Ryan Riess says he didn’t need a brief to understand where the business stood in terms of sales or about the

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with extensive research about consumer behavior changing during this time, allowed Villarroel and Riess and their teams “to move really quickly and with confidence,” Riess says.

Villarroel says the team actively monitored COVID-19 developments as well as how consumers were reacting to the creative once it began running. “Our hope is that the lightbulb will go off for them as well, like it did for us. If not, when they start to wear a mask, they’ll realize that mask breath is real,” she says, adding that early feedback pointed to positive consumer response, and the company will continue running the campaign for as long as it’s relevant.

“At a time when consumer behavior is rapidly changing, we need to be as agile as possible, but with many limitations such as our inability to shoot a commercial, being more creative and finding creative solutions is just as important,” says Villarroel. “What Ryan and C-Sweet did to bring this insight to life was simply brilliant.” IQ

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ies c n e g A g n i t rke Shopper Ma 2020 r e b m e t p e S An official publication of

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Exclusive Brands

Walgreens Welcomes King C. Gillette Exclusive

BY T I M B I N D E R

Procter & Gamble’s Gillette has launched a line of facial grooming products branded King C. Gillette that is exclusive to Walgreens. The line comprises the double-edged safety razor pioneered in 1901 by Gillette as well as multiple beardcare products, including beard wash and oil as well as a cordless trimmer.

Named after Gillette founder King Camp Gillette, the products are also sold directly to consumers on the brand’s website, KingCGillette.com, individually or via subscription.

Gillette chief executive officer Gary Coombe said in a May 26 media release that King C. Gillette offers “the first

complete lineup of products and tools designed for men with facial hair. … It’s the one-stop shop for grooming that men have been looking for.”

The brand made its way into Walgreens stores in late winter 2019 during a category reset. Menasha provided an “Arriving Soon” shelf blocker in the shaving section until semi-permanent merchandising units from P&G were available this spring. In late May, dedicated endcaps began appearing in stores.

In addition to the in-store displays and the media release, King C. Gillette secured a feature in Walgreens’ May 24 circular that introduced the brand and promised loyalty cardholders 10,000 bonus Balance Rewards points with purchase of $20 in eligible items.

The feature also identified the brand as a Red

Retailer Collaboration

PetSmart Promotes Purina’s Allergen-Reducing Cat Food

BY PAT RYCJA M A L I N OWS K A

PetSmart stood out among retailers this spring supporting the launch of Nestle Purina Petcare’s Pro Plan LiveClear allergen-reducing cat food.

Positioned as the first and only cat food that reduces the allergens in cat hair and dander, the dry cat food is available in three formulas that launched in April: chicken & rice, salmon & rice, and sensitive skin & stomach.

PetSmart introduced the line with a home page carousel ad that stayed in rotation throughout the month. A “shop now” button linked to a dedicated e-commerce page touting product

benefits. Co-op display ads running on websites such as AOL.com and YahooSports.com supported the effort. PetSmart also sponsored a social media promotion awarding 15 bags of the cat food. Consumers entered April 23-24 by following PetSmart, tagging a friend and liking PetSmart’s promotional post on Facebook or Instagram.

A spread in the retailer’s April digital circular presented the cat food as new at PetSmart, alongside complementary LiveClear cat shampoo. The feature touted a $3 discount on the bags of cat food while also dangling a “bonus offer” of $5 off a future Pro Plan cat food receipt with purchase of $35 worth of any Pro Plan cat food. The bonus offer was

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Nose Day supporter.

On Walgreens.com, a “Gillette” product search reveals a King C. Gillette ad with a “Shop Now” button that directs users to the e-commerce section of the site to purchase brand items.

King C. Gillette further introduced itself (and its availability at Walgreens) with a YouTube video that is also embedded on the brand’s website. IQ

for PetSmart’s Treats frequent-shopper program and valid on purchases made from April 6 to May 3. The digital feature also included LiveClear’s 15-second promotional video that is also running as a TV spot. A full-page co-op ad in the April 27 issue of Meredith Corp.’s People magazine was also part of the paid media plan.

Other retailer-specific launch support included Walmart.com ads for LiveClear that linked to a dedicated e-commerce page; Google search ads directing to Chewy or Petco, the latter promising 35% off the line; and co-op social media ads with PetSmart and Petco. IQ Activation Gallery: Pet Products; see page 26

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Member Spotlight

The Wonderful Co.

runs through 2020 and is amplified by a large-scale social and digital campaign, FSIs, public relations and influencer marketing.

How does your company plan to use its P2PI membership resources?

JAFFA: The Wonderful Co. uses its P2PI membership to learn and gain a better understanding of the shopper marketing world. Whether it’s the retailer or channel information, the tactics and trends, or the networking and hosted events, we hope to continue using our membership to inform our current shopper marketing programs and be a value-added component to future planning.

What are your predictions for the future of marketing, and how will your company navigate that future?

JAFFA: The Wonderful Co. is poised to continue being a strong leader in the produce category, a position it has established from years of innovation across its brand portfolio. Our nimble and entrepreneurial strategies are a result of outside-the-box thinking that’s allowed our brands to reach consumers across a variety of different platforms, which always are evolving. By continually disrupting the market to create value for retail partners, the company will continue to meet the demand for healthy and tasty snacks and beverages for years to come. IQ

Images from The Wonderful Co.’s Wonderful Pistachios “Almost Everyone Loves No Shells” marketing campaign.

MEMBER UPDATE Headquartered in Los Angeles, The Wonderful Co. is a privately held $5 billion global company dedicated to harvesting health and happiness around the world through its iconic consumer brands. It is known for leading and innovating through a variety of initiatives and product launches across its brand portfolio, which includes Wonderful Halos, Wonderful Pistachios, POM Wonderful, Wonderful Seedless Lemons and others that offer consumers fresh, healthy foods that nourish, replenish and

refresh. Path to Purchase IQ managing editor Charlie Menchaca recently asked Stacy Jaffa, Wonderful Co. senior marketing manager, a few questions.

Tell us about a recent campaign or program for one of your products.

JAFFA: “Wonderful Pistachios No Shells” appeared on TV for the first time in 2019, when lovable antagonist Sheldon the Tortoise was introduced in the brand’s comical TV and digital campaign, “Almost Everyone Loves No Shells.” The campaign

July 2020

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Path to Purchase Institute is delighted to welcome new and returning members to our community: Abasto, Albertsons Companies, Bloodhound Group, BuzzBallz, Conagra Brands, Constellation Brands, Diageo, Geometry, Gravity, Ignite 2x, Jelmar, Mizkan America, Nestle USA, Sanofi Consumer Health Care, TracyLocke, Valassis and Valvoline.

Join the hundreds of companies that benefit from P2PI every day with strategies and best practices on succeeding in today’s chaotic omnicommerce environment. For more information, contact Ron Orgiefsky at rorgiefsky@ ensembleiq.com.

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THE FUTURE UNFOLDING Insights from the industry’s leading practitioners

The Path to Purchase Institute has assembled its most impressive collection of thought leaders ever to reflect on the impact the COVID-19 crisis will have on shopper engagement.

The following article presents their answers to the question

below. For more extensive answers, as well as their insightful perspectives on three other questions about the current status and future potential for the shopper commerce industry, visit P2PI.org.

Q

What recent change in shopper behavior or retail operations do you most hope will continue after the crisis ends?

KEITH ANDERSON SVP, Strategy & Insights, Profitero Coming into 2020, I was beating the drum that pressure to chart a path to economically and environmentally sustainable digital commerce would require more breakthroughs in product R&D, supply chain and logistics. This crisis brought into focus the need to ‘ruggedize’ the supply chain for yet another valid reason, and I’m hopeful that the industry continues to evolve from a “just-intime” model to something more durable and flexible.

SHAUN BROWN SVP, Managing Director & Shopper Marketing Discipline Lead, Momentum More expansive use of ‘dCommerce.’ The adoption of delivery and pick-up services have skyrocketed. Usage was trending up 22% prior to COVID-19, but climbed as high as 250%. That growth level clearly won’t continue, but the new baseline for d-commerce is far higher and shoppers will continue to include these new shopping means as part of their repertoire.

VANESSA BUENO Marketing Director Shoppers should continue to be discerning with brands, products and retailers. They should continue to expect more from products and retailers. Those that deliver on shopper expectations will continue to grow.

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Q:

What recent Petcare business, there’s been RICH BUTWINICK change in shopper an increase in demand for pet President, behavior or retail food and adoptions during MarketingLab operations do you the pandemic. Also, our On the shopper side, we Petcare veterinary hospital hope the openness to new most hope will clinics have pivoted to teleshopping experiences will continue after the medicine and curbside pickups remain. It will be interesting crisis ends? for helping pets. And in India, for to follow how they incorporate example, our teams partnered with a the new into their lives to make local large food home delivery app so people shopping a pleasant experience no matter could simply order products online. We don’t how it is done. We think that will challenge know which of these trends is long-term, but we the retailer to offer a great experience in hope we can continue the trend of pivoting fast store and/or online. On the retail operations to help our consumers with multiple options side, brands and retailers are more open to and multiple paths to purchase, providing them innovation and experimentation, which we the right convenience and right experience hope endures once the crisis “ends.” regardless of trend.

APRIL CARLISLE Vice President, Shopper Marketing, CocaCola Co. Agility in programming with retailers.

Traditional programming had six, nine, 12-month lead times to meet retailer merchandising calendars, inventory management and operations standards.

Leaning into digital enables agility to develop programming that is responsive to the marketplace, addresses competitive opportunities (for brands or retailers), and is the right message at the right time.

