FRESHLY WRAPPED
Leo Field – Jan 2014
The changing potato crisp in Great Britain: A study of marketing, product and culture
PIONEERS “In potato crisps there is a greater requirement for innovation than almost any other [food] category I’m aware of” – Ed Jackson, Chief Executive Golden Wonder, (Crunch Time For Crisps 2004) Rinsed free of debris, peeled, inspected for blemishes, sliced into 1.3mm slivers, washed, dried, fried for 3 minutes, scanned and selected, seasoned, weighed and bagged. In less than twenty minutes, a raw Lady Rosetta potato becomes a packet of crisps in Leicester. 800 tonnes of potatoes a day, producing 720,000 packets of crisps per hour is the output of just one Walkers crisps factory (Henley 2010). Together, British citizens get through over 6 billion packets of crisps a year; more than the rest of Europe put together (Henley 2010). Although this hasn’t always been the case, crisps are now an everyday part of our lives and over the years the market for them has become ever larger and ever more sophisticated. From the cheap and local, rough and ready, hand-cooked origins at the turn of the 20th century, to the booming mass-market creations of the 1960’s, to the celebrity endorsed, mega-branded, mass campaign-led snacks of the 1980’s, and up to the endless varieties and flavours, complex health and ecology propositions, and return to provenance that now reveals itself in 2013; the current crisps market is highly nuanced and responsive. Technological breakthroughs in food science, packaging and production, changing cultural tastes, lifestyle changes and national to global issues have led to a product history that tells a unique story about our culture. Though the exact origin of crisps in the UK is highly contested, the earliest notable success is that of Frank Smith [Fig. 1] who, in 1920, started selling packets of crisps accompanied with a little blue twist of salt, from his North London garage. At this early stage, the crisps were sold fresh from the cooker in open greaseproof bags around the streets of London. While Smith’s Crisps continued steadily, Frank relocated to Australia where his business also boomed. Wartime rationing and hardship made space for two key manufacturers in the 1940’s. Potatoes not being rationed, the butcher Henry Walker started making crisps above his shop as an alternative source of income when meat became scarce – Walkers crisps was formed in 1948. Rivals, Golden Wonder sprung from similar circumstance as struggling Scottish baker, William Alexander, started producing crisps in 1949, named after the Golden Wonder variety of potatoes. In these early years operations were relatively small-scale, individual companies generally serving surrounding areas. The products were varied and unregulated and inconsistency in taste, texture and freshness was commonplace due to the nature of production and packaging. It wasn’t until the early 1960’s that mass-market products began to emerge. Developments in production methods and packaging meant that regulated and consistent products could be made in larger batches at lower costs (Farm to Pharm 2009). The culture of snacking is a relatively recent development in the UK; the activity aptly referred to by food marketers as ‘grazing’. New foods and new methods of growing, processing, distributing and cooking food have led to a transformation in eating habits over the past 40 years (Murcott 1997: 32). Essentially seen as a product of Americanisation, we are said to have now developed an ‘empire of snacks’ (Ashley et al. 2004: 141). 1
FIG. 1
FIG. 2
FIG. 1 Smith’s Potato Crisps were one of the earliest widespread offerings in the UK. FIG. 2 Early packaging design was once a ‘will this do’ design discipline. FIG. 3 Foil wrapping for added freshness became commonplace during the 1990’s.
FIG. 3
In the 1960’s, developing traction in food science rapidly gave way to new flavours and Golden Wonder introduced the first flavoured crisps in 1962 – Cheese and Onion. Over the next few years, a vast array of flavours were formulated and released. The following years also saw the introduction of many of the snack brands that we see today, utilizing new production techniques. ‘Pringles’ (1967, Procter & Gamble), for example, are formed from potato flour (42%), corn flour, wheat starch and rice flour (Churchill 2008). ‘Wotsits’ (1962, Golden Wonder), ‘Quavers’ (1968, Smiths), ‘Hula Hoops’ (1973, KP), ‘Skips’ (1974, KP), ‘Frazzles’ (1975, Smiths) and ‘Monster Munch’ (1977, Smiths) were all released over the following years, making use of new and unusual manufacturing techniques. By the end of the 1980’s, snacks were a £1 billion industry in the UK (Grant 2005) and as the crisps market in the UK developed, a few very dominant brands gained a ‘stranglehold’ over the industry. Although Golden Wonder and Smiths initially led the way in terms of market share and innovation, Walkers soon expanded from a regional Leicester-based operation to the national playing field through an extensive and aggressive selling strategy. Walkers would send sales reps to independent retailers to talk about new product developments and why they expected their product to sell faster than anyone else’s. As they gained presence in stores, exposure to more consumers led to an increasing demand. By the end of the 1980’s, Golden Wonder’s market share was down to just 12% from 40% in 1970 (Crunch Time For Crisps 2004).
