Britain's 100 Biggest Brands Risers, Fallers & Basket Cases

Britain’s 100 Biggest Brands Risers, fallers & basket cases

BBB16_01_cover.indd 3 11/03/2016 16:39

in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands leader

“In a climate of brutal rivalry, creative advertising has never been more important for Britain’s brands”

ver the next 42 pages there’s a lot of discussion about the price of groceries. We are in the midst of a price war, after all. Sixty one of Britain’s top O100 brands have seen their average prices per unit fall in the past year. What’s more, SKUs are Britain’s 100 being jettisoned as the major mults fight to maximise the profit- ability of their shelves. Biggest Brands What you’ll also find in this year’s report is proof of the value of targeted, creative, effective and well invested marketing; Risers, fallers proof that when done properly, advertising can be so much more than just hot air; that it can help fuel a brand’s rise above the & basket cases deflation that has grounded so many of Britain’s biggest brands in the past year. It all starts with the product, of course. But with shelf space Where to find Britain’s 100 Biggest Brands squeezed and shoppers holding the purse strings ever more tightly, effective marketing of those products has never been Activia 31 Lindt 38 Air Wick 35 Lucozade 14 more important. Indeed, it’s crucial if retailers are to be per- Alpro 33 Lurpak 17 suaded that a brand is worthy of shelf space and, ultimately, AnchorBBB16_01_cover.indd 3 34 Magnum 11/03/2016 3016:39 Andrex 14 Maltesers 28 shoppers are to be convinced it’s worth paying more for. Ariel 30 Mars 35 See the performance of Warburtons, at no 2, for proof. It’s win- Aunt Bessie’s 31 McCain 17 Bakers 36 McCoy’s 36 ning share of a stale baked goods sector as Hovis and Kingsmill Bernard Matthews 38 McVitie’s 12 plummet. NPD has been central to this performance; so have Birds Eye 14 Monster Energy 35 Stallone and the Muppets. It’s significant that Warbies has main- Bisto 12 Mr Kipling 31 Bold 35 Müller Corner 25 tained a higher price per unit than its rivals in the past year. Cadbury 30 Müllerlight 30 Advertising pays, if it’s done well. Pepsi, the year’s second big- Cadbury Dairy Milk 12 Napolina 34 Capri-Sun 38 Nescafé 14 gest grower, continues to defy a difficult market, thanks partly to Cathedral City 18 Old El Paso 36 the innovative marketing of Pepsi Max, which uses digital media Chicago Town 35 Pedigree 25 Coca-Cola 10 Pepsi 14 and viral videos. Number one brand Coke, which admits it’s Comfort 28 Persil 18 struggled to communicate what no and low-sugar lines Zero and Cravendale 30 PG Tips 35 Life stand for, could learn a thing or two. Dairylea 38 Philadelphia 36 Dettol 36 Pizza Express 36 One of the year’s fastest growers is Monster Energy. That the Dolmio 30 Plenty 38 brand, which only entered the top 100 for the first time two years Doritos 26 Pot Noodle 36 Evian 30 Princes 22 ago, has got where it is today without ever advertising on TV Fairy 17 Pringles 26 is staggering. Monster proves that relevant marketing – in this Fanta 34 Quaker 22 Felix 18 Red Bull 18 case, sponsorship of motorsports, bikes and boobs on social Finish 34 Ribena 30 media – has become as important as having relevant products. Flora 31 Richmond 34 Galaxy 22 Robinsons 18 There are many more examples in this year’s report; brands Ginsters 35 Schweppes 35 flying high thanks to the swift development of new products, Haribo 28 Special K 38 expert negotiation of the tough conditions buffeting grocery Heinz Beanz 22 Surf 34 Heinz Sauces 26 Thorntons 34 and, crucially, innovative and relevant marketing. After all, that Heinz Soup 25 Tropicana 20 is what makes a brand a brand. Hellmann’s 35 Twinings 35 Highland Spring 38 Twirl 38 Hovis 17 Uncle Ben’s 28 Innocent 25 Velvet 34 Irn-Bru 36 Volvic 26 contributors Jacob’s 26 Walkers 12 John West 30 Walkers Sensations 35 Kenco 34 Warburtons 11 ●●Supplement editor: ●●Writers: Natalie Brown, Kettle 35 Weetabix 30 Rob Brown Simon Gwynn, Amy North, Kinder 36 WeightWatchers 34 ●●Sub-editor: Kit Davies Carina Perkins, Daniel Kingsmill 17 Whiskas 25 Kit Kat 28 Wrigley’s Extra 22 ●●Art editor: Stuart Milligan Selwood, Emma Sturgess, Kleenex 36 Yeo Valley Organic 32 ●●Designer: Beth Johnson Kevin White Lenor 32 Young’s 31

www.thegrocer.co.uk 19 March 2016 | The Grocer | 3

BBB16_03_Leader.indd 3 15/03/2016 10:14 Britain’s biggest brands

4 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk in association with nielsen

Who’s flying high? Who’s down? Who’s out? Market headwinds have led to a £400m decline for the top 100, but some are still sky high. How?

Rob Brown

rocery brands are falling back to earth with a bump. With deflation gripping the economy, competition for supermar- Gket shelf space never fiercer and the discounters doing a roaring trade with their ‘like brands but cheaper’ promise, 56 of Britain’s 100 Biggest Grocery Brands have suffered a fall in value in the past year. and 61 have seen prices fall. And it’s across the board. Just three of grocery’s 10 biggest names – Dairy Milk (4), Nescafé (7) and Pepsi (9) – have managed to grow value in the past year. The combined loss of the top 10 brands stands at an eyewatering £105.6m, accounting for more than a quarter of the top 100’s combined loss of £408.5m, a 2% decline. The plummeting sales are not all down to price deflation, either; Britain’s biggest brands have shifted 87.8 million (0.6%) fewer units. Yet some are still gaining altitude at an impressive rate. Alpro (59) has turned in the greatest growth, worth £27.6m. Pepsi (9) has defied slumping sales of carbon- ated soft drinks with growth worth £22.6m. Kinder (83) is soaring, its £22.4m growth taking it into the top 100 for the first time. How are they doing it? And who’s down and out? One thing’s for certain: it’s considerably harder for brands to get off the ground than it was a year ago. In our 2015 report, 42 of the top 100 brands were suffering from deflating average unit prices. As competition between the supermarkets has escalated, the promise of cheaper brands is being used to lure shoppers through the doors. “Clearly there’s more promotional pressure and retailers are also taking a view on the everyday price of one brand versus another,” says Leendert den Hollander, general manager at Coca-Cola Enterprises, which has seen the average price of three of its five top 100 brands – Fanta (62); Monster Energy (73); Capri-Sun (97) – fall in the past year. “In partnership with our www.thegrocer.co.uk 19 March 2016 | The Grocer | 5 in association with nielsen Britain’s biggest brands

customers, we need to try to define how we can bring Who’s in? value. To a large extent the onus is on us. We have to 83 (109) Kinder: A ask: how do we bring new news; how do we get con- keen eye on portion sumers ready to pay the right price?” control and sharing Responding to consumer trends with relevant NPD formats and savvy is crucial. The £16m growth of Monster Energy, which NPD have delivered has risen seven spots up this year’s ranking, is a case an extra £22.4m in point; in September, CCE unleased zero-sugar sub- brand Monster Energy Ultra, a range that has been a 94 (101) Plenty: key driver of the brand’s overall growth. The launch of THE RANKING Big ad spend has no-added-sugar Capri-Sun, in anticipation of Tesco’s RANK BRAND SALES CHANGE helped Plenty clean July axing of added-sugar kids’ drinks, and the January 2016 2015 £m £m % up in a category extension of Coke Zero Cherry into 330ml cans are other 1 1 Coca Cola 1,145.8 –30.1 –2.6 defined by falling examples of how brands are changing with the times. 2 2 Warburtons 695.3 –19.8 –2.8 prices and own label Note the absence of sugar. With Britain going to war 3 3 Walkers 599.3 –37.7 –5.9 growth. Up £6.8m with the white stuff and health a growing concern for 4 4 Dairy Milk 528.5 3.1 0.6 Brits at the checkouts, brands that have developed 5 5 Birds Eye 490.2 –25.3 –4.9 95 (11) Twirl: ‘healthier’ lines or marketed themselves on their nutri- 6 6 McVitie’s 464.5 4.5 –1.0 Sharing is caring for tional benefits are defying the downturn. 7 8 Nescafé 432.7 6.6 1.5 Twirl. The brand’s Examples abound. Alpro is flying high off the back 8 7 Lucozade 426.7 –0.2 0.0 £12.4m growth, of booming demand for dairy-free products and its 9 9 Pepsi 423.2 22.6 5.6 driven primarily by extension into new categories, such as potted des- 10 11 Andrex 350.3 –20.3 –5.5 sharing format Twirl serts. Innocent (26) is offsetting slumping sales of fruit 11 13 McCain 318.5 4.2 1.3 Bites, has catapulted juices with new functional smoothies, veg juice and 12 10 Kingsmill 312.6 –58.4 –15.7 it into the top 100 coconut water. 13 14 Fairy 301.8 –7.8 –2.5 Developing ‘healthier’ products is one thing; ensur- 14 15 Lurpak 295.6 –4.0 –1.3 96 (110) Lindt 15 12 Hovis 288.7 –62.1 –17.7 Lindor: Up a cool 16 16 Cathedral City 276.9 –1.8 –0.7 £11m and into the 17 18 Red Bull 273.0 9.5 3.6 top 100, thanks “The onus is on us. We 18 17 Robinsons 262.9 –15.5 –5.6 partly to the launch have to ask: how do we 19 22 Felix 251.3 15.3 6.5 of its first foray into 20 21 Persil 246.6 –0.8 –0.3 sharing slabs with bring new news? How do 21 19 Tropicana 241.9 –21.3 –8.1 the Hello collection we get consumers ready 22 23 Galaxy 233.0 7.1 3.2 23 20 Princes 229.3 –27.3 –10.6 99 (107) Highland to pay the right price?” 24 28 Wrigley’s Extra 223.4 9.5 4.5 Spring: The posh 25 26 Heinz Beans 211.6 –3.7 –1.7 bottled water brand 26 30 Innocent 211.2 3.5 1.7 has sprung into the ing consumers understand what it is that differentiates 27 31 Pedigree 203.4 –0.6 –0.3 top 100 with growth them from the standard offering is another. For exam- 28 27 Müller Corner 202.9 –11.5 –5.4 of £5.1m. A £1.6m ple, Coke (1) has conceded that it needs to do more to 29 24 Whiskas 202.5 –29.4 –12.7 TV campaign helped communicate what its different variants stand for, say- 30 29 Heinz Soup 199.3 –10.8 –5.1 ing that only around half of consumers understand that 31 40 Pringles 196.2 16.2 9.0 Coke Zero contains no sugar, and new variant Coke Life 32 37 Volvic 192.6 8.7 4.7 contains 45% less sugar than standard Coke. 33 33 Heinz Sauces 187.8 –5.2 –2.7 It could take a leaf out of Pepsi Max’s book. The 34 38 Jacob’s 187.3 5.6 3.1 ‘no sugar maximum taste’ cola has been the driving 35 43 Doritos 186.6 10.8 6.1 force behind Pepsi for years, and once again accounts 36 36 Maltesers 181.6 –4.9 –2.6 for the lion’s share of the brand’s gains, thanks in no 37 47 Haribo 181.4 9.8 5.7 small part to marketing aimed with pinpoint preci- 38 48 Comfort 180.2 11.4 6.8 sion at Pepsi Max’s target audience of young adults 39 42 Kit Kat 179.8 1.9 1.1 and teenagers. 40 39 Uncle Ben’s 178.1 –2.3 –1.3 “Ultimately, carbonates is suffering from a decline in 41 45 John West 178.1 6.1 3.6 relevancy amongst today’s consumers due to growing 42 44 Müllerlight 178.0 5.2 3.0 health concerns and a shopper base that is purchasing 43 25 Cadbury 174.7 –47.7 –21.5 on autopilot,” says Phil Sanders, commercial director 44 41 Weetabix 174.2 –1.3 –0.7 at Pepsi’s bottler & distributor Britvic. 45 35 Ariel 174.0 –12.5 –6.7 Digital activity including YouTube videos of extreme 46 50 Mr Kipling 169.5 3.7 2.2 sports, the brand’s UEFA sponsorship and cross-brand 47 32 Activia 167.8 –25.4 –13.2 promotions with fellow PepsiCo-owned snack brands 48 49 Young’s 164.4 –3.8 –2.2 Walkers (3) and Doritos (35) have also helped, as has a 49 46 Flora 163.1 –8.6 –5.0 social media and nationwide sampling campaign for 50 34 Aunt Bessie’s 160.3 –26.4 –14.1 Pepsi Max Cherry, which has delivered nearly £20m Source: Nielsen 52 w/e 2 January 2016 growth for the flavour variant.