MARTA CYHAN Chief Marketing Officer, Catalina From the shopper’s perspective, I hope the return to more home-cooked meals and baking continues. It’s fascinating to see new generations experiment with recipes.

Brands that continue to surprise and delight these new culinary wizards have the best opportunity to bring new consumers into the fold. From a retailer’s perspective, it’s been inspiring to see the unwavering commitment their front line of employees have been showing their shoppers. They’ve definitely been COVID-19 heroes alongside the healthcare workers.

SANDEEP DADLANI Chief Digital Officer, Mars Incorporated In our Mars Wrigley Candy & Snacking business, more people are buying multipacks and bulk orders of their favorite brands to share at home. In our Mars

“Leaning into digital enables agility to develop programming that is responsive to the marketplace, addresses competitive opportunities (for brands or retailers), and is the right message at the right time.”

— April Carlisle, Coca-Cola

KELLY DOWNEY Consultant, OxfordSM Shopping behavior seen during the COVID crisis, and likely long after in the economic recovery, will lead manufacturers and retailers to more overtly think and act upon SKU rationalization, consumer value pricing (not lowest price), product quality, safety, and others that will actually be more shopper-centric and lead to greater in-store and online effectiveness and efficiency.

NATALIE DUPILL Chief of Staff & Omnichannel Deployment Lead, Peapod Digital Labs Contactless delivery and pickup. Many customers

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have a preference to have as few touchpoints in the fulfillment process as possible. This option provides a better experience for those who opt for it and makes fulfillment more efficient for the retailer.

CRAIG ELSTON Global Chief Strategy Officer, Integer I hope that we will continue to see the acceleration of other senses beyond touch in retail. Retail has always been about “touching the merchandise.” We had started to see an increase in importance in visual language (such as emojis) and voice (think Alexa) and, as with many things, COVID-19 has bought the future forward and accelerated their use by brands and acceptance by shoppers. Consider also the increased importance of signage, visual cues for social distancing, increased screen time, the challenges of mask wearing – these all open opportunity for retail experiences that are more visually driven and for innovations such as functional and immersive audio.

KERRY FARRELL SVP Sales & Customer Success, Eversight Shoppers needed solutions, the industry responded by providing options (however imperfect), and shoppers grabbed onto them. Prior to COVID-19, we saw retailers trying to anticipate every possible issue, analyze every potential problem or negative outcome, and solve for them before ever putting an offering out in the market.

During COVID-19, retail has thrown some of that caution to the wind in favor of meeting consumers where they are with what they need – and then adjusting as they go to improve. That is my hope for this industry as we progress, to continue to innovate without a paralyzing fear of change.

MICHAEL FORHEZ Global Managing Director, Consumer Markets, Oracle Industry Strategy Group Digital technology-enabled shoppers are irrevocably transforming the traditional model for customer-retailerbrand interaction. In a soon-to-be 5G environment, there is no turning back – just fast-forward. Brick-and-mortar,

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THE FUTURE UNFOLDING

Q:

e-commerce, “phygital,” Now I truly see it at work. I What recent BOPIS and last-mile hope that people continue to change in shopper delivery; all are combining see utility in the benefits of to create an interactive e-commerce and that grocery behavior or retail and inter-related retailers innovate in this area operations do you customer expectation so that it becomes a more most hope will set. That transformation profitable proposition for them. continue after the requires, right now, an I also hope we see continued crisis ends? update and upgrade of the innovation in areas like supply retail-brand customer journey, chain come out of this crisis. a cloud-centric software stack that leverages the technology we have and the NICK JONES solutions we need to build.

Chief Growth Officer, Geometry I hope retailers continue to embrace a customized approach to the way their shoppers CARLOS GARCIA Industry Manager, CPG-Retail, Facebook want to shop. In other words, during the crisis some people have become delivery people, A common viewpoint I have heard is that some curb-siders, some brave folks were the COVID-19 has accelerated change and is first back into physical stores because they making the future happen faster. While it’s want to see the product first hand, others want too early to say definitively if the CPG shift subscription solutions and products directly to e-commerce will change after shelter infrom the manufacturer. This should be just the place restrictions lift … we know that a lot of beginning – maybe you’re an Alexa list-maker, people have discovered that shopping online maybe you’ll embrace anticipatory shipping for for CPG products is actually pretty easy and regularly used products, or maybe you’ll buy an convenient, and there are more high-quality online shopping and BOPIS options than ever appliance that does the ordering for you. before, so we expect this trend to continue.

WENDY LIEBMANN CEO & Chief Shopper, WSL Strategic Retail JASON GOLDBERG I hope both shoppers and management will Chief Commerce Strategy Officer, Publicis have greater respect for retail employees and Communications what they deliver every day – before, during Consumers embracing digital shopping and after this crisis – and recognize that they tools. More than 70% of all purchase decisions are now digitally influenced. We are the face of the business and the connection won’t be able to put that genie back in the to shoppers. bottle.

SHEILA LUKASZEWSKI ELIZABETH HARRIS Senior Director, Shopper Engagement Kimberly-Clark Chief Strategy Officer, Arc Elevated online shopping. Retailers are doing a Before the pandemic, grocery e-commerce had yet to take off. In fact, according to great job of offering fulfillment options, and the CPG industry as a whole has really responded Nielsen, just 4% of grocery sales in the U.S. well. We can continue to make progress, but the came online in 2019. I have always heard the amount of progress that’s been made is exciting. phrase, ‘Necessity is the mother of invention.’

“The saying, ‘Old habits die hard’ may need to be reconsidered, and I hope what lasts is the opportunity for brands and products to find new ways of connecting with shoppers and retailers.”

— Jonathan Schultz, TPN

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TINA MANIKAS President, FCB/RED Contactless experience is now forever important, and we hope that retail operations seek to accommodate and innovate against shoppers’ new behavior and willingness to use technology for both browsing and choosing.

LAURA MOSER Director, Business Leadership & Client Development, HMT Associates Adoption of a range of e-commerce interaction and shopping models. We think this will provide a wealth of new purchase behavior understanding, as well as enhanced platforms to market within. Shoppers have heightened expectations (think of FritoLay’s COVID-19 response as an example).

That will inspire strong brands to be much more responsive to shopper needs while amplifying their relevance and overall value.

BRADY NOON Director of Omnichannel Marketing SC Johnson Demand for quality.

CHRIS PERRY Consultant It has been really nice to see the acceleration of several business practices prompted by COVID-19 and the need for retailers and brands alike to pivot strategically: 1. Ecosystem expansion into services (Amazon Care telemedicine, Kroger Health telenutrition, Boots UK tele-beauty consultations; 2. Creative partnerships (DSW and HyVee, Hilton and Lysol, Kroger and Frayt, Costco and Instacart); 3. The convenience of vending and self-service for contactless payment and fulfillment options, as well as greater availability. There undoubtedly will be an expansion of vending capabilities from retailers like CVS, Best Buy and others, as well as innovations within food preparation vending.

MATT RADER VP, Brand Commercialization and Shopper Services, Match Marketing Group One of the major shifts in behavior has been cooking from home. I hope this continues since it puts more emphasis on what used to

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THE FUTURE UNFOLDING be a flagging portion of brick-and-mortar sales: the center store. Brands that have long been forgotten, ignored or overlooked now have the opportunity to initiate new narratives and engagement with consumers.

As behavior shifts, it is led by exploration from consumers and right now they’re hungry for information and learning.

ROB RIVENBURGH Chief Executive Officer, North America The Mars Agency The enhancement of the overall customer experience and the consumer safety journey through such means as contactless experiences and virtual experiences.

“Shoppers have heightened expectations. That will inspire strong brands to be much more responsive to shopper needs while amplifying their relevance and overall value.”

— Laura Moser, HMT Associates BRYANT ROSS SVP Managing Director, IN Connected Marketing I see the pandemic as further crystallizing the role of the physical store in a world that increasingly straddles the digital and physical spaces. We saw commodity categories grow in the e-commerce space at the most rapid pace, while it was clear the in-store experience was still important for other categories. Postpandemic, I think we will see retailers continue to put more effort to categories that are successful with sensory engagement, which will inevitably push for a more optimal store experience while streamlining retailer operations.

DAN SABANOSH Director, Shopper Marketing, Great Northern InStore I have enjoyed the respect and focus on the front-line retail employees. Retailers offering additional pay, benefits, and a general recognition of these essential workers. They are on the front lines of helping shoppers; they are the retailer’s brand ambassadors at all times and the people who are there when a shopper buys a CPG brand. They execute our programs in-store. So they deserve recognition for being a part of the path to purchase.

JONATHAN SCHULTZ Managing Director, TPN Retail The rapid change in shopper behavior and retail operations during this pandemic was like nothing we’ve seen before. What this change has, in some ways, forced to happen is for shoppers to “rewrite” much of their rote behavior of the past. The saying, “Old habits die hard” may need to be reconsidered, and I hope what lasts is the opportunity for brands and products to find new ways of connecting with shoppers and retailers and maintain a renewed openness to test innovative ideas and technologies in this space.

MARLENE SIDHU Marketing Director, Shopper Marketing Grupo Bimbo Increased trial of products that shoppers haven’t tried before.

STEVE SIGRIST VP Customer Service & Customer Supply Chain, North America, Newell Brands The appreciation for store operators. The recognition and understanding about what it takes to get product to the store, to get it unloaded, to get to stocked and to have it available for shoppers to take home to their families. In summary, a deeper gratitude for all elements of the supply chain that we might have taken for granted in the past.

ERIC SZEGDA EVP Consumer Media, Bauer USA Shoppers have been much more open to trial during the crisis – specifically in regard to replacement brands/products. Trial has always been one of the highest hurdles to overcome, and a silver lining to the current environment

July 2020

12-15-P2PIQ_COVID.indd 15

gives marketers an opportunity to engage with new prospective shoppers. There have also been demand upticks for products that complement more of a social distancing/ sheltering lifestyle.