FROM CAVALRY TO TANKS “…they’re selling so little – a packet of air and a few bits of something very cheap. The only way they can make money is by constantly reinventing themselves and by making sure we eat an awful lot of them.” – Felicity Lawrence, Author on Food (Henley 2010) Although the production, selling and distribution of crisps had become relatively advanced by the early 1980’s, the nuanced and managed marketing and branding activities that we see today were essentially undeveloped. When referring to an early Walkers crisp packet [Fig. 2], Silas Amos of JKR Global (responsible for many advanced brand packaging today) concludes that “packaging design was once very much a ‘will this do?’ design discipline” (Are Golden Wonder Pushing Water uphill? 2013). However, in 1989, the largest snacks manufacturer in the world, PepsiCo, purchased the promising Walkers and major opposition, Smiths. With it, PepsiCo brought a marketing clout and sophistication that would transform the crisps market in the UK. “PepsiCo brought a real can-do spirit [to Walkers] – that if you get the product proposition right, you can be successful” – Martin Glenn, former President PepsiCo UK (Crunch Time For Crisps 2004) The company firstly introduced some quality-related refinements to its packaging. Foil lining was applied to ‘Quavers’ in 1993, ‘Monster Munch’ in 1995 and by 1996 the entire range would use nitrogen-filled foil bags [Fig. 3] for added freshness (Grant 2005). PepsiCo already owned American-based crisps brand Lay’s, which held clearly defined visual assets formulated by (global brand consultancy) Landor. PepsiCo saw the opportunity to apply these tried and tested visual assets to the Walkers brand that seemed to lack such strength. Fig. 4 shows the Lay’s brand as applied across international variants. Landor describes the ‘sun’ brand marque online, “…as a universal symbol of life, warmth and hope, the sun is a powerful visual metaphor for the wholesome, simple pleasures of […] all Frito-Lay brands. Furthermore, the red banner expresses leadership, tradition and quality while providing the flexibility to permit multiple product names. Our challenge was to further identify and distinguish the Frito-Lay brands 3
FIG. 4
FIG. 5
FIG. 6
FIG. 4 The Lay’s ‘sun’ brand marque has been applied to international variants for consistency and recognition. FIG. 5 Brand ambassador, Gary Lineker, is seen stealing new ‘Cheese & Onion’ crisps from a child in this 1995 Walkers advert. FIG. 6 A number of ‘instant-win’ promotions fuelled growth for Walkers in the late 1990’s.
under one clear corporate master brand that would serve as a recognizable and trusted endorsement” (Creating a Powerful Master Brand 2008) Regardless of the specific design thinking, applying an own-able and consistent brand marque would lead to increased recognition and clearer shelf stand-out for Walkers. As the company developed and gained trust, they would begin to use this as a small stamp of quality on all products under the Smiths/Walkers family [see Fig. 11]. In 1995, Walkers launched the first of many advertising campaigns, electing British Footballer Gary Lineker as brand ambassador. He was seen pinching kids crisps and acting out of character in a range of TV advertisements under the theme ‘No More Mr. Nice Guy’ [Fig. 5]. Lineker was a fitting choice for the brand due to the shared origins of Leicester, his reputation and popularity with most age groups and audiences and his association with an active and healthy lifestyle – perhaps a paradoxical coupling with junk food. He played a large part within the Walkers brand, even marking flavour updates; “Salt & Lineker” amongst others. Lineker still features strongly in Walkers advertising to this day and Martin Glenn, former President PepsiCo UK says “he brought fame for the brand” (Crunch Time For Crisps 2004). Walkers’ enormous success and growth in these years was also spurred by a stream of instant-win promotions in the late 1990’s [Fig. 6] which led to more acquisitions across the crisps market, such as ‘Wotsits’ (from Golden Wonder) in 2002. CHANGING BRITAIN “From the local to the global, from the traditional to the exotic: the food industries in contemporary Britain would seem to offer us culinary and cultural diversity, particularly when contrasted with the more restricted opportunities available to consumers just thirty years ago.” (Ashley et al. 2004: 91) As tastes have changed and developed in the UK, new generations are open to more exotic flavours. Walkers ‘Sensations’ (2002) catered to a new audience with sophisticated creations such as ‘Thai Lemongrass’ and ‘Caramelised Onion & Balsamic Vinegar’. Walkers also pushed a number of flavour promotions such as ‘Great British Takeaways’ in 2003 that saw such flavours as ‘Chicken Tikka Masala’ and ‘Chinese Spare Rib’ released. Customers were also invited to invent the ‘next big flavour’ for Walkers in 2009 for a cash prize of £50k along with a 1% share in future profits from the flavour. This prompted a staggering 1.3m entries and a 14% year-on-year sales increase (U Talk Marketing 2010). James Stillman, Head of Research and Development at Walkers would go as far as to say that the potato crisp holds a unique and powerful potential in eating experience; “There is the physical experience. The crunch, the smell, the taste, how the salt dissolves on your tongue, how the flavours develop in your nose” (Henley 2010). But despite such avant-garde offerings, the UK’s five most popular flavours have remained the same for years: in descending order, ‘Cheese & Onion’, ‘Ready Salted’, ‘Salt & Vinegar’, ‘Prawn Cocktail’ and ‘Chicken’. At any one time, Walkers will probably have up to 15 flavours