6 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk The most exciting small tablets innovation of 2016!

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*Cadbury’s Dairy Milk is the UK’s no.1 chocolate brand – Nielsen, Total Coverage, MAT value sales to w/e 26.12.15 in association with nielsen Britain’s biggest brands

Health concerns are redefining the snacking mar- Who’s out? ket also. Walkers, for example, has lost £37.7m (5.9%) 102 (96) Dr Pepper: of its value in the past year as shoppers have begun to A casualty of the war turn away from fried potato crisps in favour of baked on sugar and the savoury snacks, such as United Biscuits’ Jacob’s (34), resulting backlash which has climbed four places up the ranking thanks against fizzy pop, to a flurry of launches, such as July’s Cracker Crisps, the doc has lost a designed to lure shoppers away from potato crisps. No whopping £4.1m wonder Walkers and Walkers Sensations (101) have unveiled baked snack ranges in the past year. THE RANKING 105 (99) Snickers: The two biggest casualties of the year also reflect RANK BRAND SALES CHANGE Investment in ads changing consumer habits (albeit retailers also played 2016 2015 £m £m % starring Rowan a part with delistings). Hovis (15) has lost £62.1m, 51 53 Magnum 156.6 7.3 4.9 Atkinson and NPD Kingsmill (12) £58.4m, as consumers continue to ditch 52 65 Lenor 153.3 16.2 11.8 hasn’t been enough bread, partly as a result of negative health associations 53 59 Evian 152.7 9.7 6.8 to stop Snickers with white sliced. In response, Hovis has pledged to 54 62 Yeo Valley Organic 151.3 13.2 9.5 from bowing out. invest in developing its range of ‘healthier’ loaves, such 55 51 Ribena 150.6 –14.2 –8.6 Sales are down as the protein-rich Sunflower & Pumpkin Seed product 56 64 Bisto 146.2 9.1 6.7 £602,000 it launched in February. Meanwhile, fewer Brits are 57 57 Cravendale 145.3 –0.9 –0.6 eating breakfast at home; fewer are packing lunches. 58 67 Quaker Oats 139.3 3.4 2.5 108 (97) This is where innovation can play a crucial role. In 59 78 Alpro 139.0 27.6 24.8 Rowntree’s: recent years, Weetabix (44) has diversified with drinks 60 56 Dolmio 138.8 –9.3 –6.3 Nestlé’s flagship and biscuits. Value has still fallen £1.3m – but its per- 61 60 Napolina 137.7 –5.1 –3.6 confectionery brand formance is much stronger than Special K (93), which is 62 66 Fanta 136.7 0.8 0.6 has lost £7.2m as now in serious danger of falling out of the top 100 after 63 69 Finish 136.7 3.2 2.4 retailers have cut nearly a quarter of its value (£28.1m) was wiped out. 64 54 Richmond 131.9 –16.9 –11.3 space for sweets and 65 68 Kenco 131.8 –1.9 –1.4 rivals have invested 66 52 WeightWatchers 130.9 –32.2 –19.7 in sharing formats 67 70 Thorntons 130.4 –2.5 –1.9 “NPD is a key area of 68 71 Surf 130.4 3.4 2.7 111 (94) Wiseman: investment for Warburtons 69 63 Anchor 129.7 –8.4 –6.1 The milk brand’s 70 55 Velvet 129.2 –19.4 –13.1 days as a top 100 – as demonstrated by 71 58 PG Tips 129.0 –15.6 –10.8 brand had been several new products over 72 61 Schweppes 128.8 –10.7 –7.7 numbered for some 73 80 Monster Energy 126.5 16.0 14.5 time. Continuing the past 12 months” 74 74 Bold 122.8 –0.2 –0.2 price cuts in dairy 75 72 Mars 119.3 –6.4 –5.1 have sealed its fate; 76 75 Ginsters 117.1 –2.0 –1.7 down £12.3m Similarly, Warburtons (2) has weathered the storm 77 79 Chicago Town 113.1 2.5 2.2 with a combination of savvy innovation and big budget 78 81 Air Wick 113.0 3.1 2.8 137 (92) Tate & marketing. “NPD is a key area of investment – demon- 79 77 Hellmann’s 112.1 –1.2 –1.0 Lyle: Sales have strated by the launch of several new products over the 80 82 Twinings 110.1 1.0 0.9 been anything but last 12 months including Thin Bagels and most recently 81 90 Pizza Express 107.6 8.9 9.1 sweet for the sugar Giant Crumpets,” says Warburtons’ marketing director 82 83 Philadelphia 105.7 –2.2 –2.0 brand as retailers Mark Simester. The ad featuring the Muppets helped 83 109 Kinder 104.6 22.4 27.3 have hammered drive growth for the innovation. “‘The Giant Crumpet 84 76 Bakers 102.5 –14.4 –12.3 down prices and the Show’ was also declared the most successful Christmas 85 84 Kleenex 101.7 –6.0 –5.6 market was flooded ad of 2015, according to consumer research carried out 86 98 Pot Noodle 100.6 8.6 9.4 with cheap EU beet. by independent researchers.” 87 86 Irn-Bru 100.0 –5.4 –5.1 Down £37.8m, or Ensuring products are in the right format is also cru- 88 89 Dettol 99.2 0.1 0.1 39.4%. Ouch cial. Pringles (31) has benefited from growing demand 89 85 McCoy’s 99.0 –8.5 –7.9 for snacks in sharing formats, a trend that’s also ben- 90 91 Old El Paso 98.6 1.0 1.0 efitted brands such as Kinder (83) and M&M’s (105). 91 93 Kettle 97.2 1.9 2.0 John West (41) is another case in point. The brand 92 87 Bernard Matthews 96.0 –8.9 –8.5 has offset intense price competition in canned tuna 93 73 Special K 95.1 –28.1 –22.8 through the development of new formats and prod- 94 101 Plenty 94.6 6.8 7.7 ucts, such as its Spreadables range of sandwich fillers, 95 111 Cadbury’s Twirl 93.8 12.4 15.2 and Infusions and Steam Pots ranges of added value 96 110 Lindt Lindor 93.0 11.0 13.4 tuna. The brand is up £6.1m in a floundering canned 97 95 Capri-Sun 92.3 –1.4 –1.5 food market. 98 100 Dairylea 90.2 2.3 2.6 That a brand in one of the most commoditised mar- 99 107 Highland Spring 89.6 5.1 6.0 kets in grocery can achieve such solid growth, makes 100 88 Tetley 88.5 –10.9 –11.0 it clear: brands can still fly high, so long as low prices Source: Nielsen 52 w/e 2 January 2016 isn’t their only USP.

8 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk SAVOUR THE CHERRY TASTE

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*Kantar World Panel – Total Colas – Total Market– 52 W/E – Period MAT to Aug 15. © 2016 The Coca-Cola Company. Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Zero and the Coca-Cola Contour Bottle are registered trademarks of The Coca-Cola Company. All rights reserved.

COC0722_ZERO CHERRY Ad_A4_VIS5.indd 1 04/03/2016 15:55 britain’s biggest brands

1 (1) Coca-Cola ●●Sales: £1,145.8m (–2.6%) “I’d talk about our strat- Coke has become a byword for egy in just five words: ‘inspir- excessive sugar consumption. ing sustainable soft drink And with sugar the white devil choices,’” says den Hollander, of the age, it’s no surprise Coke pointing to the masterbrand is suffering. Britain’s biggest campaign that kicked off in grocery brand has been hit by the UK last March and for the the seventh largest value loss first time saw all four Cokes of the year, with sales down advertised as a single brand. £30.1m and 23.8 million (2.8%) The strategy has since been fewer units sold. Ouch. rolled out globally. “It’s fair to say it’s been a Growing emphasis on no or challenging year,” says Coca- low sugar lines could prove Cola Enterprises general man- crucial in appeasing health ager Leendert den Hollander. lobbyists. “We don’t debate “There’s never been more that there’s an obesity crisis,” scrutiny of the category on says den Hollander, adding sugar than there is now.” volumes of Diet, Zero and Life See the performance of are up (in litres; Diet and Zero red Coke for the impact of units are down due to a shift that scrutiny: £26.3m (4.2%) to larger multipacks). “What has been wiped off its value, we’d debate is whether a sugar which now stands at £599.2m; tax, apart from the fact that we 17.6 million fewer units (3.7%) already pay 20% in VAT, will have been sold. It’s still huge, change consumer behaviour of course, but if we were meas- or deal with the obesity crisis.” uring red Coke as a brand in its Hence Diet, Zero and Life own right, it would have lost being brought to the fore in its standing as Britain’s sec- Coke’s ads – the ‘choice’ part ond biggest brand to Walkers of den Hollander’s mantra. (3) in the past year. Not that it’s delivered much Diet, Zero and Life now growth so far: only Life is up, account for 44.6% of the 830.4 by 44.3% to £21.1m. And full- million units shifted in the year sales don’t tell the whole past year, up from 44.2% a story: sales crashed 60.5% in year ago; no and low sugar has the last four months of 2015, as racked up £546.6m, or 47.7% the trade support given to Life of the brand’s total sales, up after launch in 2014 tailed off. from 47% a year ago. This Growth could have been shift is the result of the wider hampered by confusion debate around health – and over what Life actually is. In CCE’s response to it. January, CCE announced the scrapping of the original Life, which had 33% less sugar than red Coke, after admitting half of consumers didn’t understand what it is. Production of the new Coke Life, which has 45% less sugar than red Coke, began this week. The aim now is to spread the word about the new, lower-sugar Life. “Repeat sale rates on Coke Life are in the high 30s; take any benchmark in fmcg and that’s very good,” says den Hollander. “We’re going to a new look, a new formula and a new campaign talking about its specifics. There’s a great opportunity to build awareness, trial and the brand.” The new ads unite all four Whether that ends Coke’s Cokes under one master brand associations with the obesity crisis is another matter.