TED UTOFT Vice President, BVA Nudge The return to cooking, I think, is really interesting for some brands. Will categories like baking supplies continue to grow?

Will more shoppers feel confident cooking now? What does that mean for ingredient manufacturers? And what could that mean for ready meals and convenience foods?

RODNEY WAIGHTS Vice President, Shopper & Customer Marketing, Beiersdorf The accelerated shift into e-commerce/ BOPIS. Within the context of a heavily regulated in-store environment where it is difficult to execute the kind of surroundsound that can be done in other markets, I’m most excited by the opportunity to trial/ test, build out and deliver exciting and differentiated digital programs where you can see, measure and course-correct activity that is relevant to your target shoppers in a really agile and time-sensitive way.

ANDY WALTER Principal/Founder, AJW Advisory Further engagement with direct-toconsumer models that predict my needs. IQ

“I’m most excited by the opportunity to trial/test, build out and deliver exciting and differentiated digital programs where you can see, measure and course-correct activity that is relevant to your target shoppers.”

— Rodney Waights, Beiersdorf

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PATH TO PURCHASE NOW:

UNDERSTANDING THE POST-PANDEMIC SHOPPER Institute research identifies key areas to watch as the ‘new’ path to purchase takes shape

BY PAT H T O P U R C H A S E I N S T I T U T E S TA F F

Shopping behaviors in a typical month before the COVID-19 pandemic Less than one a month 1-2 times 3-4 times 5-7 times 8-10 times 11-15 times More then 15 times I never do this

Shopped in the store

Bought online for in-store pickup

Bought online for curbside pickup

4% 14% 24% 20% 13% 6% 17% 1%

22% 17% 9% 5% 3% 1% 1% 43%

16% 14% 8% 5% 2% 1% 1% 53%

Bought online for in-person delivery

18% 18% 11% 8% 3% 2% 1% 38%

Bought online for contactless delivery

17% 16% 11% 6% 4% 1% 2% 42%

Shopping behaviors in a typical month now as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic Less than one a month 1-2 times 3-4 times 5-7 times 8-10 times 11-15 times More then 15 times I never do this

Shopped in the store

Bought online for in-store pickup

Bought online for curbside pickup

11% 27% 25% 15% 8% 4% 8% 4%

15% 16% 9% 6% 3% 2% 1% 48%

13% 17% 10% 5% 3% 2% 1% 49%

Bought online for in-person delivery

13% 16% 13% 7% 3% 1% 1% 45%

Bought online for contactless delivery

12% 18% 11% 8% 4% 3% 2% 43%

Source: P2PI Research COVID-19 New Path to Purchase Study (April 2020)

July 2020

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Before March 2020, reading a sentence containing the words “contactless delivery,” “social distancing” or “shelter in place” would have sent many people to Google for clarification. But a new vocabulary is just one of the many effects COVID-19 has contributed to daily life.

All of these new terms keep the dictionary fresh and, just as our language is evolving, consumer packaged goods marketers and retailers must also adapt as they try to restore their operations to prepandemic activity. States are reopening, lifestyle restrictions are loosening, and more restaurants, stores and public venues are again proclaiming, “Open for business.”

The critical question, of course, is whether shoppers who for months have been forced to adopt new methods of finding and buying products – not to mention embrace new sanitary practices – actually want to revert to their old habits, or if they’re perfectly content with the “new normal” that has replaced them.

Proprietary research conducted in April by the Path to Purchase Institute sought to answer that question by asking just over 1,000 shoppers how they currently were making purchases, what factors were driving their purchase decisions and, most importantly, which newly adopted shopping behaviors they expect to permanently adopt once the pandemic ends.

“It’s a balance between the emotional versus the functional journey on the path to purchase right now,” said Laura Nicklin, vice president of research, insights and innovation for the Institute. “Everybody’s behaving differently.”

“Essential” is another term that’s been used ubiquitously during the pandemic, most often applied to the first responders, healthcare workers and, yes, retail employees who kept working tirelessly as many other occupations were sent home to shelter in place. But

How shoppers are making their most ‘essential’ item purchase

Source: P2PI Research COVID-19 New Path to Purchase Study (April 2020)

it also applies to the purchases that many shoppers made to keep themselves feeling safe and secure, especially in the early weeks of the pandemic.

Those who lived through it will likely never forget the “Great Toilet Paper Rush of 2020,” and paper products were cited most often as “essential” purchases by the shoppers surveyed. However, the category fell behind bottled water, prescription medications and even dairy products when shoppers were asked to select their “most essential” purchase during the pandemic.

While most respondents said they were able to find the essential product they needed at the first store they visited, those who didn’t reported visiting an average of four stores (either online or in person) to complete the mission.

And while online shopping has certainly spiked in recent months (see chart on page 16), a majority of these “essential” buys still occurred in brick-and-mortar stores (see chart above), ranging from the 69% of purchases made through drugstores to the 97% made through dollar stores (which, as a channel, haven’t made heavy in-roads into e-commerce).

Among the reasons for making the physical trip despite the increased hassles and restrictions involved were the need to buy something for immediate consumption (cited by 33% of shoppers), force of habit (“always buy that item in the store,” by 29%)

July 2020

16-21-P2PIQ_PATHresearch.indd 17

and a preference for viewing the product selection (26%).

While the Institute’s study provides numerous other insights into the current activities and future expectations of U.S. shoppers, it also uncovered six key behavioral shifts that brands and retailers should watch closely in the coming months: brand loyalty, channel switching, trip planning, meal preparation, dwell times and, most obviously, online grocery shopping. Each of these shifts could present potential challenges – or significant opportunities, depending on your point of view – in terms of shopper retention, marketing strategy and sales growth as the nation emerges from the crisis.

Consumer perception is another major consideration: Brands and retailers perceived as having done the best job in meeting new demands will likely be the winners, while those who came across as unbending or resistant to change are possibly facing long-lasting negative repercussions.

Naturally, none of the aforementioned shifts can be evaluated in a vacuum.

Instead, they overlap and align to deliver a potentially perfect storm of emerging shopper trends. Brand loyalty affects channel preferences and trip planning influences online purchasing, for example. Nonetheless, here are some of the implications for each:

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PATH TO PURCHASE NOW UNDERSTANDING THE POST-PANDEMIC SHOPPER SHOPPERS HAVEN’T ALWAYS STAYED LOYAL

back the marketing plan (as some did out of sensitivity to the social climate). For some, there could be a fair amount of lost share to win back.

It should be comforting news to product manufacturers that 72% of shoppers remained loyal during the pandemic and bought their preferred brand when seeking essential items. That’s an uplifting percentage given the amount of emergency trips and near-obsessive pantry loading that took place in the early stages of the crisis.

Still, the fact that 28% of shoppers switched to an alternative brand (of which 30% moved to private label) is a bit concerning, especially since 20% of that group say they were “extremely satisfied” with the alternative and 18% will “definitely” buy that brand again.

Those numbers suggest that brands should maintain a strong presence in the marketplace rather than scaling

SHOPPERS ARE SWITCHING TRADITIONAL CHANNELS, TOO Retailers, too, are likely facing some loyalty challenges. Although the significant shift toward online grocery shopping has justifiably received most of the attention, circumstances surrounding the pandemic have led a significant number of shoppers to try out new brick-and-mortar channels as well. At least 15% of survey respondents who are shopping for groceries in each of the key CPG channels said they were doing so as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic. “They’re likely going to the closest store, or maybe to a location they feel is the most sanitary and is doing all the

things they need in order to feel safe,” Nicklin suggested.

“This creates opportunities for retailers in different verticals to make connections with new shoppers that might stick long-term,” she said. “But there’s also the downside, where some retailers might be seeing fewer shoppers coming into their stores. There, the question becomes, ‘How do we get those shoppers back?’”

SHOPPERS ARE PLANNING MORE Sheltering-in-place restrictions and safety concerns seem to have U.S. residents thinking more about some of their shopping activities.

For one, nearly 50% of shoppers now identify themselves as trip planners, vs. fewer than 25% before the pandemic began (see chart on page 20). That

The New Path to Purchase WHICH PRODUCTS ARE THE MOST ESSENTIAL DURING THE PANDEMIC?

Water ........................ 17% Prescription Meds ..14% Dairy(Milk/Eggs) .... 8% Paper products ........ 6% Fresh produce .......... 6% Shelf stable food .... 6% Fresh meat/seafood.. 6% Sanitizing products....5%

DESIRED EMOTIONS

ARE SHOPPERS ABLE TO FIND WHAT THEY NEED?

WHERE ARE SHOPPERS MAKING PURCHASES?

Most (86%) are able to find their essential product at the first store they visit. The rest have to go to an average of 4 stores to get their most needed item.

Grocery and mass claim the largest share of essential purchases.

Grocery ....................33% Mass.........................26% Drug ........................... 9% Dollar ......................... 9% Club ............................ 6% Convenience............. 3%

HOW ARE SHOPPERS MAKING PURCHASES?

Most shopping is still happening in stores.

Shopped In-Store ....78% Ordered Online .........22% -In-store pickup ........ 5% -Curbside pickup.......6% -In-person delivery...6% -Contactless delivery..6%

However, online purchase is common across most channels.

Grocery .....................18% Mass..........................18% Drug ..........................31% Dollar ......................... 3% Club ..........................32% Convenience...........29%

WHY DO SHOPPERS WHO GO INTO THE STORE DO SO?

