Brand Blurring & Brand Loyalty

While the plant-based brands are doing some skillful integrations into food service along with thoughtful packaging design and savvy advertising, there is still a blur that exists.

Brand blurring and brand confusion for your plant-based newbies, who cannot determine how one brand might be better than another. Many flexitarians who are relatively new to plant-based foods find it tough to discern, and this leads to little loyalty at this point.

One battle that is basically a glovesoff brawl right now is between Impossible and Beyond. Last year, at least from a sales standpoint, Impossible would say they have won, but the battle for consumer loyalty is far from over.

When consumers cast their eyes into the refrigerated or freezer cases and wells, what do they see, and how are they drawn to a brand? It looks 50-50 to many shoppers staring at the case.

Beyond (the idea of going beyond what you would ever fathom) and Impossible (the idea that it is impossible for plants to taste so good), are conceptually the same.

Today, I think many consumers think their essence is basically indistinguishable. The legions of Impossible fans and Beyond fans are not that passionate in my opinion. And all of this points to a huge, massive opportunity for retailers and their own brands, because CPG brand equities are still slowly forming.