10 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

BBB16_10_01_02.indd 10 14/03/2016 17:50 in association with nielsen

2 (2) Warburtons ●●Sales: £695.3m (–2.8%) Giant Crumpets. The first-to- The most sensational, inspira- market NPD has performed tional Warburtons show is still well for being a fits-the-toaster running. The production was innovation, says Warburtons. hit by the supermarket price It also says that its Thin war, doing £19.8m of dam- Bagels, its sandwich alter- age, but compared with the natives range, has sold more shaky staging of its wrapped than 4.6 million units since rivals, and with the plant launching last April. bread simultaneously affected Both the crumpets and the by changing consumer habits, bagels were supported by the the loss, which was combined opening of another sandwich with a 1.2% volume sales alternatives plant in Burnley increase, looks like a very in May at a cost of £20m, and, credible performance. five months later, a £7m crum- Inevitably, the advertising pet plant at the Bolton bakery. stole the show. The year also saw a num- As head of the family bak- ber of new product launches ery, Jonathan Warburton has from its Free From sub-brand been featuring in its advertis- Newburn Bakehouse, including for years but in April 2015 ing Classic White Artisan Loaf Warburton took this personal and White Sourdough Artisan touch to a whole new level, Cob (April 2015) and Mini featuring alongside Sylvester Wholegrain Wraps (October Stallone in The Deliverers, 2015). “The main pressures a lavish campaign to high- that faced the category and light the lengths to which the business over the last 12 Warburtons goes to deliver months are not dissimilar over two million loaves of from those facing the wider fresh bread to more than food industry as a whole; 18,000 stores every day. however in spite of this, He followed this up six Warburtons has continued to months later with a big song perform well,” says a spokes- and dance number featuring woman for the company. almost the entire cast of the Warburtons also became Muppets – Kermit the Frog, the first food manufacturer to Miss Piggy, the Swedish Chef, make The Sunday Times’ Top Sweetums, Fozzie Bear, Statler 25 Best Big Companies list late & Waldorf – for the debut of last month.

www.thegrocer.co.uk 19 March 2016 | The Grocer | 11

BBB16_10_01_02.indd 11 14/03/2016 17:50 in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

3 (3) Walkers ●●Sales: £599.3m (–5.9%) Its performance shows just Crumbs! Britain’s biggest how fickle the snacks market snack brand has lost a whop- is: Pops and Deep Ridged, two ping £37.7m, as the products of Walkers’ biggest launches churned out by Walkers’ NPD in recent years, have lost conveyor belt failed to make nearly £10m a piece; only up for losses elsewhere. standard Walkers has been hit harder, down £16m. February 2015 saw the launch of Mixups – a mix of snacks such as Wotsits, crisps and popcorn. The range is now worth £21.5m. It launched Crispy and Melty Crackers in November; they’ve racked up £580k. And in January Tear & Share – bags that can be con- verted into bowls – landed. Hopes are high.

4 (4) Cadbury Dairy Milk ●●Sales: £528.5m (+0.6%) Beneath the surface, it’s Sales are up £3.1m but Dairy clear the Dairy Milk family Milk has shifted 3.9% fewer is undergoing an epic rebal- units, suggesting the steady ancing. Countlines are down stream of NPD from rival 16.4% – £21.9m in lost sales Galaxy (22) has hit Britain’s – with seasonal lines, tablets biggest chocolate brand hard. and Giant Buttons in growth and making up for the losses. Larger ‘sharing’ formats is 6 (6) McVitie’s where the money is in choc- ●●Sales: £464.5m (–1.0%) Despite the dip in value, olate, so CDM has launched It was always going to be McVitie’s is outperforming the 300g Big Taste tablets, the tough for McVitie’s to keep up overall category. Heynen puts latest in NPD that last year the pace of growth of recent this down to UB’s masterbrand included soft-centred Puddles, years. In our 2015 ranking, it strategy and Sweeet ad cam- now worth more than £10m. was up £6.2m, having shifted paign that began two years The Free the Joy ads, featuring an extra 14 million packs. ago. Spontaneous awareness the boogying Keith (left), were Sure enough, the value of of the brand is up from 24% the brand’s most popular ads Britain’s biggest biscuit brand to 29%, while the proportion ever, says Mondelez. has begun to crumble as UB of people calling it a ‘brand I has succumbed to price pres- love’ has shot up from 18% to sures. Volumes are still up, by 28%. It used to be 22 points 1.3% or 5.3 million packs, but behind rival Cadbury, but the 5 (5) Birds Eye this has been undermined by gap has narrowed to 14 points. ●●Sales: £490.2m (–4.9%) there’s an opportunity to be lower prices. Now McVitie’s is chasing The frozen aisles are a chal- more innovative,” says Steve Take Chocolate Digestives, confectionery brands with lenging environment right Chantry, Birds Eye marketing McVitie’s top seller, which renewed intent with its latest now – one of the reasons director. “We are spearhead- is now selling for 3.5 pence launch, Maltesers (36) looka- behind Birds Eye’s decline. ing a drive to revitalise our a pack less than a year ago. like Digestives Nibbles. “That But the Captain’s not roll- existing portfolio and create “This is due to a combina- takes our brand and, more ing over. “We firmly believe new products that play a role tion of promotional frequency importantly, biscuits into a in adult meal occasions.” and depth, driven by pound, more premium occasion: even- Tapping this market has half-price and better than ing sharing,” says Heynen. already proved fruitful; Birds half-price deals,” says UB mar- “Initiatives like that are key to Eye Inspirations is now worth keting director Sarah Heynen. driving category growth.” £24.6m, up 21.4%. Ready She adds that although deals Along with this launch, meals are also proving lucra- are set by retailers, UB recog- which is targeting sales of tive with Stir Your Senses nises their importance in driv- £15m-17m in year one, UB has racking up £7.8m in its first ing volumes. McVitie’s volume created a McVitie’s Sweeet year. Breakfast is Birds Eye’s share of sweet biscuits now mobile app and new TV ads next target, which it is going stands at 28.3%, up 0.6 per- aimed at young adults, who after with frozen breakfast centage points, she claims. under-index in biscuits. goods range Hello Morning!

12 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

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Source *Nielsen BASES II study #80184 3.7.2014. ***Based on research group, Neilsen BASES study April 2015. Galaxy® Duet™ is a registered trademark. ©Mars 2016. in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

7 (80) Nescafé ●●Sales: £432.7m (+1.5%) exclusively to Tumblr, in what Nescafé took something of a it claimed was a first for a leap into the digital unknown global brand. It also teamed last September when it up with Google to launch a announced it was ditch- ‘fully immersive virtual reality ing its traditional websites experience’ of a Brazilian cof- and moving its web presence fee field. These are both signs of a brand keen to stay cutting edge, and succeeding – its growth is coming not only from premium lines Azera and Dolce Gusto, but Gold Blend too. The latter is still win- ning converts from standard Nescafé, which is in serious decline. In May, it diversified further by bringing chilled Shakissimo RTDs to the UK.

8 (7) Lucozade ●●Sales: £426.7m (0.0%) Flow campaign, launched in Repositioning Lucozade away June 2015, included a 60-sec- from younger consumers and ond TV ad designed to show towards ‘daily strivers’ has how Lucozade can help peo- kept the drink from falling ple ‘find their flow’. The ad into decline. showed ordinary people The brand’s £14m Find Your doing everyday things in an extraordinary way, and was supported by a sampling cam- 10 (11) Andrex paign with 500,000 bottles ●●Sales: £350.3m (–5.5%) So Andrex put the ‘clean given away over five months. With the bottom falling out routine’ on its packs and A social media campaign with of the toilet paper category launched an ad campaign the hashtag #findyourflow thanks to ramped up deals pushing both its Classic White also followed. and strong growth for own and Gentle Clean Washlets Tropical additions includ- label and the discounters, it’s and asking kids how clean ing Lucozade Energy Grafruitti perhaps no surprise that sales they feel after using the prod- and Lucozade Sport mango & of Britain’s biggest loo roll ucts. The ads appear to be passionfruit have also proved brand are going down the pan. paying off, for the moist toilet popular with the public. Andrex has lost £20.3m paper at any rate. Value sales and shifted 3.8 million (3%) of Gentle Clean Washlets rose fewer units in the past year, 637% in 2015 to £2.9m with an thanks to the growing com- extra 2.3 million packs sold. 9 (9) Pepsi petition and significant shelf And with moist paper cur- ●●Sales: £423.2m (+5.6%) So this is no flash in the can. space losses in Tesco and rently bought by just a fifth of For a brand as established as It’s been achieved primarily Sainsbury’s. Now Kimberly- households, Van der Mandele Pepsi to have added £22.6m, by pushing Pepsi Max Cherry Clark is fighting back by says Andrex will clean up if it the second greatest gain of the through ads and sampling. ditching its traditional mar- can convince more shoppers year, is impressive. Even more The variant has delivered an keting focus on the quality to give Washlets a try. “Once so, given that Pepsi turned in extra £19.5m in the past year, of the product (‘soft, strong people start using Washlets the most growth last year. growth of 137.8%, and is now and long’), and going down they spend 45% more in the worth £33.7m at the tills. a slightly more risqué route, total category,” he adds. “Pepsi Max Cherry has been emphasising how clean the There’s more reason for a phenomenal success since brand can get users’ bottoms. optimism, with sales having launch,” says Britvic com- “We need to reframe the cat- picked up later in the year as mercial director Phil Sanders, egory from being a bulk paper retailers reinstated some of the pointing to social media activ- commodity to unleash inher- brand’s lost space after suffer- ity and in store activation as ent value and change the way ing significant category defla- key drivers. “It’s the number consumers see the category,” tion. “The retailer support one sugar-free flavoured cola.” says Karel Van Der Mandele, plan was back-weighted to the No wonder Coca-Cola (1) Kimberly-Clark marketing second half of the year,” says launched Coke Zero Cherry in director for UK family care. Van Der Mandele. 330ml cans in January.

14 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

BBB16_14_07_10.indd 14 14/03/2016 17:49 Love The Birds Eye Difference

Improving quality and bigger sizes across our ranges Biggest ever media campaign On air from 1st April Stock Up Today

IGLO20535_Birdseye_Diamond_Quality_Trade_Ad_A4.indd 1 04/03/2016 10:38 UK’S NUMBER ONE BISCUIT SUPPLIER* Impulse 2015 **Advantage Survey Group 2015 Nov Nov th 7 ® Registered Trade Mark of United Biscuits (UK) Limited. *Nielsen Biscuits (UK) Limited. Data to of United Mark Trade ® Registered

PROUD TO BE LEADING TOP BRANDS AND BIG ACHIEVEMENTS

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Grocer Biggest Brands Ad - 3448 AW.indd 1 03/03/2016 15:49 in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

() McCain () Kingsmill () Fairy () Lurpak ● Sales: £318.5m (+1.3%) ● Sales: £312.6m (–15.7%) ● Sales: £301.7m (–2.5%) ● Sales: £295.6m (–1.3%) Innovative launches backed Kingsmill had £58.4m wiped Fairy has lost £7.8m overall, Britain’s biggest butter brand by heavyweight marketing o its value in 2015. Only with 2.9 million (2.1%) fewer has lost £4m due to erce have helped McCain shi an Hovis (15) has lost more, show- units sold. P&G says sales deals aimed at halting own extra 11.4 million (+7%) packs. ing how hard bread has been re ect wider trends in laundry label’s growth in the butters & McCain Roasts, marketed hit in the price war. The loss and household, pointing to spreads market. as being on a par with home- also re ects Tesco’s power. It the detergent sector’s 2% value Price cuts have helped the made roasties, was the big- delisted Kingsmill last March, decline, and e orts to simplify brand sell an extra 3.2 million gest launch, with four million before reinstating the 50/50 its ranges and concentrate on (+2.5%) units, while not being packs sold since September and No Crusts lines at the rock ‘power SKUs’. so severe as to undermine [McCain]. Other notable NPD bottom price of 75p a loaf in To turn sales around, P&G is value market share, which included Crispy Sweet Potato July. Further relistings fol- pushing the ‘little goes a long Arla says has grown. Fries and Frozen Mash. lowed at the year’s end. Of way’ message for Fairy Liquid, The premium Cook’s Range On the marketing front, the the big three bread brands, claiming a 780ml bottle is was scrapped in July due to brand forked out £8m on Real Kingsmill has the lowest aver- enough to wash 12,616 plates. poor sales. “We were try- Teatimes With McCain. Deals age price per unit. In February In June Fairy Non Bio Pods ing to change consumer hab- also drove volumes, resulting owner ABF said bread prices were launched to tap growth its,” says senior director Mike in a 4.5% fall in average price. hit an eight-year low. in the capsule format. Walker. “It’s really di cult.”