33% need an essential product for immediate consumption 29% always buy that item in the store 26% haven’t changed their shopping habits due to COVID-19 26% prefer to see the selection in the store

ACTUAL EMOTIONS THROUGHOUT PURCHASE EXPERIENCE

Relieved: 19% STRESSED: 18% Responsible: 17% Healthy: 15% Happy: 13% Safe: 12% UNCERTAIN: 10%

Healthy: 37% Relieved: 31% Safe: 27% Responsible: 25% Happy: 22%

The P2PI POV: Inspiring desired emotions during the shopping July 2020

16-21-P2PIQ_PATHresearch.indd 18

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e

PATH TO PURCHASE NOW UNDERSTANDING THE POST-PANDEMIC SHOPPER behavior is likely a key driver of the increase in stock-up trips currently taking place (32% of shoppers, vs. 13% before the crisis).

In general, “the shopper universe is now conforming along a more homogenized set of behaviors that are very organized, are designed for high efficiency, and result in larger but fewer shopping trips,” said Nicklin.

“Getting on the list” has been a critical objective for shopper marketers since the “analog days” when weekly circulars were basically the only vehicle for doing so. The more shoppers planning their trips, the more that pre-shop aspects of the path to purchase will become important touchpoints for marketing.

Retailer websites and mobile apps are the most logical venues, along with third-party shopper services that either

WHAT DO STORES/ SHOPPERS DO TO PROTECT FROM COVID-19?

96% of shoppers take some method of precaution when shopping in store SHOPPERS -social distance .......75% -wear a face mask ...61% -sanitize cart/ basket .......................51%

STORES/EMPLOYEES -employees wear face masks .............70% -employees wear gloves .......................62% -tape/marking on floor encourages social distancing ................61% -employees sanitize carts ........................53%

help users literally build lists or incentivize the purchase of partnering brands.

Recipe and meal advice are another way to go, especially since more consumers are preparing meals at home these days – and shopping accordingly. In the survey, 66% of respondents said they were preparing full meals at home – but 88% said they expect to do more of that in the future. (Welcome back, Mrs. Cleaver.)

What’s more, an earlier Institute survey found that 79% of shoppers are heading to the store with specific ingredients on their list – with 28% saying they’re doing that more often than before.

If this is a behavior that does truly stick post-pandemic, then promoting brands within the context of meal solutions could be an even more effective strategy than it was previously.

A significant return to the bygone days

WHERE DO ONLINE SHOPPERS PLACE THEIR ORDER?

Shoppers purchasing online ...

73% use the store website or app.

19% purchase on a third-party app (Instacart, etc.).

WHAT IS THE DELIVERY/ PICKUP WINDOW?

Online purchasers …

17% schedule receipt of order later than ideal 45% receive their order in a reasonable amount of time 14% receive their order sooner than expected 9% experience a delay in their order

of home-cooked meals could even factor into future strategies for in-store merchandising, with retailers focusing more on multi-product meal solution programs and displays – and less on category-centric aisles – that can help shoppers find everything they need for dinner more easily.

SHOPPERS WANT SPEEDIER TRIPS Meal solution centers and similar concepts would also help shoppers achieve another goal that has intensified in the last few months: the desire to speed up the trip. Just over 50% of respondents said they now want to “get in and out” of stores quickly, a goal only 13% said they had before the crisis hit.

This behavior change also has implications for product merchandising, as well as for the overall store

ARE SHOPPERS ABLE TO FIND THEIR PREFERRED BRAND?

72% are able to purchase their preferred brand And among those,

16% express

preference for a store brand

IF NOT, WHAT DO THEY BUY INSTEAD?

The remainder are forced to substitute.

30% substitute preferred name brand with a store brand 26% substitute a name brand with another name brand 11% substitute preferred store brand with a name brand

ACTUAL EMOTIONS THROUGHOUT PURCHASE EXPERIENCE

DO THEY HAVE A GOOD EXPERIENCE WITH THE SUBSTITUTE?

20% who substitute their preferred name brand are “extremely satisfied” with their alternative purchase 18% say they will “definitely” buy that brand again

POST-PURCHASE EMOTIONS

Relieved: 36% Happy: 30% Healthy: 17% Safe: 16% Responsible: 15% STRESSED: 2% UNCERTAIN: 2%

experience increases the likelihood of purchase conversion July 2020

16-21-P2PIQ_PATHresearch.indd 19

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PATH TO PURCHASE NOW UNDERSTANDING THE POST-PANDEMIC SHOPPER

Changes in key shopping behaviors (before the pandemic and now)

Scale of 1 to 5

Before Pandemic 22%

17%

28%

15%

17%

Planner

Impulsive

46%

18%

17%

13% 10%

22%

22%

33%

In & Out

10% 10%

13%

Browse

52%

17%

14% 8% 9%

15%

27%

20%

Stock Up

24%

Few Items

32%

19%

22%

13%

14%

During Pandemic Before Pandemic 14%

14%

39%

17%

Store Brand

21%

15%

16%

17%

17%

Name Brand

Brand Loyal

11% 11%

14% 11%

42%

37%

39%

14%

17%

15%

15%

New Brand

Quality

20%

13%

13% 9%

30%

18%

25%

Price

33%

18%

27%

During Pandemic

Where they’re typically shopping for groceries (before the pandemic and now)

Before Pandemic 8% 5% 19%

16%

51%

Online

21%

In-Store

12%

21%

13%

33%

During Pandemic Source: P2PI Research COVID-19 New Path to Purchase Study (April 2020)

environment. And this is another area in which the pandemic isn’t so much inspiring new action as it likely will expedite efforts already taking place.

In the name of shopper-centricity, retail has been steadily moving away from the days when stores were designed to force shoppers into traversing as much real estate as possible. (Yes, that’s why the milk cooler is still often buried in the back corner.)

But while “Grab and Go” sections aren’t exactly a new merchandising idea,

Source: P2PI Research COVID-19 Impact on Shopper Behavior Study (March 2020)

retailers and brands should probably start considering ways to reconfigure stores and display programs to facilitate a faster trip.

SHOPPERS ARE MOVING ONLINE Speaking of expedited trends, some analysts are estimating that the crisis has pushed online grocery shopping to levels that wouldn’t have been achieved otherwise for another three to five years.

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16-21-P2PIQ_PATHresearch.indd 20

Exactly how much of the current activity will subside when restrictions decline and shoppers feel safe to return to stores isn’t quite clear – especially since the online experience (most frequently long waits for deliveries and incomplete or incorrect orders) hasn’t been ideal for all first-time users.

But wherever levels land immediately after the crisis, they are expected to grow

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PATH TO PURCHASE NOW UNDERSTANDING THE POST-PANDEMIC SHOPPER

A majority of shoppers are able to find their preferred brand

purchase their preferred brand Source: P2PI Research COVID-19 New Path to Purchase Study (April 2020)

at a pace faster than before. And that makes the need for brands and retailers to continue aggressively building out their digital marketing and e-commerce capabilities (both sales- and fulfillmentwise) their greatest priority.

“Shoppers can’t necessarily tell you KinterCSN_PrintAdFINAL.pdf

1

1/30/20

what they’re going to do in the future right now. Most are still just reacting to what’s happening in the market and what’s going on in the world,” concludes Nicklin. “But COVID-19 isn’t a light switch that we’ll just turn off one day and start going back to stores and back to normal overnight. We will

see permanent changes in behavior.”

Editor’s Note: Writer Tom Di Nome contributed to this report. IQ Path to Purchase Institute members have access to complete results from the study at P2PI.org.

9:13 AM

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PLANTING THE SEED

Retailers, large CPGs and challenger brands are jumping on the plant-based food bandwagon, raising the bar on product quality and marketing strategy

BY M I C H A E L A P P L E B A U M

Greg Steltenpohl, CEO and co-founder of Los Angeles-based Califia Farms, uses the term “next-gen customers” to refer to the brand’s target audience, which he says is defined not strictly by age but also by behaviors and attitudes toward plant-based foods. And he considers himself one of them.

“I’m in my 60s, but I might behave in similar ways as some Gen Z people do,” says Steltenpohl. “I’ve figured out that I have some control over my own health outcomes, and I know that a long-term commitment to certain types of dietary practices increases my odds for living healthier in my later years.”

At a time when consumers are embracing a variety of alternatives to meat and dairy products, Califia has tapped into local folklore with its unique name (a reference to Queen Califia, a fictitious 17th century character from which California got its name), striking packaging, and products with cross-generational appeal to grow into a powerhouse challenger brand. With an infusion of $225 million in venture capital funding earlier this year, the company

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22-25-P2PIQ_Plantsbased.indd 22

is expanding further into the plant-based market, most recently with a new line of protein-enhanced oat milk products.

According to Steltenpohl, this is just the tip of the iceberg. “If you analyze meat occasions in a contemporary diet, dairy has many more ingredient applications throughout the day, as well as a primary occasion [such as drinking a glass of milk],” he says. “It’s a bigger opportunity than meat.”

For now, the data seems to bear this out. Milk remains the largest plant-based food category, with just over $2 billion in retail sales in 2019, followed by other plant-based dairy ($1.4 billion) and plantbased meat ($939 million). Much of the focus in the last few years has been on plant-based meat, thanks to the success of new products from companies like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat. Yet some of the biggest growth rates since 2017 are found in dairy segments like yogurt, dips, sauces, creamers, cheese and eggs, although these sectors are generally growing from a much smaller base (see chart on page 24). U.S. retail sales of plant-based foods grew 11.4% last year, bringing the total market to $5 billion, according to data from The Good Foods Institute and The Plant Based Foods Association.