in the market: the first five are generally the same whilst the other 10 change frequently (Henley 2010). In the early 2000’s, the crisps market would face a major challenge and the first largescale opposition to its growth. National health and increasing levels of obesity had been on the public agenda for some time, and manufacturers in the snacks and fast-food industries were seen as core offenders. The Guardian reported in 2003 that obesity levels in England had tripled over the previous 20 years (Tomlinson 2003) and there were increasing worries about the health of future generations. More than £430m is spent by children on snacks whilst travelling to and from school (Crunch Time For Crisps 2004) and by 2020 it is thought that a quarter of UK children will be overweight (BBC News 2006). Ofcom, the broadcast regulator, set out plans to ban advertisements for fatty snack foods from children’s television (Kleinmann and Ungoed5
FIG. 7
FIG. 8
FIG. 9
FIG. 7 Snacks manufacturers took a hit in 2006 when the British Heart Foundation released a widespread health campaign. FIG. 8 Walkers formulated ‘healthier Sunseed Oil’ in 2006. This screen-shot shows an information page on PepsiCo’s website. FIG. 9 The 2006 Walkers redesign introduced metallic futuristic lettering, but not for long.
Thomas 2006) and in 2006 the British Heart Foundation launched its biggest nationwide public health campaign [Fig. 7], warning that “half of all children were, in effect, drinking five litres of cooking oil a year by virtue of their packet-a-day habit” (Henley 2010). This, they warned, would lead to soaring rates of obesity and Type 2 diabetes. The snack food industry disputed the claims, stating that they “significantly overestimate either the amount of crisps or the amount of oil present as an ingredient by about 40%” (Snacma 2013). They also pointed out that crisps and savoury snacks contribute to only “around 5% and 6% of boys and girls daily intake of fat”. Golden Wonder went into temporary administration in 2006, hit by “adverse publicity” (Kleinmann and Ungoed-Thomas 2006).
REACTION “Innovate or die – that’s the name of the game.” (Crunch Time For Crisps 2004) Ian Ellington, General Manager at Walkers, commented, “we have to make a product that consumers want. In the longer term, we’re all moving towards consuming less fat and fewer calories, to making healthier choices. If we don’t adapt and transform our portfolio, meet those needs while continuing to deliver taste and texture, then there won’t be a Walkers brand” (Henley 2010). Walkers spent five years and £6m researching and formulating a new oil and in February 2006 started frying all products in the resulting ‘Sunseed Oil’ [Fig. 8] (Allen 2006). The reformulation achieved a 70% reduction of saturated fats in the core range, along with which Walkers reduced salt content. The reformulated product was the biggest relaunch in the business’s 58-year history, supported by a £20m campaign and packaging overhaul (Kleinmann and Ungoed-Thomas 2006). The new packaging [Fig. 9] featured an altered brand marque, graduated colours and larger, more futuristic flavour titles. But critical response from the design community was unfavourable; Marksteen Adamson, founding partner of Asha Brand Marketing Agency, said the new design was a “missed opportunity”, adding that their health proposition “doesn’t match the way that it looks. The colour scheme and everything that’s going on is ‘fast food’” (Creative Review ‘Crit’ 2006). Although Walkers’ sales were boosted, the altered packaging lasted under a year, with a more reserved update appearing in 2007 [Fig. 10] – note the potato-to-crisp journey now featured on the front of the pack. Other manufacturers quickly followed suit with healthier products; United Biscuits announcing a 50% reduction in saturated fat for ‘Hula Hoops’ in 2006, amongst many others (Kleinmann and Ungoed-Thomas 2006). Walkers released ‘Baked’ crisps and altered the cooking process of ‘Wotsits’ (amongst others), adding “baked” to the pack. Pack sizes across ‘Quavers’, ‘Squares’, ‘Wotsits’ and ‘French Fries’ were also altered in order to bring them in line with a ‘99 calories or less’ benchmark [Fig. 11]. Victoria Taylor, Senior Dietician for the British Heart Foundation, said of the snacks market in 2010, “It’s fair to say awareness has moved on. There have been reductions in salt content and sugar content and saturated fat intake, which is good, although crisps are still fried in fat, so calorie-wise that’s not marvellous […] But we need to go further. It’s all a question of balance.” (Henley 2010). Walkers alone have spent at least £20m in research and development since 2003 to make their crisps healthier. Most now contain up to 80% less saturated fats and 55% less salt than they did in 2006. New ranges such as ‘Baked’ and ‘Sunbites’ contain a further reduction in total fat (Henley 2010) and Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA’s) labels now appear on all products, helping consumers to make sense of nutritional information in the context of their overall diet (Wikipedia n.d). Further changes have happened to on-pack language due to new government portion-size guidelines, requiring large-serving ‘Big Eat’ bags to become to ‘Grab Bag’s’, for example. 7
FIG. 10
FIG. 10 The 2007 Walkers update features a potato-tocrisp journey, refined brand marque, subtler colours and reserved typography. FIG. 11 ‘Wotsits’ and ‘French Fries’ were brought down to a ‘99 calories or less’ benchmark. FIG. 12 Walkers ‘Sunbites’ (2007) were originally marketed as healthy snacks. FIG. 13 The 2011 redesign of ‘Sunbites’ saw a shift from ‘healthy’ to ‘delicious’, employing a playful and crafted visual style.