“ Bread with bits is worth £200m; Hovis is outperforming the sector” () Hovis ● Sales: £288.7m (–17.7%) Hovis is going big on health, It’s not quite toast yet, but in a bid to distance itself from what was once Britain’s big- negative health associations gest bread brand continues to with white bread. The Good fall down our ranking, having Inside range boasts containing lost an eyewatering £62.1m in omega-3 from seeds, wheat- the past year, the greatest loss germ and bre and Hovis of any brand in our ranking. claims it is the “healthiest Look no further than the bread on the market”. brand’s 13.9% fall in aver- It’s also relaunched the pre- age price – again, the greatest mium Seed Sensations range, decline in this year’s top 100 adding Seed Sensations Chia – for the key source of Hovis’ Bread in February – the rst loss of value. attempt by any of the big bread With bread a key weapon in brands to tap booming sales the price war, Hovis has been of chia – and a limited-edi- the biggest casualty of the past tion protein-rich Sun ower & year’s hostilities. Pumpkin Seed loaf. Hovis isn’t rolling over, how- “Bread with bits is worth ever. In September it entered £202m and Hovis is outper- the sandwich alternatives forming the sector, at 5.5% market with white, wholemeal unit growth,” says category and Best of Both sandwich controller Simon Hancock. thins; a month later it began “We’re always looking to its rst TV ad push in thee develop exciting products that years with a new version of the meet the functional needs of classic ‘boy on bike’ ad to back consumers, as well as deliver its forti ed Good Inside range. on taste.”

www.thegrocer.co.uk 19 March 2016 | The Grocer | 17

BBB16_17_11_15.indd 17 14/03/2016 17:48 in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

18 (17) Robinsons ●●Sales: £262.9m (–5.6%) from the soft drinks market,” A tough year for Britain’s big- adds Sanders. “By 2020, the gest squash brand, which has aim is that 60% of our new seen its SKU count reduced in products will be lower sugar the supers as the debate about or have added nutritional ben- how much sugar kids drinks efits. We’re also reducing the contain has come to the fore. average number of calories “The impact of the ongoing consumed per 250ml by 20%.” sugar debate on the soft drinks The brand is also investing market can be seen in the in ads. It celebrated its 80-year types of segments experienc- partnership with Wimbledon ing growth, with water-based in 2015 with limited-edition categories thriving while other versions of the Squash’d categories are showing slower pocket squash format backed growth,” says Britvic commer- by TV, outdoor, print and cial director for at home Phil social media activity. A nos- Sanders. In Robinsons’ case, talgic summer TV ad featuring the controversy around sugar two parents sitting in a garden content has contributed to a watching their baby boy grow £15.5m decline, so it’s stepping up tugged at the nation’s heart up its efforts to reduce its use strings but wasn’t enough to of the sweet stuff. deliver growth. With the stra- “Since 2012, following the pline ‘They grow up fast’ the delisting of regular Fruit ad ran to the tune of ‘Give me Shoot and Robinsons squash, just a little more time’ – which and reformulations to J2O is exactly what Robinsons and Juicy drench, we have needs to return the brand to removed 18 billion calories growth.

“ Since 2012, Britvic has removed 18 billion calories from the market”

16 (16) Cathedral City 17 (18) Red Bull 19 (22) Felix 20 (21) Persil ●●Sales: £276.9m (–0.7%) ●●Sales: £273.0m (+3.6%) ●●Sales: £251.3m (+6.5%) ●●Sales: £246.6m (–0.3%) Britain’s biggest cheese brand It might contain more sugar Felix is the cat who got the Persil continues to innovate, is deflating, fast, with average than Coke, but launching new cream. For another year with recent NPD including prices down 4.5% as Cheddar flavours on Instagram and Purina scoops the top spot in dual-action capsules (mar- continues to take a battering posting bespoke messages on this ranking for petcare and keted in one of 2015’s more in the supermarket price war. trains, cycle routes and in fit- increases the gap between memorable ad campaigns fea- That’s not to say Dairy Crest ness clubs has helped Red it and closest competitor, turing a breakdancing little has given up on its efforts to Bull keep its wings. The brand Whiskas (29). “In 2015 the top girl) and ecologically friendly add value. NPD has focused reckons the sports & energy six selling SKUs in all of pet- pouches for its Small & Mighty on the core block business, drinks category could grow food were Felix pouches,” says range, which promises effi- with a 550g Extra Mature vari- by more than £600m over the Purina market development cient 30-minute washes at ant, an extended flavoured next five years if brands mar- director Liz Wood. Felix plans 30C. Persil also produced block range and a limited- ket their products as aids to to maintain its mischievous limited-edition packs for Red edition 20-month matured studying, working and driv- personality with the pinnacle Nose Day. Increased promo- Reserve Cheddar all hitting ing and tap the convenience of internet humour – online tional activity meant more vol- shelves. The brand has also and online shopping trends. It cat videos. Felix Catdaq is a ume was sold on deal, which extended its adult snacking ended the year kicking off its made-up stock market for the had an impact on overall sales portfolio and returned to TV. Can You Make It campaign. hottest, trending cat antics. value.

18 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

BBB16_18_16_20.indd 18 14/03/2016 17:46

BEIERSDORF THE SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS FOR NIVEA DEODORANT DETAILS NIVEA is contributing the highest value NIVEA is unique in the industry for BEIERSDORF UK LTD sales growth to the category.* offering skincare products across so 2010 SOLIHULL PARKWAY many categories, all designed to work BIRMINGHAM in harmony together. NIVEA Protect B37 7YS NEW 0121 329 8800 & Care Deodorant is the latest addition WWW.BEIERSDORF. CO.UK in NIVEA innovation, to continue the category growth success they have KEY CONTACTS delivered to date. In a category that is MISHA SUMMLAR BRAND MANAGER declining, NIVEA is leading the way with double digit growth.*

KEY BRANDS The NIVEA Protect & Care campaign FROM THE BRAND NIVEA goes live at the beginning of April with strong ATL support. DRIVING GROWTH. 2016 NPD WITH £5M MARKETING SPEND Over the last 12 months 97% NIVEA has had a fundamental Protect OF WOMEN impact on the deodorant category, & Care will contributing £6.6m incremental value be NIVEA WOULD STRONG ON SWEAT, SOFT ON SKIN sales.* Following on from such success, Deodorant’s RECOMMEND WITH THE UNIQUE SCENT OF NIVEA. NIVEA is introducing its biggest biggest ** deodorant launch yet, NIVEA Protect launch TO A FRIEND & Care. The anti-perspirant boasts yet, with a qualities in both protection and care, marketing with the unique ingredients and scent of spend of £5m. Protect & Care is also available NIVEA Crème. Its bold blue packaging for men, with long lasting is instantly recognisable as a leading *SOURCE: NIELSEN protection without irritation. SCANTRACK DATA, brand favourite, retaining NIVEA’s DEODORANTS, MAT familiar and dependable feel. 30.01.2016. **SOURCE, 97% OF 116 WOMEN, NIVEA UK SURVEY, SEPT 2015 BEIERSDORF THE SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS FOR NIVEA DEODORANT DETAILS NIVEA is contributing the highest value NIVEA is unique in the industry for BEIERSDORF UK LTD sales growth to the category.* offering skincare products across so 2010 SOLIHULL PARKWAY many categories, all designed to work BIRMINGHAM in harmony together. NIVEA Protect B37 7YS NEW 0121 329 8800 & Care Deodorant is the latest addition WWW.BEIERSDORF. CO.UK in NIVEA innovation, to continue the category growth success they have KEY CONTACTS delivered to date. In a category that is MISHA SUMMLAR BRAND MANAGER declining, NIVEA is leading the way with double digit growth.*

23 (20) Princes ●●Sales: £229.3m (–10.6%) mainly deflation, which have Canned & ambient isn’t look- affected Princes Fish and ing too peachy right now. As Princes Juice, there is a posi- store cupboard staples take a tive story for Princes Fruit and battering, so is Princes, having Meat, which are both ahead of lost £27.3m. the market,” says marketing Fish saw the biggest decline, director Neil Brownbill. with 60% of its losses caused Savvy promotional tactics by deflation as the brand helped Princes gain volume in passed commodity cost reduc- ambient meat, as well as value tions on to customers. In a and volume in fruit, adds bid to reverse this, it’s going Brownbill. Hoping to replicate after new, younger shoppers this success across its portfo- with relaunched Tuna Fillers, lio, Princes is about to embark Limited Editions and a £2m on a new campaign called campaign to inspire new Really Simple, Royally Good usage occasions. across TV and radio. Juice is also struggling as “The Princes brand is mak- the sugar war rages, with ing a significant investment Princes further hit by distri- over the course of the next 12 bution losses. To counteract months to address the chal- concerns over sugar, it has lenging market, communi- introduced no-added-sugar cate positive messages for the NPD Princes Fruit Refreshers canned food sector, attract in six flavours, which will new consumers into the mar- replace its existing juice ket, and lock in loyalty from drink range. “While there are existing shoppers,” says certain market conditions, Brownbill.

“Princes is making significant investment to address challenges”

21 (19) Tropicana 22 (23) Galaxy 24 (28) Wrigley’s Extra 25 (26) Heinz Beanz ●●Sales: £241.9m (–8.1%) ●●Sales: £233.0m (+3.2%) ●●Sales: £223.4m (+4.5%) ●●Sales: £211.6m (–1.7%) It’s not surprising Tropicana Britain’s number two choco- An extra £9.5m in sales and a Beanz are sliding off the is preparing to launch its big- late brand has managed to 3.6% increase in average price menu: the brand’s volumes gest campaign in three years, shift 5.7 million (2.6%) more have given Wrigley’s Extra are down 4.5%. Brits bought aimed at educating shoppers units, ending several years of something to smile about. almost six million fewer 415g about the benefits of juice, decline and netting an extra The brand has spent a lot single cans, more than two given its £21.3m decline. £7.1m in the process. of time and energy on attract- million fewer four-packs, and PepsiCo says activity will It hasn’t come cheap, with ing more young chewers, with three million fewer 150g tins. help shoppers understand Mars claiming to have spent a range refresh and the intro- In May, Heinz responded how much juice they should £18m on ads that have been on duction of two new soft-chew to consumer demand with a drink. The brand also focused TV for 35 of the past 52 weeks. flavours into the Extra range: ‘50% less sugar’ version of on functional benefits with the NPD, such as Galaxy Salted Strawberry and Bubblegum. Beanz, sweetened with stevia, February 2015 revamp of its Caramel and Duet, has also Celebrity couple Marvin and but the new variant has failed Essentials range. Three new been crucial. And the inno- Rochelle Humes were signed to markedly increase sales fruit & veg blends joined the vation continues: Golden to promote the brand’s tie up from the previous reduced line-up, and Fruitamins and Eggs and a third Duet flavour, with National Smile Month sugar option. One product Immune Support juices have Toffee & Popcorn, have been and ads starring Ashton is flying off shelves, though: gone into 150ml bottles. launched so far this year. Kutcher continued on TV. Beanz with Pork Sausages.