The growth of the plant-based food industry is being reflected in changes at the corporate level, as well as in the increase in merchandising and promotional activity at major retailers. Danone and Chobani, for example, have both made major investments in their non-dairy businesses in the last few years. Chobani introduced a new oat milk drink and a line of yogurts and non-dairy creamers, all under the Chobani Oat brand name, last fall. This year, Danone created a separate plant-based operating unit, EDP North America, to support its vegan brands, which include Silk and So Delicious. Danone chairman and CEO Ammanuel Faber has said he plans

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to triple the company’s total plant-based revenue to about $5.6 billion by 2025.

Retailers, meanwhile, are expanding their store-brand assortments to meet the growing demand. The Good Foods Institute recently conducted an audit of the top 15 U.S. food retailers and created rankings based on product assortment, merchandising and marketing of plant-based meat, eggs and dairy products. Whole Foods and Kroger-owned King Soopers were found to have the most extensive assortments, with 360 and 410 plant-based products on shelves, respectively. That is 50% more than most other top retailers, who averaged 270 products. Target plans to double its store-brand plant-based assortment through an expansion of its Good & Gather private label line.

“Millennials and Gen Z consumers grew up with these choices and are more accustomed to them, whereas Boomers and Seniors see the term ‘plant-based’ as having a more literal connotation.”

— Darren Seifer, The NPD Group

HEALTH, NUTRITION ARE TOP DRIVERS A variety of environmental factors have provided the catalyst for surging sales of plant-based foods. Nearly one in 10 U.S. residents now consider themselves “flexitarian,” meaning they only occasionally eat meat or fish, and many consumers struggle with dietary restrictions that can influence their eating

July 2020

22-25-P2PIQ_Plantsbased.indd 23

habits. A comprehensive 2017 study about the drivers of plant-based food consumption from Nielsen found that health and weight management were the top motivations fto eat more plant-based foods, with 83% of U.S. consumers citing overall health and nutrition, followed by weight management (62%) and the desire to eat “clean” (51%).

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PLANTING THE SEED

Retail Plant-Based Food Dollar Sales by Category Category

2019 Sales (in thousands)

Sales Growth (2018–2019)

Milk Meat Meals Ice cream and frozen novelty Creamer Yogurt Butter Cheese Tofu and tempeh Ready-to-drink beverages Condiments, dressings and mayo Dairy spreads, dips, sour cream, and sauces Eggs Total

$2,016,540 $939,459 $376,972 $335,549 $286,662 $282,502 $198,359 $189,099 $127,856 $122,276 $63,696 $29,513 $9,851 $4,978,587

5.0% 18.4% 8.3% 5.7% 34.3% 31.3% 8.4% 18.3% 7.8% 18.4% -10.9% 53.7% 191.7% 11.4%

Source: SPINSscan Natural and Specialty Gourmet, SPINSscan Conventional Multi Outlet (powered by IRI), 104 weeks ending Dec. 29, 2019. The Good Food Institute Inc.

Darren Seifer, a food industry analyst and executive director at The NPD Group, says that today’s consumers increasingly view plant-based foods as an effective means of improving long-term health. However, he notes that there are some distinct differences along generational lines, particularly when it comes to attitudes toward plant-based meat versus dairy. “There’s been a slower adoption of meat alternatives among older generations,” says Seifer.

“Millennials and Gen Z consumers grew up with these choices and are more accustomed to them, whereas Boomers and Seniors see the term ‘plant-based’ as having a more literal connotation of, it comes from a plant.”

Dairy is a different story, partly because digestion of dairy products becomes a more

common problem as people get older. As many as 30 million Americans will develop some form of lactose intolerance by the age of 20, according U.S. government statistics.

July 2020

22-25-P2PIQ_Plantsbased.indd 24

Notes Seifer, “Older consumers are more open to plant-based dairy than meat.

An alternative dairy product like an almond milk or an oat milk allows those consumers to continue their mobile activities with very little sacrifice to their overall lifestyles.”

Sustainability, meanwhile, is often cited as a desirable attribute of plantbased products and packaging, especially for younger consumers.

However, it is not as clear a driver of purchases: Only 14% of respondents in the Nielsen survey cited concern for the environment as the main reason for consuming more plant-based foods.

Still, that hasn’t stopped brands like Oatly from making sustainability a key piece of their value proposition. Whereas other brands in the category tend to focus on product attributes, Oatly, the leading oat milk brand in the U.S., prints its carbon footprint levels on packages in Europe and touts its no-frills approach to advertising. “We’re trying to change the conversation around plant-based

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PLANTING THE SEED foods to highlight the connection with global warming and climate change,” says Mike Messersmith, president of Oatly North America. “We make oat milk for a very specific reason around nutrition and sustainability. Our goal is to shift more people into a plant-based diet.”

Top 10 Plant-Based Meat Brands

by Dollar Sales in U.S. Retail

BETTER QUALITY, MORE CHOICE

Beyond Meat Boca Dr. Praeger’s Field Roast Gardein Lightlife MorningStar Farms Quorn Sweet Earth Tofurky

Plant-based foods are hardly new. The plant-based meat industry in the U.S. can be traced back to the 19th century, and many modern companies sprung up in the 1980s and ’90s. One of those companies is Garner, North Carolina-based supplier Improved Nature, which has developed a unique heat and steam pressure manufacturing process for its chickenless nuggets and strips that it says improves upon the traditional “TVP” (textured

“We’re trying to change the conversation around plant-based foods to highlight the connection with global warming and climate change.”

(In alphabetical order) Brand

Parent Company

Beyond Meat Kraft Heinz Dr. Praeger’s Maple Leaf Foods Conagra Brands Maple Leaf Foods Kellogg Co. Monde Nissin Nestle Tofurky

Note: This list represents the top 10 plant-based meat brands by U.S. retail sales, excluding food-service sales. Impossible Foods, a leading brand in food service, made its retail debut in late 2019.

Source: SPINS/The Good Food Institute.

Top 10 Plant-Based Milk Brands

by Dollar Sales in U.S. Retail

—Mike Messersmith, president, Oatly North America

(In alphabetical order) Brand

vegetable protein) formula used by bigger companies like Beyond Meat. “We have a single protein source and are using our technology and equipment to give a better texture and bite to the final products, whereas most other manufacturers are adding additional ingredients,” says Rody Hawkins, CEO of Improved Nature.

Over the past year, Hawkins has seen increased activity at retail trade shows that suggests companies may be too quick to launch “me-too” products at the expense of quality. And industry experts caution brands to focus on the fundamentals. “Taste remains the foremost driver of any food purchase,” says Julie Emmett, senior director of retail partnerships at The Plant Based Foods Association. “New and consistent advances in creating foods from plants, such as nuts, peas and soy, are fueling the industry with new plant-based foods that taste delicious and have the desired texture and consistency that appeal not only to vegans and vegetarians, but [that] also appeal to a much broader consumer, the flexitarian.”

As the market becomes more crowded, however, there may be opportunities for brands to carve out new niches with more specific types of products. Califia, for example, recently introduced plant-based butters in olive oil and avocado varieties, as well as its new line of Protein Oat drinks. The latter combines oat milk, pea protein and sunflower seeds to deliver

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Blue Diamond Califia Farms Dream Good Karma Oatly Planet Oat Pacific Foods Ripple Silk So Delicious

Parent Company

Blue Diamond Califia Farms Hain Celestial Dean Foods Privately owned HP Hood Campbell Soup Company Ripple Danone Danone

Note: This list represents the top 10 plant-based milk brands by U.S. retail sales, excluding sales of private label products and sales through food-service channels.

Source: SPINS/The Good Food Institute

eight grams of protein per serving, although Steltenpohl says the products are geared more toward families with children than, say, folks who are trying to pack on muscle.

“We have a full food science team and around 90 SKUs now,” he says. “From a business strategy, our first rule of thumb is to always just be delicious and taste great. The second rule, in product development and innovation, is the simple phrase: Something different, something better.” IQ

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ActivationGallery

Pet Products Pandemic or not, the marketing of pet products is substantial. Path to Purchase Institute editors noticed a plethora of digital activations during the spring months at mass merchants, specialty retailers and elsewhere. Here’s a sampling of recent activity (in addition to Nestle Purina Petcare’s launch of Pro Plan LiveClear allergen-reducing cat food covered on page 10).. Institute members can see much more pet-related activity in the image vault at P2PI.org.

Ainsworth Pet Nutrition’s Rachael Ray Nutrish earlier this year deployed a pallet display in Walmart’s Action Alley touting the product benefits of its “super premium food for dogs” and plugging the company’s support of animals in need via the Rachael Ray Foundation, which gets a portion of proceeds. The display also boasted that the product was made in the U.S.

Target ran a variety of promotions to tie in to the designation of May as National Pet Month. On Target.com, a home page display ad promised $5 off a $25 purchase of eligible pet products in stores or on same-day deliveries via Target’s Shipt subsidiary.

The ad linked to a category web page that marked the observance of National Pet Month (spotlighting new products from private labels Boots & Barkley and Sun Squad) and also for Pride Month in June. The page also hosted checklists for shoppers with a new cat or dog, highlighting products from brands including Mars Inc.’s Nutro, Nestle Purina Petcare’s Tidy Cats and Clorox Co.’s Burt’s Bees.

Dollar General partnered with Nestle Purina Petcare for a sweepstakes marking May’s designation as National Pet Month. Consumers entered weekdays from May 4-29 by posting a picture of their pets in the comments section of a designated post on the retailer’s Facebook page.

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PetSmart launched a new You Are Loved private label ahead of June’s Pride Month celebrations. The line spans 21 dog products ranging from a $2.99 rainbow plush squeaky toy to a $20.99 unicorn hoodie. A home page display ad, as well as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram updates, linked to a dedicated e-commerce page.