FIG. 11
FIG. 12
FIG. 13
CRISPS 2.0 “Consumer trends and consumer attitudes do change very quickly […] and that balance about recognizing and responding to consumer needs, but also being on the front foot, so you’re spotting trends and changing at the right pace. I think this is absolutely the art and the science of business.” – Rita Clifton, former Chairman Interbrand (The Bottom Line 2012) On the basis of increasing health concerns and emerging consumer awareness of recommended diet and lifestyle models, Walkers developed an alternative whole grain wheat and flour-based snack, ‘Sunbites’ in 2007. The packet [Fig. 12] boasts “more than 1/3 of the suggested daily amount of whole grains”. But surprisingly, the crisps achieved substantially lower sales figures than expected, requiring a complete proposition overhaul. Richard Evans, President PepsiCo UK commented in 2012, “I learnt a really difficult lesson a couple of years ago, where I really thought, based on all the data, that consumers would want more healthier products, so we launched this thing called Sunbites, and we told consumers, ‘this is really healthy for you, it’s got a third of your daily wholegrain’ and clearly consumers voted with their feet – it hasn’t been as successful as we’d of liked. Interestingly, when we’ve turned it round the other way and said, ‘hey this is a great tasting snack – ignore the wholegrain story, sales grew.” (The Bottom Line 2012) In light of a disappointing take-up, PepsiCo shifted the product proposition from ‘healthy’ to ‘delicious’ after finding that “taste remains the key driver in consumer spending decisions in the Crisps, Snacks and Nuts category with 70% of consumers making taste-driven purchases” (PepsiCo Trade News 2011). Ziggurat branding consultancy, which worked on the new package design [Fig. 13], pointed out that the brand had been “labouring its whole grain credentials and become worthy, bland and just a bit dull” (Ziggurat Case Study n.d). Sales grew by 84% after the relaunch, which was supported by advertising and online presence. This case study showed that consumer motivations in regards to healthy eating had not changed as rapidly as the industry had expected. The hand-crafted design style of ‘Sunbites’ reflects a wider shift in Graphic Design. As people become dismayed by large multinational businesses, brands are trying to regain a sense of small-scale and hand-made aesthetics. The Sunbites package went from a high gloss to rustic matte texture. “Sour Cream & Cracked Black Pepper flavour” turned into “Sour Cream & Cracked Black Pepper”. All typography becomes hand-rendered (style) lettering and colours are muted and natural. Walkers also added decorative feminine illustrations, on the finding that 80% of ‘Sunbites’ Facebook viewers were female (PepsiCo Trade News 2011). Many food businesses have opted for a ‘hand-crafted’ design style in recent years in order to express emotion, authenticity and humanity. Tesco is a key example, having in recent years begun to overhaul many packaging lines with ‘crafted’ redesigns; Fig. 14 shows a Tesco salad before and after recent redesigns; Fig. 15 shows a photograph of current in-store literature for Marks & Spencer employing similar aesthetics and Fig. 16, Innocent Smoothies; possibly the most famous example of a psuedo-naive styling in order to represent an authentic and down-to-earth product. As consumers have become suspicious of large corporations and the resulting synthetic foods since the advance of food science in the 1960’s, an emphasis on small-scale and traceable provenance has become more and more important in food branding. “Particularly in the last decade major manufacturers in the UK have moved towards the use of natural colours and flavourings, with only a limited number of additives approved for use in savoury snacks” (Snacma 2013) and it has become commonplace for crisps brands to boast the lack of such artificial ingredients on the back of packaging. 9
FIG. 14
FIG. 15
FIG. 16
FIG. 17
FIG. 14 Tesco are one of many brands now employing a hand-rendered and human design approach. Here shows a salad before and after recent redesigns. FIG. 15 This wall display inside Marks & Spencer shows an emphasis on authenticity and provenance.