22 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

BBB16_22_21_25.indd 22 14/03/2016 18:01 Moving on up! We’re now no. 58 in the Top 100; up 42 places in only 2 years

Biggest value growth in the top 1001

Sales up +23.5% yoy – double-digit growth third year running2

Over 1 million NEW households buying3

1Britain’s 100 Biggest Grocery Brands. No. 58 The Grocer, 19th March 2016; No. 78 21st March 2015; No. 100 22nd March 2014. 2Nielsen MAT +23.5% value growth Jan 16 vs. Jan 15 Nielsen MAT +26% value growth Jan 15 vs. Jan 14. 3 Nielsen w/e 05.12.15

ALPROS_GROCER_TOP100_AD_FINAL.indd 1 11/03/2016 11:01 117975_Henkel_RG_Grocer_Ad_AW_OL copy.pdf 1 04/03/2016 16:51 in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

26 (30) Innocent 27 (31) Pedigree 28 (27) Müller Corner 30 (29) Heinz Soup ●●Sales: £211.2m (+1.7%) ●●Sales: £203.4m (–0.3%) ●●Sales: £202.9m (–5.4%) ●●Sales: £199.3m (–5.1%) Innocent is starting to make Pedigree might not be look- Britain’s biggest yoghurt As the biggest name in canned Tropicana (21) look out of ing too bright eyed and bushy brand has had a tough year, soup, a sector continuing to touch with its steady stream tailed at first glance... until with a backlash against indul- lose out to fresh, Heinz was of innovative, on-trend NPD. you compare its performance gent yoghurts and a shift always fighting an uphill bat- Coconut Water has racked to Bakers’ (84). towards more natural prod- tle for growth. It’s lost £10.8m, up £11.2m since last April, The top dog has grown ucts contributing to a loss with unit sales down 6.4%. contributing the most to the share thanks to a new dry food of £11.5m. That’s despite the That’s more than the losses of brand’s overall £3.5m growth. SKU for the growing popula- launch of Müller Püd Corner, Heinz Beanz (25) and Sauces Juices and smoothies con- tion of small dogs and its roll- made with 75% skimmed milk (33) combined. tinue to decline, due to the out of PoS message Feed, Care, and a side of crunchy top- The biggest losses were suf- sugar backlash and deals on Play. For 2016, Pedigree plans pings, and Nicole Scherzinger fered by Classic Soups, with own label, but its functional to bark a bit louder with a new entering her third year as four-packs of Cream of Tomato Super Smoothies and water/ feelgood mass-media cam- poster girl for the brand. down £3.5m, or 26%. It’s not juice mix Bubbles are up. July paign, lifestyle app Tracks, Corner will launch a range all bad, though; the brand’s saw the launch of Light & and new wet dogfood pouches of limited-edition flavours instant soups and posher Juicy, a reduced-sugar range to cash in on growing demand next month in preparation for Black Label canned range made with coconut water. for premium options. the Rio games in August. have delivered strong growth.

“As part of our shift in strategy, we’re engaging through mobiles” 29 (24) Whiskas ●●Sales: £202.5m (–12.7%) and low rates of money back It’s enough to make you cough guarantee redemptions, but up a fur ball. Britain’s num- despite this the brand is still ber two petfood brand has had some way from returning to its £29.4m swiped from its sales former glory. in the past year as Felix (19) For the year ahead, Whiskas has continued to rise up the is sinking its claws into a ranking in leaps and bounds. raft of NPD and lighthearted Unlike most of its fellow marketing campaigns. Most petcare brands, Whiskas has recently, the sickeningly not managed to scratch its way cute digital campaign Kitten out of the supermarket price Kollege was designed to help war, with average prices down owners learn more about their 3.1%. To help restore value, the feline family members by brand is pouring £10m into watching cats go to college. TV ads, PoS materials and in- “As part of the brand’s shift store activations to promote in communications strategy, newest formulation Whiskas focused on engaging with Pockets – crunchy parcels consumers through mobiles, with a soft filling for moggies Kitten Kollege has gone from who like a variety of textures strength to strength since in their diets. launch,” says a Mars Petcare The move follows a major spokeswoman. reformulation that hit shelves “Developed to share last summer in an attempt to Whiskas’ expert knowledge, turn around the decline. The it is a hilarious combination brand says the refresh resulted of satire and charming kitten in a wave of repeat purchases chaos.”

www.thegrocer.co.uk 19 March 2016 | The Grocer | 25

BBB16_25_26_30.indd 25 14/03/2016 18:15 in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

35 (43) Doritos ●●Sales: £186.6m (+6.1%) Roulette helped the brand’s When it comes to NPD gam- volumes jump 13.4%, though bles, the stakes don’t get price pressure means value higher than Doritos Roulette, growth has lagged behind a line launched last April that this somewhat. It wasn’t mixes ultra-spicy chips in with entirely responsible, though Tangy Cheese flavour. – Barkholt says sales have The odds were stacked in risen across the whole flavour PepsiCo’s favour, and the range, driven by the brand’s product became the cat- appeal to young consumers. egory’s biggest single-SKU “There has been a 62% launch of the year. “The key increase of consumers driver is that it offers consum- between the age of 16 and 28 ers a fun ‘big night in’ with a buying into the brand in the spicy twist,” says PepsiCo UK last two years,” he says. “Its marketing director Thomas success over the past year has Barkholt. been driven by the new For The launch was supported The Bold global positioning, by a TV campaign in the which appeals to a younger brand’s usual deadpan/sur- adult audience. We have also real style, depicting an actual seen significant growth in game of roulette with the sharing bags.” snack in a dingy room; when For The Bold launched last one of the participants is too March with a TV ad depicting scared to eat one, he trans- a young man made stylish and forms into a chicken. This was confident with the power of backed up with cinema and Doritos, and returns in a new digital ads later in the year. campaign this month.

“There’s been a 62% rise in 16 to 28-year-olds buying into Doritos”

31 (40) Pringles 32 (37) Volvic 33 (33) Heinz Sauces 34 (38) Jacob’s ●●Sales: £196.2m (+9.0%) ●●Sales: £192.6m (+4.7%) ●●Sales: £187.8m (–2.7%) ●●Sales: £187.3m (+3.1%) Pringles’ growth is almost Sugar might not be doing the Tomato Ketchup, which As number one brand in the entirely accounted for by wider soft drinks market any accounts for two thirds of the renascent savoury biscuits last year’s big NPD, Pringles favours at present, but it’s total, is holding its own, with sector, Jacob’s is leading the Tortilla, which racked up more helping drive sales for Volvic. value and volume sales down fight against crisps by banging than £16m in nine months on The new Touch of Fruit ever so slightly. The 550g the drum for baked snacks. shop shelves, and grabbed range is the key source of SKU of ketchup with 50% less In May, it launched Cracker 6.6% of the tortillas segment. Volvic’s growth, with the sugar, launched in October Crisps, moving into a bagged Modest 2% growth in the strawberry and lemon & lime 2014, is now worth £5.9m and savoury snacks category that standard range, meanwhile, lines (containing 13.7g of sugar has grown sales from the pre- overtook crisps for the first was cancelled out by a fall in per 250ml) delivering £4.5m of vious reduced sugar version. time last year. It also saw older spinoff Pringles Xtra. the brand’s £8.7m. That said, But Salad Cream is falling Jacob’s go head to head with Kellogg’s says the brand has the brand’s sugar-free variants out of favour, with sales down Ritz, which launched simi- benefited from big sharing are also driving sales and the 6.1% in value and 4.6% in vol- lar product Crisp & Thin. This occasions and this year will whole range was supported by ume. This year, the brand will year Jacob’s wants to replicate celebrate its 25th birthday with a new TV ad for Touch of Fruit take the fight to Hellmann’s the success of UB stablemate a competition to win a private in summer 2015 – the first ded- with its new Seriously Good McVitie’s Sweeet campaign gig with Olly Murs. icated ad for Volvic since 2013. Mayonnaise. with its own push, Crackin’.

26 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

BBB16_26_31_35.indd 26 14/03/2016 18:15 WHERE CAN FMCG BRANDS FIND AN AVERAGE ROI OF £2.40 ? (Source: IRI)*

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137304_atmAd_Grocer_19_03_2016.indd 1 08/03/2016 13:03 in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

38 (48) Comfort ●●Sales: £180.2m (+6.8%) ads that focused on the prod- Here’s one brand that’s fly- uct’s super-concentrated for- ing high. Comfort’s value at mula and unique 15ml dose, the tills has grown by £11.4m compared with the standard despite a 2.1% drop in units UK fabric conditioner dos- sold. It’s sailed 10 spots up the age of 35ml. Unilever is now ranking. How? expanding the range and has By “challenging category just launched Comfort Pure norms and providing consum- Ultra Concentrate, using the ers with intense freshness same 15ml dose and targeting at all stages of the laundry consumers with sensitive skin, process, from wash to wear, backed by a £1m ad campaign. without compromising on Sales of the standard softness,” according to sen- Comfort product totalled ior brand manager Fernanda £60m while the Comfort Tubini-Roberts. Creations range – marketed on That means a combination its exotic fragrances, including of value-added innovation Honeysuckle & Sandalwood and hefty marketing sup- and Indian Rose & Musk – port. Last March, Unilever generated sales of £48.7m. launched super-concentrated Still, for a new product to have conditioner Comfort Intense, generated more than 10% of a range that’s racked up £21m the brand’s total sales in under so far and been a key driver of a year on shelf is no mean the brand’s overall 9.1% rise feat. It was also voted laundry in average price. The launch product of the year in the 2016 was backed by a £5m market- Product Innovation Awards. ing campaign including TV Intense indeed!

“Comfort is challenging category norms with its intense freshness”

36 (36) Maltesers 37 (47) Haribo 39 (42) Kit Kat 40 (39) Uncle Ben’s ●●Sales: £181.6m (–2.6%) ●●Sales: £181.4m (+5.7%) ●●Sales: £179.8m (+1.1%) ●●Sales: £178.1m (–1.3%) Maltesers is £4.9m lighter As a reliance on £1 price- It’s good to share. Hence the Uncle Ben’s has seen the way than a year ago, a decline that marked hanging bags erodes growing focus for chocolate the wind is blowing: rice alone to an extent reflects choco- the overall value of the sugar brands on sharing formats. no longer cuts it for many con- late’s overall performance, as confectionery market, the sec- In July Nestlé’s flagship consumers. And for those it does, changing consumer habits tor’s biggest brand has man- fectionery brand launched convenience is king. reshape the category. aged to grow value ahead of the 170g Snap & Share format, So, in response to the health As one of the original shar- volume, adding almost £10m. aimed at those of us who eat trend fuelling demand for ing brands, Maltesers faces Here’s how: Haribo spent chocolate in the evening to alternatives to white rice, the stiffening competition as big on ads (Nielsen identified broaden the reach of Kit Kat, Uncle launched a range of rivals move into sharing bags its Kids Voice ads as fmcg’s which is more skewed towards wholegrain pouches in 2014 and slabs. The year’s big push most impactful in our 2015 Top daytime snacking. and followed it up in April was a partnership with Comic Products report); gave away The brand also bene- with five Rice & Grains prod- Relief encouraging wannabe 2,000 family cinema tickets in fited from a £10m marketing ucts using only the trendiest Paul Hollywoods to bake with an on-pack promo; and tied up splurge in 2015, which went on (and healthiest) grains such Maltesers; 2016 is the brand’s with Minions, one of the hot- TV ads, an on-pack promotion as quinoa and pearl wheat. A 80th anniversary. It’ll be hop- test films of last summer, for a and digital activity. All this further three variants will be ing for a party to remember. new range. Sweet stuff! helped Kit Kat win share. launched in June.