Walmart announced the addition of cat products from Jackson Galaxy to its offering with a leaderboard ad and banners ads running on its cat category pages mid-May. The ads linked to a showcase dedicated to Galaxy that includes a video introducing the cat behaviorist, touts various products from Galaxy’s line as well as others he recommends (along with explanations of their benefits), and also presents tips including a video on the importance of play.

Dedicated coolers at Kroger’s Harris Teeter merchandise preservative-free cat and dog food from Freshpet.

Walmart united cat products from two manufacturers on one pallet display in Action Alley during National Pet Month in May. Shoppable from two sides, the display stocked Church & Dwight’s Arm & Hammer Slide cat litter on one side and J.M. Smucker’s Meow Mix cat food on the other. A side panel affixed to the display’s two nonshoppable sides touted both SKUs to obtain “complete cat care” and directed shoppers to Walmart.com for more options.

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ActivationGallery

General Mills’ Blue Buffalo recently launched a new brand of puppy and kitten food exclusively at Petco. Dubbed Baby Blue, the lineup is merchandised on dedicated mobile racks positioned in the aisle.

Headers identifying the adjacent racks as puppy and kitten “nutrition centers” call out the items’ exclusivity while pink and blue shelf strips differentiate between the cat and dog SKUs. Multiple circular features have supported the rollout.

In direct to consumer activity, The Kong Co.’s Kong Box subscription program, which launched in September 2019, promoted an enrollment deal/ cause effort in June via sponsored Facebook updates touting a free first box to consumers who sign up for a six- or 12-month subscription plan and donate $1 to the nonprofit Best Friends Animal Society. The sponsored updates linked to kongbox.com through a new window (without leaving the Facebook app) detailing the offer and presenting the product options available through the first customizable box (such as a Kong classic toy, a training toy, personality toy and treats).

Clorox Co.’s Fresh Steps Clean Paws in early May promoted its low-tracking cat litter at Walmart with an ad simultaneously running across multiple placements on the home page of the retailer’s website. A “shop now” button linked to a Fresh Step showcase touting Clean Paws product benefits and offering “buy now” links to various SKUs while promoting Walmart’s two-day delivery service to “skip the lines & the heavy lifting.” The showcase also delivers tips to keeping cats happy and invites consumers to join the manufacturer’s Paw Points loyalty program.

July 2020

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Tuesday, August 18

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Tuesday, October 20

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Tuesday, December 15

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6/19/20 11:00 AM

Technology Innovation

P2P Toolkit

A roundup of technology-driven tools that drive consumer understanding, engagement and conversion on every step of the path to purchase.

It’s a safe bet that “social distancing” will top the “Word of the Year” lists for 2020, but watch for “skip the line” too as store shoppers eschew lines and cashiers who handle their items. In May, FutureProof Retail (FPR) said it would be donating its Mobile Checkout Solution to grocery stores, pharmacies and supermarkets nationwide. FPR says that when New York City’s Fairway Market incorporated this scan-and-pay system into its app, it saw a 300% increase in adoption and that 20% of transactions are now done via mobile checkout. The company also says that the system can be deployed in as few as three working days.

In April, Levi Strauss & Co. announced that it has become a partner in TikTok’s “Shop Now” program, a new effort that lets consumers buy products directly from the social platform. The Levi’s brand wants to deepen connections with its “next generation,” and TikTok reportedly has as many as 480 million monthly active users worldwide between the ages of 16-24. During Levi’s April 19 “Haus Miami” activation, it partnered with TikTok influencers to create customized denim using Levi’s Future Finish 3-D technology.

Consumers were able to view the videos (earning watch times said to be twice as long as TikTok’s platform average) and then click to buy the designs on Levi.com. Since launch, product views on Levi.com’s Future Finish pages have more than doubled for every product included in the experience.

Levi’s has similar partnerships on Snap, Instagram and Pinterest.

Yet another sign of stressful times: In May, Instacart not only updated its contactless delivery service but added an in-app “Get Emergency Assistance” button (in partnership with security-specialist ADT) to connect its contract shoppers and their GPS locations to first responders. The company also introduced shopper ID verification, an authentication method that prevents use by unauthorized individuals by periodically prompting shoppers to take photos of themselves that are matched against a file photo.

Instacart partnered with more than 350 national, regional and local retailers including Albertsons, Aldi, Costco, Kroger, Loblaw, Publix, Sam’s Club, Sprouts, Walmart Canada and Wegmans – 25,000-plus stores in 5,500 North American cities.

Bill Schober is Editor Emeritus of Path to Purchase IQ. He’s been associated with the Institute since 1994, covering all aspects of consumer marketing with a special emphasis on the shopping experience. He welcomes any questions, comments, requests or pitches about P2P Toolkit, and can be reached at bschober@ensembleiq.com.

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Suitsupply, a 140-store global men’s tailoring brand, reopened during COVID-19 with a “Safe Shopping Journey” program. First, to reduce the concentration of in-store shoppers, Suitsupply offered a guided virtual experience that lets customers pre-select items for store visits through co-browsing sessions with live style experts.

Next, an optional appointment booking tool could reserve a prepared fitting room or a private shopping suite. Finally, the chain installed free-standing partitions that enable safe, up-close interaction without modifying the customer’s behavior during pinning sessions.

Basketful, a Minneapolis-based technology firm, wasn’t bashful in its May 2020 announcement of full-basket capabilities for what it calls the “world’s smartest” grocery-list app.

It’s a consumer-facing, list-making app that boasts 50 U.S. retailer integrations (covering 95% of U.S. households via 10,000 stores) and info on 150 million product/store combinations. Basketful research suggests that two-thirds of consumers still use paper or whiteboards for managing grocery needs. The app enables users to find sales from local retailers, manage and share lists across multiple stores, and then shop this list either in-store or online with visibility to local inventory and pricing.

P2P Toolkit

SPOTLIGHT: MarTech

Yotpo, a Forbes Cloud 100 company that is integrated with online business tools such as Google, Instagram and “the rest of the MarTech stack,” announced in May that its customers can now syndicate reviews and user-generated content via Austin, Texas-based Bazaarvoice’s network. The company claims that this agreement helps empower more than a billion monthly shoppers to make buying decisions. Yotpo’s single-platform approach to e-commerce marketing integrates the data behind reviews, loyalty and SMS marketing. Yotpo research asserts that 98% of consumers consider “authentic customer reviews” their most influential purchasing factor; another 77% said that “authentic customer photos” influence purchasing more than professional shots.

In late April, Criteo launched what it calls the “first-to-market, self-service retail media platform.” The platform is said to provide the transparency and control brands and agencies need for the placement of advertising within retailer e-commerce sites and apps while also maintaining control of the shopper experience. One notable feature is the ability to deliver consent-based, personalized advertising without relying on third-party cookies. Criteo says its Retail Media platform makes it easier for brands to buy across retailers using standardized workflows and metrics. It allows retailers to power their vendor marketing programs, to tap into different types of budgets such as search and national media, and to enable a variety of creative and targeting capabilities for brands. The platform is currently available only to clients in the U.S. and Canada; a release for clients in the EMEA and APAC regions is scheduled for late 2020.

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P2P Toolkit

SPOTLIGHT: MarTech

More innovation from the “nocontact” world of Covid-19: Chicagobased Bodaty announced in May that it is recruiting “a million personal shoppers nationwide” on its Samyata retail ecosystem. Samyata is a martech app suite that lets shoppers buy from local stores (via Gananam.com) and have personal shoppers make safe, “no-contact” deliveries (via Vahaka.com). The app is touted as a way for people who’ve lost jobs due to the pandemic to earn money.

The Samyata online shopping interface uses a Google Cloud Platform, AWS, AI and machine learning, conversational UIs and yes, “Electron Microscopy.”

In May, ListenFirst Media announced the launch of a “first-tomarket social listening and sentiment analysis” platform that is said to be able to marry earned sentiment and paid performance.

The company also says that traditional social listening, which relies on public data, captures only a vocal minority, giving brands an inaccurate representation of consumer sentiment. The launch also comes at a time when changes to public metrics on social media platforms as well as new privacy regulations are impacting the ability of marketers to analyze brand-owned posts on social media.

ListenFirst Media says its service features a single dashboard that combines emotional sentiment from comments, giving marketers a deep analysis of owned and authorized social channels, enabling them to prove the effectiveness of their social marketing strategy.

Chicago-based Fyllo, billed as the “world’s first cannabis MarTech platform,” is introducing the Fyllo Compliance Cloud, a suite of software and services employing a regulatory database for the cannabiz (cannabis industry). The company’s CannaBrain tech is said to process billions of data points that will enable brands to safely build and execute advertising campaigns while helping publishers monetize compliant ad inventory. Fyllo also offers “Cannabrief,” a weekly newsletter that is curated by the team at CannaRegs ... and yes, it’s fun to write “c-a-n-n-a” five different ways in one short essay.

July 2020

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Solving Big Problems, Inspiring Bold Ideas EnsembleIQ is a premier business intelligence resource that believes in Solving Big Problems and Inspiring Bold Ideas. Our brands work in harmony to inform, connect, and provide predictive analysis for retailers, consumer goods manufacturers, technology vendors, marketing agencies and service providers.

EnsembleIQ’s integrated suite of solutionsbased, total-market resources give you all the tools you need to achieve a strategic market advantage, giving you the insights, positioning, focus, and access, along with a team of dedicated strategic consultants to help you bring it all to life.

