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Who: Unilever

What: Wall’s Gingerbread Sandwich

Where: Handheld ice creams

When: Launched September 2014

How much: £2/400g

Why: The ice cream sandwich is a popular ­format in some European countries, and Unilever is looking to generate interest for such products in the UK. It rolled out the Iceberger in single packs for the out-of-home market this April, and in September launched a retail product - the Gingerbread Sandwich - under the Wall’s brand. Sold in a four-pack, it features vanilla flavour ice cream surrounded by soft gingerbread biscuits.

Consumer verdict: Within the traditionally high-scoring and competitive handheld ice cream category, products need a ‘wow’ factor to stand apart and become an attractive proposition. Although it has an understated pack design that runs the risk of being overlooked in the freezer, after tasting this was considered to be not only better than the competition (61% agreed) but also offered something different (88% agreed). Respondents commented on the ‘good amount of ginger,’ ‘lovely combination of flavours and textures’ and the ‘taste of Christmas.’ More than 40% claimed they would consider buying at least monthly.

Pre-trial purchase: 43%

Post-trial purchase: 69%

Better than what’s out there: 61%

New and different: 88%

Overall score: 43/50

What is Fast Foodfax?

It is a subscriber service that has been running for more than 30 years, offering consumer assessments of new products and allowing comparisons with more than 17,000 products from our database. It is objective, impartial and totally independent, and each product is assessed using original consumer feedback from respondents across the UK. See here for further information.

Fast Foodfax is prepared by Cambridge Market Research , which works closely with The Grocer magazine on a variety of projects including the consumer judging element of the The Grocer’s Own-label Food & Drink Awards and New Product Awards. 

Tel. 01223 492 050 Email: Info@CambridgeMR.com

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