28 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk Drive profit withgreat-tasting Maryland Special Treats – a £12m* range with a large cookie for every occasion

*Nielsen Total Grocery MAT to 30 Jan 2016. britain’s biggest brands

() Weetabix ● Sales: £174.2m (–0.7%) and communicating rele- Breakfasters might be aban- vant health bene ts,” says doning the cereal bowl in Lawrence. On The Go was on favour of on the go options, screen in April in a commuter- but at least Britain’s biggest friendly ad, and the breakfast cereal brand isn’t going too drink has contributed £9m soggy. Bigger ad spend, pro- to overall brand value. “This tein-packed NPD and On The is probably the category suc- Go drinks have helped to slow, cess story of the year,” says if not eliminate, value decline, Lawrence. “Adding around which stands at £1.3m for the £5m of incremental value year. is pretty incredible and we “We’re increasing our ad expect that level of phenome- spend in a declining mar- nal growth to continue.” ket,” says head of brand As well as On The Go Richard Lawrence. 2015’s Protein June saw the intro- Weetabuddies campaign, duction of Protein Crunch, part of a £5m push, was its extruded tubular cereal in “most successful to date” and chocolate and original vari- returned in January with a ants; sales are worth £650,000 year-long partnership with the so far. Cartoon Network. And in January this year Over the summer, master- Weetabix answered high-pro- brand campaign Incredible tein breakfast challengers Inside emphasised Weetabix’s with a potential juggernaut: nutritional qualities. Weetabix Protein . It will be “We’re doing our best to supported by a £1.3m above- make our products healthy the-line spend in April.

“Weetabix On The Go is probably the sector’s success story of the year”

() John West () Müllerlight () Cadbury () Ariel ● Sales: £178.1m (+3.6%) ● Sales: £178.0m (+3.0%) ● Sales: £174.7m (–21.5%) ● Sales: £174m (–6.7%) Greenpeace’s tuna campaign Sales are up by just over £5m, Cadbury is one of Britain’s Ariel is looking all washed up doesn’t appear to have dam- thanks in part to the launch most desirable brand licences, next to the full-year sales of aged Brits’ appetite for John of Müllerlight Goodies last with third parties using the rival Persil (20), although P&G West, with the canned brand March, a twin-pot dessert name in a host of categories, says sales returned to growth delivering 14.2% volume containing low-fat yoghurt in from ice cream to hot bever- in the second half of the year. growth. With prices for stand- three di erent avours along- ages. But performance has Nearly ve million (11.5%) ard tuna under serious pres- side crunchy pieces. been mixed. fewer units were shi ed dur- sure, the brand maintained The brand has overtaken Ice cream is up 6.1%. ing the full year. Liquitabs its focus on added-value NPD, Activia (47) to become Britain’s Cadbury Doughnuts and helped buoy brand value by rolling out its new Spreadables second biggest yoghurt brand Tri e also made signi cant converting shoppers from range of single-serve sand- behind Müller Corner (28). It gains, but not enough to o set cheaper formats such as pow- wich llers. John West also wants to maintain momentum he y losses, particularly for ders and bulk liquids. “Our extended its Infusions and with this month’s launch of an Cadbury biscuits. Snowman focus is to continue to drive Steam Pots ranges in 2015 and Olympic-themed range featur- Selection fell £17.7m; the consumers to try and use our refreshed its Mackerel Sauces ing pineapple crush, tropical Biscuits Selection lost a fur- more convenient and better- line-up with new variants punch, passionfruit, orange ther £5.7m. The overall loss performing products,” says aimed at the foodie crowd. and lime avours. amounted to £47.7m. P&G sales director Ian Morley.

30 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

BBB16_30_41_50.indd 30 14/03/2016 18:05 in association with nielsen

46 (50) Mr Kipling 47 (32) Activia 48 (49) Young’s frozen fish 49 (46) Flora ●●Sales: £169.5m (+2.2%) ●●Sales: £167.8m (–13.2%) ●●Sales: £164.4m (–2.2%) ●●Sales: £163.1m (–5.0%) An exceedingly good year The travails of the yoghurt Frozen fish took another bat- Flora’s fighting a battle on sev- for Mr Kipling. The brand sector continued in 2015 and tering last year, and Young’s eral fronts – consumers are is up £3.7m and it’s sold an Activia lost more than £25m frozen volumes fell 6.5%. This reappraising butter after years extra 7.8 million (5.1%) units, as health-focused single-serve was tempered by 50% growth of considering it unhealthy; thanks to a host of NPD, such yoghurts came under scru- from the extended premium bread sales are falling; and as Milkshake Slices, and the tiny over sugar content and sub-brand Gastro. average prices have crashed launch of four and nine-cake shoppers switched to natural Young’s also celebrated 30 10.5% (Flora’s volumes are snack packs to replace the yoghurts and big pots. years of Chip Shop with a new actually growing). sixes. The NPD and format Range rationalisation also recipe and packaging. After In January, Unilever change were a bid to broaden hit hard. “We’ve removed relaunching its master brand, launched the first dairy-free the brand’s appeal to younger some of our sub-ranges such Young’s kicked off 2016 with spread under the brand, Flora consumers. To this end, as pouring yoghurt and our another TV ad campaign fea- Freedom, and revamped the Kipling also ran an on-pack fat-free single pots to focus turing Malcolm the Cat. New range’s packaging to empha- promotion with ZSL London more on our core portfolio” Gluten Free Fish Fingers will sise its plant-based ingredi- Zoo and Whipsnade Zoo, and says a spokeswoman. New hit freezers in the spring. ents. Last October, it updated launched a microsite featuring campaign Feed Your Inner This data doesn’t include Pro-activ with more promi- downloadable animal masks. Smile launched in January. sales of Young’s chilled fish. nence for its scientific claims.

“Frozen food still has a negative perception for some consumers” 50 (34) Aunt Bessie’s ●●Sales: £160.3m (–14.1%) meat and family-size pies also Trading has been tough for joined the frozen range. Aunt Bessie’s. The brand, Away from the frosty aisles, owned by William Jackson Aunt Bessie’s expanded into Food Group, lost £26.4m as ambient cake for the first time it struggles to make gains in with a nine-strong range of the declining frozen food mar- tarts, loafs cakes and shar- ket. A sizeable chunk of this ing cakes. The brand went big loss came from its frozen pota- on advertising as well, with toes, a market in which rival sponsorship of two major ITV McCain (11) stormed ahead – shows – Downton Abbey and sales were up £4.2m. I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out “Frozen still has a negative Of Here! It splashed out £6m perception for some consum- to sponsor the hit reality TV ers though we believe this series, which saw nosey neigh- can be tackled by a number of bours Margaret and Mabel means including strong NPD,” spying on the celebrities in the says a spokeswoman. Australian jungle. For Auntie this included “I’m A Celebrity... is a key ‘Special Recipe’ premium marketing initiative for the lines Chunky Chips coated brand over the next 12 months. in beef dripping and King This sponsorship will see our Edward roast potatoes, as well adverts being seen by over as Homestyle Wedges and 32 million people,” adds the sweet potato mash. The new spokeswoman. “We also have products, claims the brand, a huge on-pack promotion, are performing well. Special which is featuring on over 30 Recipe Yorkshire puddings, million packs.”

www.thegrocer.co.uk 19 March 2016 | The Grocer | 31

BBB16_30_41_50.indd 31 14/03/2016 18:06 in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

59 (78) Alpro ●●Sales: £139.0m (+24.8%) Sales were also boosted by a The Alpro juggernaut showed greater focus on convenience, no signs of slowing down in adds Upton. “Our consumer 2015, following 2014’s 24.7% is a typical top-up shopper” jump in value sales, with the and Alpro has been focused greatest value gain of any on providing a “select range brand in this year’s ranking, of products that will help worth a cool £27.6m. stores to optimise their limited Alpro is now the UK’s sec- chiller space”. ond largest milk brand, after This approach contributed Cravendale (57), and just to an increase in value sales £6m now divides the two. through the convenience “The growth is down to our channel of 39.6%, adds Upton. cross-channel strategy, which The brand started 2016 with combines a multi-category, new ad campaign Make Over multi-ingredient approach to Your Morning and the launch NPD with integrated market- of Alpro Go On, a high-protein ing and a drive to be best in single-serve soya alternative class when it comes to shopper to yoghurt. It has pledged to marketing” says marketing source half its soybeans from controller Vicky Upton. Europe this year.

“Alpro’s growth is down to the brand’s cross-channel strategy”

51 (53) Magnum 52 (65) Lenor 53 (59) Evian ●●Sales: £156.6m (+4.9%) ●●Sales: £153.3m (+11.8%) ●●Sales: £152.7m (+6.8%) Pink & Black was Britain’s The year’s fifth biggest Evian’s £9.7m rise outshines biggest ever ice cream NPD, climber, thanks to the aptly market leader Volvic’s (32). says Unilever, worth £23.8m. named Unstoppables range of Creating cocktail-themed bot- Last March, Magnum multi- fragrance boosters. Not only tles (Evian-jito, Evian-colada, packs switched from threes to did the product, for use with etc) for Dry January was a fours, contributing to a 6.5% fabric conditioners, rack up shrewd move; doubtless it will fall in unit sales (multipacks £30m in its first 18 months on stick with babies in its broader are counted as single units). shelf, it’s created a new laun- marketing after brand ambas- In January, Magnum Almond dry subcategory and is start- sador Maria Sharapova’s fall shrank from 110ml to 100ml. ing to prompt imitations. from grace this month.

54 (62) Yeo Valley Organic 55 (51) Ribena 56 (64) Bisto ●●Sales: £151.3m (+9.5%) ●●Sales: £150.6m (–8.6%) ●●Sales: £146.2m (+6.7%) Yeo Valley’s near 10% hike in Eight months after the Tesco Not only has Bisto put an extra sales is down to “increased Ribenagate delisting of £9.1m through the tills, it’s demand for healthy, high added-sugar kids’ drinks, also helped the frozen ready quality British food that in the brand continues to suffer meal sector return to growth. turn helps support the nation’s despite a refresh and new low- The launch of Chef’s Special farmers and growers” says sugar lines. It’s now target- ready meals helped, as did the marketing director Dan Rusga. ing ‘pre-family’ young adults £4m it put behind Bisto Best The brand’s plain and Greek- and focusing on the unique gravy, a makeover of its sauces style yoghurts have proved ‘Ribenary’ taste with a £6m and the extension of the Bisto particularly popular recently. campaign. Made Simple range.

57 (57) Cravendale 58 (67) Quaker Oats 60 (56) Dolmio ●●Sales: £145.3m (–0.6%) ●●Sales: £139.3m (+2.5%) ●●Sales: £138.8m (–6.3%) Cravendale managed to shrug “Younger, more urban con- Steep price cuts have hit off the worst of the crisis in sumers entering the cereals Dolmio hard. Cooking sauces’ dairy, and a savage price war category to take advantage biggest brand suffered a £9.3m in own-label milk, to turn in of convenient, portable solu- hit despite only losing 1.1% sales that were just £897,000 tions” has helped add £3.4m in volume sales, though Mars lower than 2014. The brand to Quaker’s value. The brand claims penetration is up. This has shifted 5.6 million (6.1%) has launched three trendy year Dolmio celebrates its 30th extra units in the past year, granola formats and teamed anniversary with a brand new thanks in part to a significant up with Darcey Bussell for the campaign aimed at getting fall in average price. #SuperStart campaign. families around the table.