Magazines

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Events

Digital Media Solutions

Research

Custom Content

6/19/20 11:00 AM

Store Spotlight

H-E-B

TexFest 2020

BY J AC Q U E L I N E B A R B A

This Store Spotlight looks back pre-coronavirus to regional grocer H-E-B’s activation of its annual “TexFest” and the “Quest for Texas Best” contest. The regional chain is known for inspiring shopper devotion through an emphasis on Texas pride.

Since H-E-B stores exist only in Texas and just across the border in Mexico, the Lone Star State is at the root of many of the retailer’s biggest programs as well as its cause efforts, store aesthetics, marketing materials and inventory decisions.

Its two-week TexFest event, corresponding with Texas Independence Day on March 2, is a perfect example. Running from Feb. 26 through March 10, TexFest 2020 showcased Texas-made products and partnerships using in-store “Go Local” price labels and TexFest signage. It also entailed sampling stations as well as “Texasstyle events,” live music and special deals.

In stores, P-O-P materials for the program were numerous.

The Path to Purchase Institute visited stores in Conroe, Buda and Universal City, Texas, during the promotional period. Here’s a

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glimpse of what stood out.

While TexFest concluded without a hitch before the pandemic hit the U.S., H-E-B’s annual “Quest for Texas Best” contest for local brands was affected. H-E-B extended its application deadline this spring from April 3 to May 31. It is also now accepting entries from Texas-based purveyors of apparel, beauty items, electronics, toys, home goods, gardening supplies, coolers and more in addition to food and beverage SKUs. The winner and top finalists win the chance to negotiate distribution deals with the supermarket chain as well as a cash prize.

These brands are small local businesses with modest marketing budgets, so winning H-E-B’s partnership is a huge opportunity for them.

Since the contest launched in 2014, H-E-B’s Quest for Texas Best has reviewed more than 3,800 samples of Texas-made food and beverages, offered shelf placement to more than 600 products, and awarded nearly $500,000 in prize money.

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In liquor aisles, signage positioned the retailer as the “#1 beer & wine retailer in Texas” and plugged a main TexFest deal: 10% off state-based wines. A header near wine case stacks also touted a deal for 10% off the purchase of winners from the Houston Livestock and Rodeo wine competition,, which ran through March 24. Other in-store support spanned themed circular rack signs, ceiling signs, outdoor and indoor banners, window clings, shelf talkers and violators.

Cowboy boot-shaped signage promoting “Everythang Texas” filled stores, whether affixed to an endcap header or standing tall at entrances on a large corrugated standee.

H-E-B’s omnichannel approach helped it see TexFest through despite the looming pandemic. The retailer used a dedicated hub on HEB.com that detailed the program and its multiple facets, including Quest for Texas Best.

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Store Spotlight

Blue and red “Go Local” price labels identified local products, such as Mom’s pasta sauce. Many of the products highlighted during TexFest are from H-E-B’s private labels.

The lineup also spans exclusives, including past winners and finalists of the retailer’s annual Quest for Texas Best competition, which finds the retailer’s next small, locally owned and new food, beverage or general merchandise items to spotlight as a “Primo Pick” and also runs in tandem with TexFest as a way to elevate those products.

H-E-B launched an improved My H-E-B mobile app that offers shoppers easier ways to find and clip coupons, among other enhancements. A TexFest-themed email blast showcased “Texassized savings” redeemable through the app while also encouraging shoppers to look for the Go Local price labels in stores and scan an item’s bar code (also a recently added mobile capability) to find available coupons to clip.

July 2020

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5/7/19 11:10 AM 6/19/20 11:01 AM

Solution Provider News purchase data spanning brick-and-mortar and e-commerce retail channels for apparel and CPG chains. The first report released in June used purchase data from across the retail landscape to provide insights into the U.S. CPG industry, e-commerce, growth categories and a channel comparison analysis.

Roku Launches Shopper Data Program with Kroger Roku is launching a shopper data program with the goal of making TV advertising more precise and measurable for CPG marketers. Kroger Precision Marketing plans to join the program as the launch partner to build first-tomarket targeting and attribution tools for streaming TV. Once the integration is complete, marketers can access Kroger’s data science for targeting and closedloop attribution to measure campaign performance across the Roku platform.

Marketers will also have tools from Roku to measure the effectiveness of linear TV. The shopper data program aims to provide Kroger with sales information that, in turn, will assist marketers in making smarter media buying decisions.

Marketers will be able to use the program to activate advertising across hundreds of ad-supported channels on Roku and tie ad exposure directly to in-store and online sales.

IRI, Coresight Research Collaborate on Retail Trends Reports IRI and Coresight Research are teaming up for a series of monthly reports providing insights into the future of retail for retailers and suppliers. The monthly reports will leverage the organizations’ combined expertise and data assets from across the retail landscape – including

Great Northern Wins Big at 2020 Excellence in Flexography Awards Great Northern has received the Best of Show award in the Combined Corrugated category in the 2020 Excellence in Flexography Awards competition. The winning packaging, the 3M Rock Your Workday Box, was recognized due to its flexographic print quality that achieved a wide tonal range and detailed image quality.

The mission of the 2020 FTA Excellence in Flexography Awards is to honor outstanding companies that have made exceptional quality and consistency their mission in the pursuit of printing excellence.

Ibotta Introduces Self-Service Platform Mobile rewards platform Ibotta has launched Ibotta Go, a self-service platform that provides emerging CPG brands with

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access to consumers through cash-back rewards programs. By streamlining the client experience, Ibotta Go gives emerging brands the opportunity to drive awareness and trial while gleaning valuable retailer and consumer-level insights at an affordable price point.

Ibotta Go targets offers to identified retailers in specific regions. Brands can choose to focus promotional spend on supporting specific retailers or boosting awareness and sales across the full retail distribution channel. To launch a promotional program, brands select an Ibotta Go package, input product descriptions and MSRPs, then specify at which retailers the offer will be available. From there, brands can monitor performance within a self-service portal and are alerted via email when milestones are achieved.

AB InBev, Tiger Pistol Partner to Help Customers Recover Worldwide Social advertising platform Tiger Pistol has partnered with Anheuser-Busch InBev to support the adult beverage manufacturer’s worldwide network of local retailers, bars and restaurants negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Tiger Pistol aims to reach deeply into local communities throughout the world, empowering individual restaurants and bars with locally relevant ads that use powerful messaging alongside globally recognized brand creative.

The ads are flexibly deployed from the local business’ Facebook pages, with objectives in line with state, regional or city-level government restrictions.

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JOIN US FOR A NEW WEBINAR SERIES

UNDE R STA N D I N G TO DAY’ S SHOPPE R TO D R I V E TO M O RR OW ’ S SUCCE SS

M A R K YO U R C A L E N DA R S AUG 26 | The Future Role of In-Store Displays

In this ongoing series of virtual experiences, the Path to Purchase Institute will join with thought leaders throughout the omnicommerce industry to examine the most effective ways

SEPT 29 | New Strategies for Product Sampling OCT 27 | New Strategies for Driving Impulse Purchase

for brands and retailers to adapt to the evolving nature of retail and capitalize on changes in shopper behavior. This unique series will drill down into the specific areas of shopper

DEC 10 | Agile Promotional Planning Note: Topics are subject to change

engagement that are undergoing the greatest amount of change.

P O W E R E D

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B Y

6/19/20 11:01 AM

Solution Provider News Outform Debuts Thermal Imaging Tech to Prevent COVID-19 Spread Miami-based global retail innovation agency Outform launched the iDisplay Thermometer, a device that uses thermal imaging to read the body temperatures of shoppers from up to three feet away in two seconds. The technology is designed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in stores, gyms, bars, offices and other public spaces.

The iDisplay Thermometer is powered by the same facial detection technology used in many mobile devices. It can capture images of shoppers with a fever and relay the data and photo to a store manager. The technology will still work if the shopper is wearing a mask. It can be synced with automatic entrances to only allow entry to visitors who have passed the temperature check. Using the technology eliminates the need to have a dedicated employee conducting scans, reducing the risk that they or anyone else will become infected in the process.

Valpak Innovates Amid Market Disruption Valpak’s answer to the COVID-19 pandemic has been to develop targeting technology to bring advertisers a powerful, affordable option for delivering unique offers into individual households in a shared mail environment. This technology helps brands significantly reduce cost while yielding the same benefits that catalogers or direct

mailers have relied on for decades. It allows advertisers to exclusively mail to the homes they desire while eliminating those they do not within the cost savings environment of cooperative mail.

Valpak’s technology will help brands target unique campaigns to new customers, existing customers, lapsed users and/ or declining loyal customers in one campaign, driving repeat purchases while simultaneously filling the funnel at a reduced cost. Valpak can also incorporate QR codes on a mail piece at no charge to drive mobile or online sales.

Fetch Rewards, Cadent Consulting Launch Ongoing Behavior Study The first in an ongoing series of studies designed to analyze real-time and future consumer shopping and usage behaviors was released in June.

Created by Cadent Consulting Group and Fetch Rewards, the CPG Clarity Study will be issued monthly to industry leaders across the CPG industry. The findings marry extensive consumer surveys with purchase data gathered from more than 3 million consumers across the U.S. Cadent Consulting Group leverages its advanced analytics capabilities in conjunction with Fetch Rewards’ proprietary shopping receipt data to produce the studies. For each study, Cadent will survey more than 1,000 shoppers of groceries and home essentials. The first installment of the CPG Clarity Study looked back at the shopping behaviors exhibited when shelterat-home orders were first issued, focusing on such categories as ready-to-eat meals, nut butters, beauty, personal hygiene, canned vegetables and beer/wine/liquor. The study goes on to track actual usage by analyzing

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ongoing consumer spend across these categories. Cadent also developed a “clarity projection model” that combines qualitative and quantitative data from Fetch to provide a more informed view of future projections. The study also examines how shopping trips changed initially and what trends are being cemented in the new normal. The study then closely examines purchase habits.