FIG. 18
FIG. 16 Innocent Smoothies are a key brand to take up a psuedo-naive design approach. FIG. 17 Tyrrells crisps are one of many upmarket ‘designer crisps’ brands, with an emphasis on small-scale manufacture and rustic qualities. FIG. 18 Kettle Chips came from Oregon in 1987 and have taken off in recent years with a multitude of competitors.
“Designer crisps” (Gracie 2005) are now a large portion of the crisps market. These emphasize small-scale manufacture, cooked in small ‘batches’ and often described as ‘hand-cooked’. Brands like Tyrrells [Fig. 17] and Kettle Chips [Fig. 18] boast thick cut rustic crisps, usually in larger ‘sharing’ bags, with sophisticated flavour combinations and “absolutely nothing artificial”. They could be seen as a reaction to the polished, corporate, regulated and healthconscious crisps that now dominate the market. They also cater to an upmarket audience; Tyrrells language and photography suggesting a middle-class family holiday in Fig. 17. Brand stories become important in this market, with websites featuring the background and values of the business, written in an appealing tone of voice [Fig. 19]. Kettle Chips arrived in the UK in 1987 from Oregon (Henley 2010), expanding substantially in recent years, alongside a multitude of competitors; these ‘hand-cooked’ businesses are often large multinationals but it certainly appears otherwise. Walkers even released their own range of ‘hand-cooked’ crisps in 2009, ‘Red Sky’ [Fig. 20], intentionally excluding the Walkers brand marque from packaging in order to avoid associations with the large parent company. Luxury signifiers in this category have morphed rapidly over the past years, prompting the premium ‘Sensations’ brand to redesign and relaunch three times since the 2002 release. Fig. 21 shows images from Landor’s case study on the Walkers luxury brand. The pack shot clearly identifies a context, showing the crisps being enjoyed by a group of people alongside glasses of red wine. Landor describe how they moved the brand from “real food values” to “sexy” and “indulgent” in a bid to avoid being “outposhed” by the increasing competitors in this market (Landor Case Study 2010). BRANDING 2.0 “Every brand wants to be human, authentic, real” – Katie Ewer, Strategic Planner for JKR Global (Trust Me: Has Honesty Become a Devalued Currency 2013) In a world of large-scale and anonymous multinationals, perhaps the most valuable asset to a brand is trust. In the ESA (European Snacks Association) Summer 2013 Report, Sebastian Emig, Director General, remarks that “confidence in food has taken a hit recently after the EU-wide horse meat scandal”, with the message that current strategy for snack marketers must work to restore “public trust in the food industry”. Supermarkets, Banks, and even crisps brands are now working hard to gain trust and authenticity. These brands now communicate these messages through more channels than ever in an attempt to build strong engagement and trust. The ‘Sunbites’ brand is supported by cross-media presence [Fig. 22]; a Facebook page, website and blog with regular updates and recipes. “We aim to maintain Sunbites’ performance with a continuing focus on the brand as we engage consumers via the second Facebook giveaway” says Jon Kyle, Impulse Sales Director for PepsiCo UK (PepsiCo Trade News 2011). Walkers aims to deal with current market changes and consumer needs with yet another redesign. “The biggest flavour innovation behind the product range for ten years […] As shoppers continue to look for produce with regional provenance, there will now be even more reasons to enjoy the nation’s favourite crisps. Deeper, richer pack colours are designed to communicate quality, while remaining instantly recognizable” (PepsiCo Trade News 2013). The updated 2013 pack design [Fig. 23] sees the brand develop suggestions of provenance and quality, with “Cheddar from Somerset” written in a traditional serif typeface and a Union Jack flag ‘carved’ into the on-pack potato. The back of the pack reads, “At Walkers we believe Home Grown food tastes best. That’s why as well as using the best British potatoes we’ve now searched every corner of Britain for the tastiest home grown British ingredients to go into all of our irresistible flavours.” The product changes have been publicised with new advertising and promotion, “Gary’s Great Ingredient Hunt” [Fig. 24]. These regional ingredients mean an alteration to the coveted brand recipes – perhaps more than a typical image shift. This causes interesting issues when you consider that the ‘Smoky Bacon’ and ‘Roast Chicken’ flavours 11
FIG. 19
FIG. 20
FIG. 21
FIG. 19 A screen-shot from the Tyrrells website shows a meaningful brand story told through expressive language. FIG. 20 ‘Red Sky’ crisps were released by Walkers in 2009 as an answer to small-scale rustic crisps. FIG. 21 Walkers ‘Sensations’ luxury crisps cater to a sophisticated audience, recently moving in proposition from ‘real’ to ‘sexy’.
have lost their vegetarian credentials with the addition of regional animal derivatives; a strange situation, especially considering the small quantities of the ingredient involved. ‘Norfolk Dried Pork Shoulder’ is last on the ingredients list for ‘Smoky Bacon’ flavour crisps [Fig. 25] perhaps suggesting that the inclusion of such ingredients is down to marketing over any tangible flavour considerations. The crisps market continues to face new issues that require new innovations. ‘Quavers’ recently reduced packaging wrap by 30% [Fig. 26] in an attempt to “take 100,000 miles off the road” (PepsiCo Trade News 2013). This reflects widespread industry movement to reduce unnecessary packaging wrap in light of environmental damage – a notable shift from the boosting of empty package space for added visual presence. ‘Hula Hoops’ also achieved a packaging decrease recently, along with a long list of other brands, such as Sure and Kellogg’s.