32 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

BBB16_32_51_60.indd 32 14/03/2016 18:24 BURSTING WITH NAPOLINA PASSION SINCE 1965

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*Kantar worldpanel online 52 w/e 31st January 2016, household penetration

01480_05 Napolina OliveOil_Grocer_297x210.indd 1 08/03/2016 16:58 in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

71 (58) PG Tips 72 (61) Schweppes 74 (74) Bold ●●Sales: £129.0m (–10.8%) ●●Sales: £128.8m (–7.7%) ●●Sales: £122.8m (–0.2%) PG Tips’ standing in the top Schweppes is suffering from Last year P&G launched Bold 100 is plummeting as black tea the continuing decline of the Pearls, a version of liquitabs. falls out of fashion: sales are lemonade sector and CCE’s “Laundry is a fixed consump- down a whopping £15.6m. The decision to ditch the Abbey tion category, so the way to brand is fighting back with Well sub-brand in favour of grow value is to persuade con- last autumn’s £4m multibrand the ascendent Smartwater. sumers of the benefits of using campaign Keep It Tea and Mixers and the new sparkling products that deliver great increasing focus on its green fruit juice range are in growth, results at a higher price,” says and herbal ranges, expanded says CCE, but Schweppes is sales director Ian Morley. Still, last month to 20 variants. down £10.7m overall. overall average price fell 2.7%.

75 (72) Mars 76 (75) Ginsters 77 (79) Chicago Town ●●Sales: £119.3m (–5.1%) ●●Sales: £117.1m (–1.7%) ●●Sales: £113.1m (+2.2%) Mars continued its decline as Ginsters has beefed up its offer A strong year for the Takeaway units sold and average price with its first meat snacks, the range and a busy programme slid. Prospects for recovery four-strong Meat Club range, of snack-focused NPD helped look bleak at present, after it and appointed Coca-Cola vet- value grow despite 4.1 mil- was involved in last month’s eran Kieran Hemsworth as lion (6.9%) fewer pizzas being massive recall. In the UK, it MD. It also launched two lim- sold. Pizza Melts merged for- was mostly Funsize products ited-edition pasties, but axed mats by putting pizza toppings affected, though Lidl did recall the H+Eat microwaveable hot on a burger bun; the Sub, some full-size packs supplied dogs and burritos it launched Takeaway and Deep Dish lines through Mars Germany. in 2014. Volumes fell 2.1%. were extended.

78 (81) Air Wick 79 (77) Hellmann’s 80 (82) Twinings ●●Sales: £113m (+2.8%) ●●Sales: £112.1m (–1.0%) ●●Sales: £109.2m (+0.9%) Further proof, if it were Blame it on the sunshine – It hasn’t suffered like its lower- needed, that Brits will pay or the lack thereof. “In 2015, priced rivals, but Twinings has more for products with a pleas- the weather index across the still seen volumes fall by 2.4%. ant pong. Pricier formats have summer months was lower Value is up, however, due to helped boost Air Wick’s aver- than the previous two years,” average prices rising as shop- age price by 9%. See the 2015 says brand manager Hannah pers switch to more premium launch of Life Scents, a plug-in Webb. That’s Hellmann’s green and herbal varieties. offering constantly changing explanation for losing £1.2m Twinings’ new Steamed Green fragrances. It now accounts for in a year in which it added a Tea and Freshly Picked Taste a fifth of Air Wick’s sales. BBQ-friendly olive oil variant. ranges further tap this trend.

“We’ve never used a television commercial for Monster Energy”

73 (80) Monster Energy ●●Sales: £126.5m (+14.5%) “What we’ve learnt with Not many top 100 brands have Monster is that it’s about offer- got where they are today with- ing multiple variants,” says out ever going on the telly. One den Hollander, pointing to the is Monster. “We’ve never used now 12-strong range. “Growth a TV commercial for Monster,” is absolutely about more dis- says Leendert den Hollander, tribution for the variants, such GM at Coca-Cola Enterprises. as The Doctor, which we’ve So how has it reached such teamed up with Moto GP star heady heights? Valentino Rossi for.” A steady stream of bikes and Monster is up £16m, with boobs on the brand’s social units up 16.6 million (+20.2%). media channels has helped, Impressive stuff, in light of all as Monster has sought to the commotion about sugar: appeal to its young, predomi- 500ml contains 55g of the nantly male target drinker. As stuff. So CCE has launched well as sponsorship of various an alternative: zero calo- motor sports, including Moto rie Monster Ultra. “The next GP and Supercross, a rapidly phase for Monster is Ultra,” expanding range of products says den Hollander. “I believe has helped drive growth. it has a lot of legs in the UK.”

www.thegrocer.co.uk 19 March 2016 | The Grocer | 35 in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

86 (96) Pot Noodle ●●Sales: £100.6m (+9.4%) Of course, Unilever hasn’t Pot Noodle is no longer just for done away with Pot Noodle’s lads. Gone are the more risqué trademark sense of humour. ads, such as the 2013 Peel the One ad proclaims: “There’s no Top Off A Hottie campaign that time to dilly dally (if you do prompted a slew of complaints you’re a silly billy).” Another of sexism to the ASA; in is the follows a boxing fan’s journey more universal appeal of the to a Las Vegas venue in pursuit brand’s You Can Make It push, of his dream of making it not aimed at young go-getters of as a boxer, but as a ring girl. both genders. Recent key NPD included “Young people are more Pot Noodle Sausage Casserole, ambitious yet busier than to tap the trend for traditional ever,” says marketing manager flavours, and putting Chinese Monique Rossi to explain the Chow Mein, one of its most ads’ central message: that by popular variants, into the King opting for a Pot Noodle rather Pot Format. Next came a new than cooking a meal from Mac & Cheese line. “Cheese scratch, one can save time that has seen a massive increase would be better spent chasing in usage as part of savoury dreams. snacks,” adds Rossi.

“Cheese has seen a massive increase in usage in savoury snacks”

81 (90) Pizza Express 82 (83) Philadelphia 83 (109) Kinder ●●Sales: £107.6m (+9.1%) ●●Sales: £105.7m (–2%) ●●Sales: £104.6 (+27.3%) Pizza Express has passed the Philly launched a trio of Kinder has finally cracked the £100m mark, rising nine spots whipped cheeses last year top 100, and with some force. up the list. Chilled pizza, made backed by a £3m market- Its whopping £22.4m gain in under licence by BakkavÖr, ing push and expanded value marks the third biggest was the biggest source of its range in January with a gain on this year’s list. The growth, with two new clas- Mediterranean Herbs vari- Minions were of major benefit sic lines and a Romana pizza ant as it sought to tap demand to sales in the summer, with launched in November. Light for soft cheese with herb infu- the characters getting their Dressing, made by All About sions. Volumes held steady, own Surprise egg. The limited- Food, also boosted growth. but value still slipped £2.2m. edition Joy helped too.

84 (76) Bakers 85 (84) Kleenex 87 (86) Irn-Bru ●●Sales: £102.5m (–12.3%) ●●Sales: £101.7m (–5.6%) ●●Sales: £100.0m (–5.1%) It’s a dog’s life. Current trends Kleenex sales caught a cold A loss of £5.4m for Scotland’s are favouring smaller, single- in 2015 with units sold down other national drink. All vari- serve wet options rather than nearly 10%. Seeking to reduce ants, including the sugar- the dry offering Bakers is best its dependence on the cold free version that’s delivered known for, hence the brand’s and flu season and “inspire strong growth in recent years, £14.4m loss. What’s more, as daily usage”, the brand’s new have suffered, with the stand- pet owners spend more on ‘Someone needs one’ adver- ard version Bru hardest hit. posher petfood (see Gourmet tising campaign highlights a Not even the brand’s first at 122), Bakers’ average price is wide range of uses for facial Christmas ad campaign in down 6.2%. tissues. nine years put the fizz back.

88 (89) Dettol 89 (85) McCoy’s 90 (90) Old El Paso ●●Sales: £99.2m (+0.1%) ●●Sales: £99.0m (–7.9%) ●●Sales: £98.6m (+1%) Dettol is cleaning up after the McCoy’s is suffering as com- A solid year for Old El Paso, 2014 launch of the UK’s first petition from baked snacks, with unit growth keeping up laundry cleanser, a product popcorn and a host of ‘health- with value. The brand has used in tandem with deter- ier’ snacks stiffens. In the past been cashing in on Brits’ gent to kill germs. As the prod- year it’s sold 4.9 million (4.4%) growing appetite for exotic uct hurtles towards the £10m fewer packs despite launching cuisines, with experiential mark, RB has been emphasis- McCoy’s Street Menu, a selec- activity linking the brand with ing how its disinfectants can tion of street food-inspired fla- street food, and YouTube vid- help halt the spread of colds vours, to coincide with a major eos showcasing Mexican meat and flu. Volumes fell 4.2%. revamp of its portfolio. and fish dishes.

36 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

BBB16_36_81_90.indd 36 14/03/2016 18:20 Lurpak® is the UK’s No.1 butter and spreadable brand.* Worth over £295m we have sold 56,000t in the last year* and can be found in 8.8m households.**

GOOD FOOD DESERVES LURPAK® w/e 30.01.2016 data 52 and value Nielsen volume * WPOKantar ** dataw/e 28.02.2016 52 in association with nielsen britain’s biggest brands

() Special K ● Sales: £95.1m (–22.8%) “The brand has been on a Special K is losing weight, but journey to reposition itself it’s no cause for celebration. from diet food to an ongoing Its bruising £28.1m drop in healthy eating choice, so we’re value, accompanied by a fall continuing to try to move the in packs shi ed of 24.1 million dial,” says Gareth Maguire, (–30.6%), ranks as the seventh commercial director for cereal steepest decline of the year, at Kellogg’s. and the greatest in cereals. The new Nutri K ake, with The decline is re ected 10% less sugar, launched in across the Special K portfolio, May, and an Eat Special Feel with the brand’s new Super Special TV campaign, focused Porridge and Protein Crunch on Special K Red Berries, lines, launched to tap demand ran this January. It’s hoped for functional breakfasts, the Kellogg’s forthcoming tie- only products in signi cant up with the Olympics will be growth. Cracker Crisps have persuasive. been the biggest casualty, Special K Nourish, contain- down £8.2m; Original is down ing akes, clusters and seeds, £6.7m; Multigrain Porridge came in this month backed by lost £4.5m. a £4m support spend.

“Special K has repositioned from diet food to healthy eating choice”

() Kettle () Bernard Matthews () Plenty ● Sales: £97.2m (+2.0%) ● Sales: £96.0m (–8.5%) ● Sales: £94.6m (+7.7%) Up £1.9m, although sti com- Britain’s biggest poultry brand Despite decline in the paper petition in sharing bags has has taken a stu ng. It’s lost category, this brand has seen 11% wiped o Kettle’s £8.9m overall, with its chilled plenty to cheer about. Plenty average price per unit. The meat, which now accounts for has consolidated its position brand blames an “exception- just under half of Matthews’ as Britain’s top kitchen roll ally competitive market with branded business, down by brand, despite selling 0.5% aggressive promotional activ- almost £10m, partly as a result fewer units. Shoppers were ity”. It hopes the new upmar- of cut-price deals on own convinced to pay more by ads ket Chef’s Selection will help label. That loss was mitigated trumpeting superior strength restore brand value. by gains in frozen poultry. and absorbency.