Theory House Designs Theme ParkInspired Queue Lines for Retail Retail branding agency Theory House has launched a QueueEXP service designed to educate and engage shoppers as they wait in line, something they’re likely to do more of due to restrictions on store capacity put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic.

QueueEXP is a collaboration between Theory House and Mark Gildersleeve, a designer and creative director with more than 20 years of experience working for theme parks including Dollywood and SeaWorld Orlando. A conceptual design created for Lowe’s has shoppers wait in front of the store in a curving, modular shade structure that incorporates water misters, cooling fans and educational audio. The structure is decorated with displays depicting giant branded tools. IQ

B

Send your solution provider news – new products, projects, programs and technologies – to Charlie Menchaca at cmenchaca@ensembleiq.com.

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Rise_FUL EIQ_Be

Be

innovative

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remarkable

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6/18/19 2:19 PM 6/8/19 2:28 PM 6/19/20 11:01 AM

Personnel Appointments BRAND MARKETERS The J.M. Smucker Co., Orrville, Ohio Rob Ferguson was named senior vice president and general manager of Smucker’s pet food and pet snacks business. He began to lead the business in an interim capacity last year. Ferguson brings nearly 15 years of experience to the role and reports to COO John Brase.

LG Electronics, Englewoods Cliffs, New Jersey David VanderWaal is stepping down as SVP of marketing this summer to go on sabbatical. He joined LG in 2007 as in-store shopper marketing director before becoming vice president of marketing, consumer electronics and home appliances in 2011 and SVP in 2018.

VanderWaal was inducted into the Path to Purchase Institute Hall of Fame in 2015.

RETAILERS Raley’s, West Sacramento, California Jennifer Warner was named chief administrative officer to oversee the company’s regulatory, risk management, food safety, sustainability, corporate strategy, and environmental, social and governance programs. Warner will report directly to CEO Keith Knopf and work to

LEE ESMOND

LYNN NEAL

shape and implement the organization’s business strategy.

SOLUTION PROVIDERS Fetch Rewards, Madison, Wisconsin Former Groupon product executive David Jesse was named chief product officer. His role is to lead the product team with a focus on innovation, design and the ongoing refinement of the Fetch Rewards platform.

Fetch also hired Rukmini Banerjee, former CUNA Mutual Group shared services vp, as its chief people officer. She is charged with the creation and oversight of talent development.

GroundTruth, New York CEO Sunil Kumar is stepping down after more than 11 years with the company he co-founded. Kumar previously served as COO and will continue to act as an adviser to the board.

DAVID VANDERWAAL

JENNIFER WARNER

Mosaic North America, Chicago The agency expanded SVP Lee Esmond’s current role as co-leader of the CPG/mass retail experiential team to include oversight of the shopper marketing team as the head of U.S. shopper marketing. The change allows Mosaic to further integrate its U.S. business and deepen its relationship with parent company Acosta.

Rapid Displays, Chicago Business development VP Alan Foshay retired after more than 17 years with Rapid Displays and three decades in the P-O-P industry.

SellCheck, Minneapolis Lynn Neal was named chief product officer to provide leadership across the people and products that serve SellCheck’s global client list of more than 1,000 brands. Neal previously led the evolution of Procter & Gamble’s global flagship retail innovation center. IQ

Editorial Index AB InBev......................................38 Ainsworth Pet Nutrition ........26 AJW Advisory ............................15 Albertsons Cos..........................43 Arc Worldwide ..........................14 Basketful .....................................31 Bauer USA ..................................15 Bazaarvoice................................31 Beiersdorf ...................................15 Beyond Meat .............................22 Bodaty .........................................32 BVA Nudge .................................15 Cadent Consulting Group ....40 Califia Farms ..............................22 Catalina .......................................13 Chewy ..........................................10 Chobani.......................................22 Church & Dwight .....................27 Clorox Co., The ...................26, 28 Coca-Cola Co., The...................13

Coresight Research .................38 Criteo ...........................................31 Danone........................................22 Dollar General ...........................26 Eversight .....................................13 Facebook ....................................14 Fairway Market .........................30 FCB/RED ......................................14 Fetch Rewards ..........................40 Freshpet ......................................27 FutureProof Retail....................30 Fyllo ..............................................32 General Mills..............................28 Geometry ...................................14 Good Foods Institute, The ....23 Google .........................................31 Great Northern ..................15, 38 Grupo Bimbo.............................15 H-E-B ............................................34 Hershey Co., The.................. 8, 43

HMT Associates ........................14 Ibotta ...........................................38 Impossible Foods ....................22 Improved Nature .....................25 IN Connected Marketing ......15 Instacart ......................................30 Instagram ...................................31 Integer .........................................13 IRI...................................................38 Jackson Galaxy .........................27 J.M. Smucker Co., The .............27 Kimberly-Clark ..........................14 Kong Co., The ............................28 Kraft-Heinz Co. ..........................43 Kroger ..............23, 27, 38, 40, 43 Levi Strauss & Co. .....................30 ListenFirst Media......................32 MarketingLab............................13 Mars Agency, The ....................15 Mars Inc. ...............................13, 26

July 2020

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Match Marketing Group........15 Meijer ...........................................43 Meredith Corp. .........................10 Momentum................................12 Mom’s...........................................36 Mondelez International.........43 Nestle Purina Petcare .........10, 26 Newell Brands ...........................15 NPD Group, The........................24 Oatly North America ..............25 Ocado ..........................................40 Oracle Industry Strategy Group ........................................14 Outform ......................................40 OxfordSM ...................................13 Path to Purchase Institute ....16 Peapod Digital Labs................13 Petco .....................................10, 28 PetSmart ..............................10, 27 Plant Based Foods

Association, The ....................25 Procter & Gamble ....................10 Profitero ......................................12 Publicis Communications .....14 Roku ............................................38 SC Johnson ................................14 ShopRite .....................................43 Suitsupply ..................................31 Target ....................................23, 26 Tiger Pistol ................................38 TikTok ...........................................30 TPN ...............................................15 Valpak ..........................................40 Walgreens...................................10 Walmart...........10, 26, 27, 28, 43 Whole Foods .............................23 Wonderful Co., The .................11 WSL Strategic Retail ................14 Yotpo............................................31

| 42 | pathtopurchaseiq.com 6/19/20 11:02 AM

Retail Intel

Hershey Boosts Summer With S’mores at Walmart

BY PAT RYC J A M A L I N O W S K A

The COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t stopped the arrival of the usual s’mores crossmerchandising activity at Walmart, though Hershey Co. modified its corresponding marketing efforts to fit the reality of the current situation.

The expected pallet train stocking all the requisite ingredients from longtime partners Hershey, Mondelez International’s Honey Maid and Kraft Heinz’s Jet-Puffed that unofficially kicks off the summer season landed in May. Located in the power aisle segmenting the middle of the store, the display comprises case stacks and half-pallet displays outfitted with a massive header and side panels activating the “S’mores Saturday” marketing campaign Hershey kicked off last year.

The signage also invites shoppers to text a designated number for the chance to win a $5,000 backyard makeover from Hershey. A response text message delivers a link to a promotional web page (SmoresSaturdayPromo.com/Walmart) detailing an account-specific sweepstakes that runs from March 21 to Aug. 19 in five monthly flights, with one winner from each flight receiving the makeover.

Consumers enter on the web page by submitting a receipt for one six-pack of Hershey’s milk chocolate bars.

The effort is an overlay to a national sweeps running from March 21 to Sept.

6 in two flights. The first flight awards a $25,000 backyard makeover to four winners while the second flight awards a s’mores “mobile experience” to five winners. Each flight includes one winner each among shoppers from Kroger, Meijer and Albertsons Cos. The first flight awards one winner from all other retailers while the second flight awards two winners from all other retailers.

Walmart shoppers may choose to enter the account-specific or national sweeps.

Hershey is also encouraging repeat purchases by doling out coupons for $2 off two six-packs of milk chocolate to the first 25,000 entrants to either the Walmart or national sweeps during both the first

July 2020

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and second half of the promotion.

As of early June, Walmart was the only retailer directly promoting the sweeps, but cross-merchandising displays promoting the general S’mores Saturday theme have been spotted at additional retailers such as ShopRite. Kroger also ran a home page display ad dangling a $7 s’mores bundle and Meijer promised $3 off $10 worth of s’mores ingredients in a circular feature.

Hershey has had to adjust the scope of its S’mores Saturday campaign to take into account the social distancing practices currently in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The concept originated in 2019 after Hershey organized a block party in a New Orleans community where many people didn’t know their own neighbors and saw how s’mores were able to bring people together, then-president of Hershey’s flagship U.S. business Todd Tillemans wrote in a corporate blog post. The current S’mores Saturday sweeps instead focuses on making family connections, spotlighting the backyard as an extension of the home.

In 2018, Hershey had also launched a “Heartwarming Project” to help families build more meaningful social connections as a response to the decline of face-to-face conversations in the digital age.

In the current age of coronavirus, the purpose-driven mission of bringing people together has become more important even as face-to-face connections have become more difficult.

Hershey had to cancel this summer’s leg of a “Heartwarming Tour” that sent popup s’mores stations across the U.S., but the Heartwarming Project has continued with other elements including a special one-hour WE Schools Live Facebook event. Held on May 15 in partnership with the educational nonprofit WE Charity, the event kicked off a grant program offering students the opportunity to win $250 to fund meaningful change that would make their local school or community more inclusive and empathetic, including anti-bullying and mental health efforts. IQ

| 43 | pathtopurchaseiq.com 6/19/20 11:02 AM

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