KEEPING FRESH
“My passion in the business is to give people the choice: you can have a full-fat crisp or you can have a baked crisp. You can have a full-sugar soda or you can have a no-sugar soda”– Richard Evans, President PepsiCo UK (The Bottom Line 2012)
From the simple potato crisps at the turn of the 20th century to the all-consuming aisles of flavours and variations we now have; there is more choice than ever before when it comes to crisps. Malcolm Gladwell, Social Scientist, argues that the diverse ranges available to consumers now, filling every available market and catering for every situation, finds a “surer way to happiness” (Choice, Happiness and Spaghetti Sauce 2004). Perhaps the crisps market serves only as a response to such consumer needs, or perhaps it could be said that the culture of variety and change is manufactured and maintained solely by big business. Through years of development, brands like Walkers have shown that the crisps market can respond successfully to any issues that emerge. Packaging and advertising industries have developed in complexity, with subtleties of message now being employed across multimedia brand touch-points. Walkers’ constant reinventions show that those who nurture and care for their image whilst moving (even incrementally) with the times will not only gain coveted trust, but also succeed and prosper over those who rest on their laurels. Ed Jackson, Chief Executive of Golden Wonder boasts a traditional attitude to product proposition; “We’re not a company that wants to sell our crisps on the basis of support from personalities. We want to sell our crisps on the basis of good, honest potato crisps with flavours that you’ll enjoy” (Crunch Time For Crisps 2004) This standpoint is inevitably outdated in an era of sophisticated brand image. Golden Wonder invested £25m on product reformulation in 2004 to little return of success. The branding of crisps has moved in emphasis from practical considerations (consistency, texture, freshness) to emotional propositions (provenance, trust, authenticity) as if the lower regions on a ‘hierarchy of needs’ have been fulfilled. Any brand (be it Walkers, Tyrrells or McCoy’s) now communicates a considered and distinguished brand character and message through a wide variety of touchpoints – from instant-win promotions to flavour competitions, reformulations, web presences or packaging refreshes – in order to gain, and continue to appeal to, a select consumer-base [Fig. 27]. But perhaps the final, and most important, consideration to take is summed up concisely in the below quote from Silas Amos, JKR Global; “Great products will sell themselves on their qualities not their wrapping. Just as poor products will tend to fail regardless of the design one puts around them.” (Authenticity – Not a Design Style 2013) 13
FIG. 22
FIG. 23
FIG. 22 Modern brands exploit multimedia opportunities to engage consumers and gain trust. The ‘Sunbites’ blog and Facebook page act as a space for ‘fans’ to find out about promotions and share recipes. FIG. 23 & 24 Brands must cater to provenance and tradition in a world of multinational presence. Walkers’ 2013 reformulation is accompanied by a packaging update and the multimedia ‘Gary’s Great Ingredient Hunt’ campaign. FIG. 25 Regional ingredients now feature in Walkers flavours, but not in very large quantities, as this ingredients list for ‘Smoky Bacon’ flavour crisps reveals.
FIG. 24
FIG. 25
FIG. 26
FIG. 27
FIG. 26 Brands cut down unnecessary packaging in an attempt to curb wastage in light of green concerns. FIG. 27 Brands now communicate a considered character and messaging across multiple touch-points. Clockwise from top left: appropriate promotion on Tyrrells mailing list email, farm-to-shop imagery on the side of a Walkers delivery van, the ‘home of Walkers’ on Facebook and McCoy’s ‘man’ character conveyed on witty Facebook posts.