() Twirl () Lindt Lindor () Capri-Sun ● Sales: £93.8m (+15.2%) ● Sales: £93.0m (+13.4%) ● Sales: £92.3m (–1.5%) Twirl’s big growth is down to Those bunnies are at it again! Sales are down £1.4m, but its bags format, Twirl Bites, Lindt has achieved another Capri-Sun has sold two mil- launched in 2013 and now in year of double-digit growth lion (3.6%) more units. Not all the major mults. Mondelez with sales up £11m, something bad, considering Tesco axed also invested in singles with the brand attributes to its the brand’s added-sugar lines two big promos: Fly Cadbury marketing campaign and the in September. The rollout of a Air gave away weekend trips launch of the Hello lifestyle no-added-sugar line-up four to ve European cities, while range. With an early Easter , months earlier helped keep Joynormous gave out £320,000 Lindt is keen to drive impulse Capri-Sun shining, replacing of bespoke prizes. purchases. the SKUs ditched in Tesco.

() Dairylea () Highland Spring () Tetley ● Sales: £90.2m (+2.6%) ● Sales: £89.6m (+6.0%) ● Sales: £88.5m (–11.0%) Dairylea shrugged o a fall in A er entering the top 100 for Is this the last year in the top value and volume sales during the rst time in its 35-year his- 100 for what was once Britain’s 2014 with a £2.3m boost in rev- tory thanks to activity includ- number one tea? It looks that enues in the past year, despite ing a £1.6m TV ad campaign way. Volumes have crashed an average price reduction with British Tennis, Highland 6.5% despite price cuts as the of 2.6%. It launched Cheesy Spring is ramping up e orts cuppa falls out of fashion. Cheddar and Cheesy Bacon even further in 2016. The Tetley’s not going without a variants, and followed 2014’s brand will be back on TV from ght, however. In December it Moo-sical cow campaign with April with a £3m tennis-orien- launched a £10m campaign in a Moo-ing racer promotion. tated campaign. a bid to boost sales.

38 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

BBB16_38_91_100.indd 38 14/03/2016 18:21 LINDOR is now a top 100 brand!

Make your sales blissful with LINDOR

· The No.2 boxed chocolate brand* · The No.1 premium countline* · The No.1 premium milk bar* Stock up now

*Source: IRI Value Sales, Total Market, 52 w/e 30th January 2016

62283 Lindor Independant News A4 Advert.indd 1 11/03/2016 08:48 britain’s biggest brands rising high

With sales crashing for many of Britain’s biggest brands, there’s no shortage of players ready to sail in and take their place in the top 100. Here’s our pick of the high risers that could make the ranking in next year’s report...

( ) Celebrations ● Sales: £84.7m (+7.8%) Talk about bringing the party crashing down: Celebrations’ achieve- ment in making it into our top challengers ( ) Hula Hoops ( ) Mattessons is likely to be bitter- ● Sales: £88m (+8.4%) ● Sales: £85.6m sweet for Mars, as the ( ) Buxton It might be crunch time (+5.8%) brand was one of the ● Sales: £88.3m for crisps as shoppers A robot called few products a ected in (+8.4%) switch to snacks per- F.R.H.A.N.K has helped the UK by last month’s Buxton is on the verge ceived as healthier, Mattessons shi an mega recall. It is a of becoming the third such as savoury bis- extra 4.4 million packs move bound to impact bottled water brand in cuits and popcorn, but of meat snacks over the brand’s perfor- the top 100, a er put- no one seems to have the past year. The mance this year. Prior ting an extra £6.8m told the original potato Fridge Raiders Hunger to this Celebrations through the tills over rings brand that. Hula Automated Kit took the was soaring, with vol- the past year. The Hoops has helped itself ( ) M&M’s brand straight to the umes up 11.4%. Sales Nestlé Waters brand is to an extra £6.8m in ● Sales: £87.9m core of its target teen- over the all-important bene ting from the tec- sales this past year, (+19.3%) age audience by linking Christmas period were tonic shi s taking place selling an extra 1.4 Arguably the biggest up with YouTuber Ali-A. given a boost by the in so drinks as Brits million (9.1%) units. bene ciary of the shar- Owner Kerry Foods, rst TV ad for the brand ditch sugary drinks Playing the health ing trend in chocolate, meanwhile, went a er in a decade, which in favour of products card has helped; KP M&M’s has turned in a more adult audience debuted during The X perceived as health- launched Hula Hoops confectionery’s great- with premium NPD Factor on 1 November. ier, such as good old Pu , a lighter version est growth, worth an Mattessons Savagers – H20. Buxton isn’t leav- of the original with just impressive £14.2m. cured meat sticks made ing it all to chance, of 74 calories per bag, in Canny marketing and from 100% prime pork. course: it’s continu- January last year. colourful NPD have It also worked with ing to support a host helped. Last April the retailers to make meat of popular sporting brand jumped on the snacks a destination events and will sponsor election bandwagon category for adults. next month’s London with ads inviting shop- Marathon for the third pers to vote for their year running. favourite M&M’s char- acter (red, yellow or brown) and launching single colour bags. A er the election, the brand o ered the chance to win a trip to the United States, with a US-inspired red, white and blue colour mix.

40 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

BBB16_40_the challengers.indd 40 14/03/2016 18:03 in association with nielsen

( ) Sheba ● Sales: £65.4m (+19.8%) More proof that pets are escaping the penny pinching at the tills: Sheba’s average price is up 12.2% as it’s sought ( ) Cushelle ( ) Wispa to cater for our nicky ● Sales: £58.6m ● Sales: £80.4m felines’ every whim. (+14.9%) (+9.8%) Sauce Lover is for those Cushelle’s manufac- Vindication, if it were ( ) Belvita who prefer more gravy, turing technique uses needed, of Cadbury’s ● Sales: £70.9m Fresh Choice was devel- heated air to boost so - 2008 decision to bring (+15.7%) oped for moggies who ness and absorbency, back Wispa a er A er its growth slowed like meals little and says brand manager axing it ve years ear- in 2014, Belvita has ( ) Gourmet o en, and for indeci- Sian Dixon. “This is lier. Eight years a er picked up again, reas- ● Sales: £70.9m sive cats Delicious Duos likely to capture the relaunch, the brand is serting its domi- (+19.0%) combines two meats. attention of shoppers on course to sail into nance of breakfast Owners of discern- “The performance has looking for something the top 100. Mondelez biscuits with further ing felines are will- been driven by our extra from their toilet says Bitsa Wispa shar- NPD and a return to ing to pay a premium focus on variety and tissue,” she says. The ing bags have helped TV in September. Last for indulgence; as a quality,” says a spokes- brand’s £7.6m growth the brand rise up the August it introduced result Gourmet’s sales woman. “Indulgent was partly driven by a ranking. Chilled des- So Bakes, which have are purring, with the meals and treats are in 6.7% increase in aver- serts, hot drinks and added £4m in four lion’s share of its £11.3m strong growth; retailers age unit price, helped biscuits made under months. “Our success growth driven by are giving them more no doubt by TV ads and licence by third parties has been driven by higher-priced products. shelf space .” a Good Housekeeping are also doing their bit; product performance,” NPD is ying, particu- Reader Recommended Wispa Biscuits, manu- says Mondelez bis- larly Mon Petit, o ering accreditation in 2015. factured by Burton’s cuits category lead Rick hard-to-please moggies Proof that brand owner Biscuits Co, picked up Lawrence, who cites a tasting menu of a- SCA Hygiene’s story a Grocer New Product its 62% repeat rate and vours in 50g pouches. isn’t all hot air! Award last year. continued innovation Soup aimed at cats as key growth drivers. is also doing down a “Each new product has treat. “Gourmet Soup a distinct purpose to is only the latest exam- bring in new consumers ple of true innovation to the brand.” in petfood, testament to brand’s leading role in this category,” says market development director Liz Wood.

www.thegrocer.co.uk 19 March 2016 | The Grocer | 41

BBB16_40_the challengers.indd 41 14/03/2016 18:03 britains biggest brands 00_00 Notes Methodology Andrex: includes moist tissue wipes. The data in Britain’s 100 Biggest Grocery Brands Alpro: includes desserts. is for the period 52 w/e 2 January 2016. Data in Aunt Bessie’s: includes gravy, potatoes, ready Britain’s 100 Biggest Grocery Brands is taken meals, vegetables, trimmings, frozen desserts, from Nielsen’s Scantrack service. Scantrack dumplings, ambient stuffing and pastry mix. monitors weekly sales from a nationwide Birds Eye: includes frozen poultry, veg, fish, ready network of EPoS checkout scanners covering meals, red meat, bakery and rice products. the grocery and convenience markets. Bisto: includes frozen ready meals. Nielsen’s retail measurement service provides Cadbury: products sold under the Cadbury brand, comprehensive information on actual purchases, excluding distinct brands in their own right (ie market shares, distribution, pricing and Dairy Milk, Caramel etc). Includes cakes, biscuits, promotional activities, and is the fastest and most potted desserts, drinking chocolate and ice cream. accurate measure of consumer sales. Nielsen’s Extra: includes gum, mints and strips. services are always dynamic and are constantly Euroshopper: for the purposes of this report, being improved to reflect the grocery marketplace. Booker’s Euroshopper range has not been Nielsen Total Coverage now includes EPoS defined as a brand, so does not appear. data from Wilkinson, Superdrug and Boots, Fairy: includes all main household and excludes any estimation for Aldi and Lidl. & laundry categories. Nielsen provides clients with consultation on Heinz Beanz: excludes WeightWatchers. product innovation, retail and shopper strategies, Heinz Soup: excludes WeightWatchers. market structure and segmentation, brand and Hovis: includes bread, bread alternatives, portfolio management, marketing performance, bagged snacks, biscuits and morning goods. pricing and promotional strategies, advertising Innocent: includes smoothies, juice, effectiveness and social media intelligence, juice drinks and coconut water. based upon expertise and data assets. John West: includes ambient ready meals. Nielsen’s retail measurement services provide Kingsmill: includes bread, bread alternatives, the fmcg industry with expert information bagged snacks, biscuits and morning goods. and analysis of consumers, categories and the Lucozade: includes all still and sparkling variants. retail marketplace. For the purposes of this Napolina: includes canned vegetables, report, a brand is defined as all products within oils, pasta and cooking sauces. categories that are sold and marketed under a Nescafé: includes instant, ground and on demand. given brand name. The report includes grocery Persil: includes all main household and household categories and does not include and laundry categories. tobacco, alcohol, personal care or OTC. Philadelphia: includes Simply Stir. Pot Noodle: includes Pot Rice, Mini Pot, Posh Noodle and King Pot Noodle. Princes: includes fish, ready meals, fruit juices and juice drinks; excludes Jucee. Robinsons: includes Fruit Shoot. Special K: includes cereals, biscuits, bagged snacks, hot cereals and cereal bars. Walkers: includes Deep Ridged, Baked Stars, Lights, Baked, Crinkles, Max, Extra Crunchy, Walkers Crisps bags and Market Deli; excludes Sensations. Warburtons: includes bread, bread alternatives, bagged snacks, biscuits and morning goods. Weetabix: includes cereals, biscuits and RTDs. WeightWatchers: includes frozen and chilled ready meals, trimmings, desserts, cakes, biscuits and yoghurts. Young’s: includes all branded Young’s frozen fish; excludes fresh fish products. All chocolate brands: measured across the chocolate confectionery, ice cream, RTD, hot chocolate beverages, cake and biscuits categories.

© William Reed Business Media Ltd 2016. Copyright: All Rights Reserved. ISSN 0017-4351. Britain’s Biggest Brands report was compiled Printed by Wyndeham Group. by The Nielsen Company exclusively for The For more information: William Reed Business Grocer magazine/William Reed Business Media. Media Ltd, Broadfield Park, Crawley, No reproduction of this list or data within, full West Sussex, RH11 9RT. Tel: 01293 613400. or in part, for commercial use is permitted Web: www.william-reed.co.uk without prior consent of The Nielsen Company. 42 | The Grocer | 19 March 2016 www.thegrocer.co.uk

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