7 (6) Nescafé
Sales: £384.9m +3.5%
Launched: 1938
Already Britain’s biggest coffee brand, Nescafé increased its share of the instant coffee market last year, notching up a healthy 3.5% increase in value sales.
Brand owner Nestlé continued to pour fresh thinking and plenty of cash into the brand throughout the year, launching Nescafé Original 3in1 in September – a ready-to-use sachet of coffee, sugar and whitener – in a bid to appeal to younger drinkers and to tap into demand for convenience products.
Last year also saw Nestlé announce plans for a Singapore-based technology hub designed to encourage drinks innovation. But not everything went according to plan, with the revived Nescafé Gold Blend TV campaign under review within five months of its launch.
8 (9) Lucozade
Sales: £370.1m (+9.4%)
Launched: 1927
Sports & energy drinks was the fastest-growing fmcg category in 2010 according to The Grocer’s Top Products Survey, and Lucozade – the sector’s biggest brand – played a starring role.
After a 2009 performance that The Grocer described as “decidedly flat”, Lucozade’s growth in 2010 is an impressive turnaround. Much of this success was down to Lucozade Sport Lite. Launched last February and backed by a £15m ad push tied to the World Cup, it has generated £10m. GSK will be hoping sales won’t be dented by last week’s withdrawal of all batches of Summer Berries due to reported “mould growth” in a few drinks.
Almost 70% of sports & energy NPD sales in the past 18 months has come from Lucozade, says Colin Seymour, GSK category and shopper marketing director. In February GSK launched three new Lucozade sports nutrition products, and such innovation is set to continue as it paid out £162m for functional food business Maxinutrition in December.
Lucozade Alert Plus is now the number one energy shot, while Lucozade Energy Cherry – which was supported by the Fuelling England’s Roar campaign for the World Cup – has also helped to boost sales, says Seymour.
More people are buying into the category as it accommodates more “need states”, says GSK. The next year will continue a trend of being less about lowest price and more about adding value.
“Innovation through brand extensions and new flavours will generate additional interest in the category and continue to fuel growth as we move slowly out of recession,” says Seymour.
And with a £21.5m spend across Lucozade and Ribena in 2011 we can expect more big-profile activity such as Lucozade’s Win an Adventure Every Day promotion and its Do More campaign.
9 (8) Andrex
Sales: £353.7m (+1.0%)
Launched: 1942
Andrex remains top dog in toilet tissues thanks to strong NPD. Volume sales were flat in 2010 but the brand chalked up a 1% increase in value sales despite deep discounting in the sector and consumers switching to cheaper offerings. In fact, Andrex chose the premium route to stand out on-shelf. In October, Andrex Aloe Vera was relaunched as Andrex Skin Kind and the following month Andrex Quilts became Andrex Gorgeous Comfort.
The launches were part of the brand’s It’s the Little Things push, which also saw the Andrex puppy morph into a CGI version as part of a digital makeover. The latest TV ad sees him busily preparing the house for the return of his loved one, down to folding the corners of the toilet roll.
10 (10) Robinsons
Sales: £314.8m +2.3%
Launched: 1823
As Andy Murray reached his second Wimbledon semi-final, Robinsons was celebrating 75 years sponsoring the tournament.
On-pack promotions and a strong TV campaign have helped the brand hold on to its number 10 position in our rankings – an especially good performance given that the juice drinks category lost sales in 2010. Robinsons also benefited from a makeover in early 2010, with a new look designed to highlight its quality and family focus.
And it didn’t shy from NPD. Robinsons Select, a premium squash targeted at adults, hit shelves in April. This year will see the launch of the UK’s first branded double-concentrate squash, the ‘it does what it says on the tin’ Robinsons Double Concentrate, backed by a £6.9m campaign.
Britain's 100 Biggest Brands 2011
Sales: £384.9m +3.5%
Launched: 1938
Already Britain’s biggest coffee brand, Nescafé increased its share of the instant coffee market last year, notching up a healthy 3.5% increase in value sales.
Brand owner Nestlé continued to pour fresh thinking and plenty of cash into the brand throughout the year, launching Nescafé Original 3in1 in September – a ready-to-use sachet of coffee, sugar and whitener – in a bid to appeal to younger drinkers and to tap into demand for convenience products.
Last year also saw Nestlé announce plans for a Singapore-based technology hub designed to encourage drinks innovation. But not everything went according to plan, with the revived Nescafé Gold Blend TV campaign under review within five months of its launch.
8 (9) Lucozade
Sales: £370.1m (+9.4%)
Launched: 1927
Sports & energy drinks was the fastest-growing fmcg category in 2010 according to The Grocer’s Top Products Survey, and Lucozade – the sector’s biggest brand – played a starring role.
After a 2009 performance that The Grocer described as “decidedly flat”, Lucozade’s growth in 2010 is an impressive turnaround. Much of this success was down to Lucozade Sport Lite. Launched last February and backed by a £15m ad push tied to the World Cup, it has generated £10m. GSK will be hoping sales won’t be dented by last week’s withdrawal of all batches of Summer Berries due to reported “mould growth” in a few drinks.
Almost 70% of sports & energy NPD sales in the past 18 months has come from Lucozade, says Colin Seymour, GSK category and shopper marketing director. In February GSK launched three new Lucozade sports nutrition products, and such innovation is set to continue as it paid out £162m for functional food business Maxinutrition in December.
Lucozade Alert Plus is now the number one energy shot, while Lucozade Energy Cherry – which was supported by the Fuelling England’s Roar campaign for the World Cup – has also helped to boost sales, says Seymour.
More people are buying into the category as it accommodates more “need states”, says GSK. The next year will continue a trend of being less about lowest price and more about adding value.
“Innovation through brand extensions and new flavours will generate additional interest in the category and continue to fuel growth as we move slowly out of recession,” says Seymour.
And with a £21.5m spend across Lucozade and Ribena in 2011 we can expect more big-profile activity such as Lucozade’s Win an Adventure Every Day promotion and its Do More campaign.
9 (8) Andrex
Sales: £353.7m (+1.0%)
Launched: 1942
Andrex remains top dog in toilet tissues thanks to strong NPD. Volume sales were flat in 2010 but the brand chalked up a 1% increase in value sales despite deep discounting in the sector and consumers switching to cheaper offerings. In fact, Andrex chose the premium route to stand out on-shelf. In October, Andrex Aloe Vera was relaunched as Andrex Skin Kind and the following month Andrex Quilts became Andrex Gorgeous Comfort.
The launches were part of the brand’s It’s the Little Things push, which also saw the Andrex puppy morph into a CGI version as part of a digital makeover. The latest TV ad sees him busily preparing the house for the return of his loved one, down to folding the corners of the toilet roll.
10 (10) Robinsons
Sales: £314.8m +2.3%
Launched: 1823
As Andy Murray reached his second Wimbledon semi-final, Robinsons was celebrating 75 years sponsoring the tournament.
On-pack promotions and a strong TV campaign have helped the brand hold on to its number 10 position in our rankings – an especially good performance given that the juice drinks category lost sales in 2010. Robinsons also benefited from a makeover in early 2010, with a new look designed to highlight its quality and family focus.
And it didn’t shy from NPD. Robinsons Select, a premium squash targeted at adults, hit shelves in April. This year will see the launch of the UK’s first branded double-concentrate squash, the ‘it does what it says on the tin’ Robinsons Double Concentrate, backed by a £6.9m campaign.
Britain's 100 Biggest Brands 2011
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