15
FIGURES
1. Image of Smith’s Potato Crisps advertisement n.d (est. early 20th century) source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ commons/thumb/7/74/Old_smiths_potato_chips_ad.jpg/800pxOld_smiths_potato_chips_ad.jpg (accessed 21/12/2013) 2. Image of old Walkers crisp packet n.d (est. late 1980’s) source: http://www.jkrglobal.com/design-gazette/are-goldenwonder-pushing-water-uphill (accessed 20/12/2013) 3. Frame of Walkers advertisement 1994 source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_m1Sz17aq0k (accessed 22/12/2013) 4. Image of Lay’s international variants n.d (est. early 2000’s) source: http://www.perspectivebranding.com/our-work/layspotato-chips (accessed 20/12/2013) 5. Frames of Walkers advertisement 1995 source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-40pPnfOQ9k (accessed 22/12/2013) 6. Image of Walkers crisp packet n.d (est. late 1990’s) source: http://forums.thedailywtf.com/forums/p/25755/281910. aspx (accessed 23/12/2013) 7. British Heart Foundation health campaign 2006 source: http://www.familycomms.com/blog/the-throat-grabber (accessed: 21/12/2013) 8. Screen-shot of PepsiCo UK web page content n.d (est. mid 2000’s) source: http://www.pepsico.co.uk/our-company/ products-and-nutrition/walkers-snacks/sunseed-oil (accessed: 19/12/2013) 9. Image of Walkers crisp packet 2006 source: http://www.englishteastore.com/wachonpocr12.html (accessed 21/12/2013) 10. Image of Walkers crisp packet n.d (est. 2007-2010) source: http://www.americansweets.co.uk/walkers-cheese--onionflavour-crisps-case-of-48-bags-6106-p.asp (accessed 20/12/2013) 11. Images of ‘Wotsits’ and ‘French Fries’ crisp packets n.d (est. late 2000’s) source: http://groceries.iceland.co.uk/walkers-bakedwotsits-really-cheesy-flavour-corn-puffs-6-packs/p/39386 and http://www.approvedfood.co.uk/?pid=55387 (accessed 21/12/2013) 12. Image of ‘Sunbites’ packet n.d (est. 2007) source: http://www.zigguratbrands.com/branding/sunbites/ (accessed 20/12/2013) 13. Image of ‘Sunbites’ packet n.d (est. 2011) source: http://www.zigguratbrands.com/branding/sunbites (accessed 20/12/2013) 14. Images of Tesco salads n.d (est mid 2000’s and early 2010’s) source: http://leothinks.tumblr.com/post/56172211989/ every-little-ad (accessed 19/12/2013)
15. Image of wall display inside Marks & Spencer, Birmingham 2013 source: photograph taken by the author, Dec 2013 16. Image of Innocent Smoothies 2013 source: http://greatpreneurs.com/adam-balon-innocent-smoothies (accessed 18/12/2013) 17. Image of Tyrrells packet n.d (est.2012) source: http://www.approvedfood.co.uk/?pid=54892 (accessed 22/12/2013) 18. Image of Kettle Chips packet n.d (est. 2012) source: http://www.superbrands.uk.com/kettle-chips (accessed 22/12/2013) 19. Screen-shot of Tyrrells website 2013 source: https://www.tyrrellscrisps.co.uk/about-us (accessed 18/12/2013) 20. Image of Red Sky crisp packets n.d (est. 2012) source: http://www.zigguratbrands.com/branding/red-sky (accessed 19/12/2013) 21. Images of Walkers ‘Sensations’ from Landor case-study 2010 source: http://landor.com/#!/work/case-studies/sensations/ (accessed 17/12/2013) 22. Screen-shots of ‘Sunbites’ website and Facebook page 2013 source: http://www.sunbites.co.uk/blog/ and https://www. facebook.com/WalkersSunbites?fref=ts (accessed 19/12/2013) 23. Image of Walkers crisp packet 2013 source: http://www.ocado.com/webshop/product/Walkers-Cheese-Onion-Crisps/58335011 (accessed 18/12/2013) 24. Screen-shot of Walkers website 2013 source: http://www.walkers.co.uk/#/home (accessed 10/12/2013) 25. Image of Walkers ‘Smoky Bacon’ flavour ingredients list 2013 source: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Walkers-Smoky-BaconCrisps-32-5/dp/B007BN4EOC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=138755750 7&sr=8-1&keywords=walkers+smoky+bacon (accessed 18/12/2013) 26. Images of brand packaging wrap reductions 2013 source: http://www.jkrglobal.com/design-gazette/little-andlarge(accessed 17/12/2013) 27. Images of brand touch-points for various brands various a) Tyrrells email 2013 b) Walkers van 2013http://www.perspectivebranding.com/ourwork/lays-potato-chips (accessed 19/12/2013) c) Screen-shot of Walkers Facebook page 2013 https://www. facebook.com/walkers?fref=ts (accessed 17/12/2013) d) Screen-shot of McCoy’s Facebook page 2013 https://www. facebook.com/mccoyscrisps?fref=ts (accessed 16/12/2013)
