Ring ring. I’m putting in some serious telephone time, trying to convince the major supermarkets to list the Jimmy’s Iced Coffee range.
“Good afternoon, Major Multiple speaking.”
“Hi, I’d like to know how I go about listing my iced coffee products with you…”
The moment they find out my product has milk in it, I’m immediately passed to the milk buyer, despite my protestations: “But hang on, it’s got coffee in it too, why don’t you put me in touch with the coffee buyer? In fact, it also contains water, so why not sling us next to the Volvic?”
But no, the milk buyer it is. The milk buyer for the milk section: the fastest, least adored and most ignored category of them all. Shhhoooom, goes the shopper, barely looking up – four-pint green top with not a millisecond to spare.
I’m beginning to realise that there’s a slight problem with product placement. The problem lies not with ingredients, but consumer need. Fair enough, if it’s frozen and it’s chips, they don’t belong next to potatoes. However, there are some products out there whose placement in-store is governed by their ingredients – and that’s not right.
Think about it. You’re hungry, you’re thirsty and you’re in a hurry. Where are you going to go? The closest supermarket. You get there and march to the front-of-store fridge, where you grab a sandwich, a snack and a soft drink. You nip to the self-service checkout and – hey presto – you’re done.
But what about those products that don’t make it to the front of the store? Surely we can’t expect our customers (those awesome on-the-go shoppers) to cruise down to the milk aisle, scuffing their heels as they go, wondering if there might be a few brilliant drinks around here somewhere? Well, there are!
I do understand that in some instances the front-of-store fridges are owned by the big boys, and some fridges are too small to house every single-serve product, but having to be told we belong in the milk section is a little confusing. I think the iced coffee category is a perfect example of a misunderstood range, and I cannot wait for the day we introduce cold brew to the masses, as it only contains water and coffee. Where will it sit then?
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