INTERVIEW
Matt Whelan, Fieldfare range of scoop-your-own foods from chest freezers in farm shops for more than 42 years with a great deal of success, but is now hoping to grow its customer base beyond its stalwart clientele of 40-60-year-olds. Now, the brand is targeting a younger, more environmentally savvy market with the first consumer-facing advertising campaign in the company’s history, which highlights its zerowaste credentials. “We’re trying to become more dynamic,” Whelan tells FFD. Founded in 1978 in Kent by Richard and Ann Cryer, the family business’s unique retail concept has endured, and its chest freezers can now be found in more than 350 stockists across the UK. The brand’s ubiquity has not put paid to the directors’ desire for further growth, though, as its recent marketing activity proves. Starting last March with a complete rebrand – overseen by London-based agency Big Fish – and continued with the launch of the advertising campaign in September, the end goal is to raise Fieldfare’s profile among consumers. Its new eye-catching livery will drive instore presence, but the biggest job facing the business is increasing awareness in the public, says Whelan.
We need to get the end customer to understand the concept of loose, frozen food – it’s not something that we can just assume consumers will get immediately.
The changing face of frozen Fieldfare had been selling loose, frozen food for more than 40 years before embarking on its first major rebrand. And its new modern look is part of a plan, led by MD Matt Whelan, to attract a new type of customer and grow its presence further in independent retail. Interview by Tom Dale
“FROZEN IS NO longer a barrier, perceptions have changed there,” says Fieldfare MD Matt Whelan, when discussing the company’s first foray into marketing beyond the trade. “But many consumers aren’t familiar with our concept, so we’re trying to convert them.”
It’s fitting that Whelan is meeting FFD at The Udder Farm Shop in Dorset, a long-term customer that exemplifies the simple-yeteffective concept of allowing customers to scoop their own loose frozen goods on the shop floor. Fieldfare has been selling an ever-growing
Having operated in the same way for more than four decades, he says, the time is right for a change. Packaging-free options are increasing in popularity, with zero-waste hoppers frequently being found in independent shops, and the range of products on offer is growing, too. Fieldfare’s campaign is looking to capitalise on this momentum. Launched under the banner #Chooseloose, the series of adverts and advertorials highlights the environmental credentials of the brand: allowing consumers to buy only what they need in a format largely free of packaging. And these efforts seem to be paying dividends. At The Udder Farm Shop, manager Nick Edwards has seen the brand buck trends. “We’ve definitely seen sales grow since the rebrand last year, there’s no doubt about that,” he says. “The only section of our business that’s in decline is frozen, but Fieldfare has continued to be in growth.” CONTINUED ON PAGE 16
Vol.23 Issue 1 | January-February 2022
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