BIBLIOGRAPHY
E-BOOKS, BOOKS, DIGITAL AND PRINTED ARTICLES ALLEN, Vanessa. (2006). The Daily Mirror 3 February ASHLEY, Bob et al. (2004). Food and Cultural Studies. London: Routledge. CREATIVE REVIEW. (2006). ‘Crit’. April. EMIG, Sebastian. (2013). ‘Director General’s Column, Restoring Public Trust in the Food Industry’. Snacks Magazine, Summer 2013 GRACIE, Sarah. (2005). ‘Crunch time for crisp maker’. The Sunday Times 9 January GRANT, Tina. (2005). International Directory of Company Histories, Vol. 70. Pennsylvania: St. James Press. KLEINMAN, Mark and UNGOED-THOMAS, Jon. (2006). ‘Walkers crunches down on crisp fat’. The Sunday Times 29 January MURCOTT, Anne. (1997) ‘Family Meals – A Thing of the Past?’. in Food, Health and Identity. (August 1997). by CAPLAN, Patricia. Oxfordshire: Taylor & Francis Ltd. TOMLINSON, Heather. (2003). ‘Business & Media: Interview: Crisp Rebuttal: Martin Glenn, president of PepsiCo UK and Ireland’. The Guardian 27 December
LANDOR. (2010). ‘Sensations – Taking consumers on a flavour journey’ [online]. available from <http://landor. com/pdfs/k9/Sensations_LongForm_1Nov10.pdf?utm_ campaign=PDFDownloads&utm_medium=web&utm_ source=web> [23/12/2013] PEPSICO. (2011). ‘Walkers Sunbites Packaging Redesign’ [online]. 12 April. available from <http://www.pepsico.co.uk/ourcompany/trade-information/trade-media-centre/trade-news/ walkers-sunbites-packaging-redesign> [23/12/2013] PEPSICO. (2011). ‘Tasty or Wholesome – Walkers Sunbites Facebook Campaign’ [online]. 25 November. available from <http://www.pepsico.co.uk/trade-news/tasty-or-wholesomewalkers-sunbites-facebook-campaign> [23/12/2013] PEPSICO. (2013). ‘Walkers announce biggest flavour innovation in a decade’ [online]. 19 January. available from <http://www. pepsico.co.uk/trade-news/walkers-announce-biggest-flavourinnovation-in-a-decade> [23/12/2013] PEPSICO. (2013). ‘Quavers reduce packaging wrap by 30%’ [online]. 10 June. available from <http://www.pepsico.co.uk/ trade-news/quavers-reduce-packaging-wrap-by-30-per-cent> [23/12/2013] U TALK MARKETING. (2010). ‘Walkers ‘Do Us a Flavour’ case study’ [online]. available from <http://www.utalkmarketing. com/Pages/Article.aspx?ArticleID=18384> [23/12/2013]
ONLINE MEDIA, ARTICLES AND WEBSITES
SNACMA Snack, Nut and Crisp Manufacturers Association. (2013). ‘Fact or Fiction’ [online]. available from <http://www. snacma.org.uk/fact-or-fiction.asp> [23/12/2013]
AMOS, Silas. (2013). ‘Are Golden Wonder Pushing Water Uphill?’. [14/3/2013]. available from <http://www.jkrglobal.com/designgazette/are-golden-wonder-pushing-water-uphill> [23/12/2013]
WIKIPEDIA. (n.d). ‘Guideline Daily Amount’ [online]. available from <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guideline_Daily_Amount> [23/12/2013]
AMOS, Silas. (2013). ‘Authenticity – Not a Design Style’. [15/7/2013]. available from < http://www.jkrglobal.com/designgazette/authenticity-–-not-a-design-style> [23/12/2013]
ZIGGURAT. (n.d). ‘Sunbites’ [online]. available from <http:// www.zigguratbrands.com/branding/sunbites> [23/12/2013]
BBC NEWS. (2006). ‘Pack-a-day crisp habit warning’ [online]. 21 September. available from <http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/ health/5367822.stm> [23/12/2013]
VIDEO AND AUDIO RESOURCES
EWER, Katie. (2013). ‘Trust Me: Has Honesty Become a Devalued Currency?’. [19/7/2013]. available from <http://www.jkrglobal. com/design-gazette/trust-me-has-honesty-become-devaluedcurrency> [23/12/2013] HENLEY, Jon. (2010). ‘Crisps: A Very British Habit’. The Guardian [online] 1 September. available from <http://www. theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/sep/01/crisps-british> [23/12/2013] LANDOR. (2008). ‘Creating a Powerful Master Brand’ [online]. available from <http://www.landor.com/pdfs/cases/ Case1871-A4.pdf> [23/12/2013]
Choice, Happiness and Spaghetti Sauce. (2004). [online] TED2004. available from <http://www.ted.com/talks/malcolm_ gladwell_on_spaghetti_sauce.html> [23/12/2013] Crunch Time For Crisps, The Money Programme. (2004). [VHS Video] BBC2 Farm to Pharm – The Rise and Rise of Food Science, Time Shift. (2009). [DVD Video] BBC4 The Bottom Line with Evan Davies. (2012). [online] BBC Radio 4. 14 June. available from <http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/ b01jrlfy> [23/12/2013]