>>Adam Pritchard, MD of RJA Foods… how small suppliers can get a big break
Today’s ABC1 consumers are an educated bunch, fed on a diet of internet information, overdosing on health features and gorging on alarmist headlines that only go to stoke greater thirst for more information. As a consequence, our experience is that the consumer is way ahead of the trade when it comes to understanding what a product new to the market is intrinsically about.
It is not that surprising, therefore, that the challenge for a small wannabe brand is initially threefold: to anticipate consumer demand ahead of competitors, big and small; to finance and manage the development of the product through to launch; and to persuade the trade that it’s worth the bother to play their part to bring it to their consumers.
Persuading the trade - and I mean the major players in the grocery trade - is still proving a more difficult challenge than the initial two. This might be because of a naïve critical belief that if we had a product and a proposition that the consumer would want, then naturally enough the trade would want to help the consumer be able to buy it.
We spent two years and our life savings bringing our Pomegreat fruit juice to the market. The trials and tribulations that were suffered in the course of this time can only be written about with a health warning attached. For a small player to come into the market with a product that in any way replicates a major branded/own label product is suicide. Differentiation all the way through, from concept to taste to pack design, is the key to satisfying trade and consumer interest.
The thought and subsequent actions that we gave to the development of Pomegreat were painstaking and done in the knowledge that if we didn’t get it right first time, the financial commitment required meant that there would be no second chances. This is the perilous situation faced by all small brands in today’s UK food and drink market.
It is impossible for a small brand to compete on price, so the product offering must be sufficiently different to gain attention from the consumer and command action from the trade.
Innovation is the key for any small wannabe brand. Products coming into the market with a genuine point of difference are few and far between. To launch such a product is expensive and carries risks that
the major players are not necessarily prepared to take. It is always easier and safer for a major player to be seen to innovate with a range extension or pack change, rather than launch a product/brand that is completely new.
Hence the dearth of genuine new products in the marketplace, which leaves the way open for smaller players.
Health issues have created a new area for innovation in food and drink, building in momentum over the past 10 years. In the next five years there will be a concentration of interest from all parties.
Retailers have a wonderful opportunity to satisfy all concerned - consumers, government, lobby groups and, of course, their shareholders. Before we had 5,000 packs on shelf we were getting 15,000 hits a month on our website, a great illustration that new products are a point of real interest. We view health as a central theme to the Pomegreat offering, but never considered it as a health product. The fact that our packaging carries the logo and approval from one of the major heart charities in the UK speaks volumes to the consumer and trade alike.
By innovating with ingredients it is difficult but achievable to arrive at a product that is not only healthy, but delivers on taste and appearance. In Waitrose, Sainsbury and Booths we are able to demonstrate that the consumer will pay a premium now that they have been given access to the product.
With the right support from the trade the wannabe brands can play their part in a healthier tomorrow.
Today’s ABC1 consumers are an educated bunch, fed on a diet of internet information, overdosing on health features and gorging on alarmist headlines that only go to stoke greater thirst for more information. As a consequence, our experience is that the consumer is way ahead of the trade when it comes to understanding what a product new to the market is intrinsically about.
It is not that surprising, therefore, that the challenge for a small wannabe brand is initially threefold: to anticipate consumer demand ahead of competitors, big and small; to finance and manage the development of the product through to launch; and to persuade the trade that it’s worth the bother to play their part to bring it to their consumers.
Persuading the trade - and I mean the major players in the grocery trade - is still proving a more difficult challenge than the initial two. This might be because of a naïve critical belief that if we had a product and a proposition that the consumer would want, then naturally enough the trade would want to help the consumer be able to buy it.
We spent two years and our life savings bringing our Pomegreat fruit juice to the market. The trials and tribulations that were suffered in the course of this time can only be written about with a health warning attached. For a small player to come into the market with a product that in any way replicates a major branded/own label product is suicide. Differentiation all the way through, from concept to taste to pack design, is the key to satisfying trade and consumer interest.
The thought and subsequent actions that we gave to the development of Pomegreat were painstaking and done in the knowledge that if we didn’t get it right first time, the financial commitment required meant that there would be no second chances. This is the perilous situation faced by all small brands in today’s UK food and drink market.
It is impossible for a small brand to compete on price, so the product offering must be sufficiently different to gain attention from the consumer and command action from the trade.
Innovation is the key for any small wannabe brand. Products coming into the market with a genuine point of difference are few and far between. To launch such a product is expensive and carries risks that
the major players are not necessarily prepared to take. It is always easier and safer for a major player to be seen to innovate with a range extension or pack change, rather than launch a product/brand that is completely new.
Hence the dearth of genuine new products in the marketplace, which leaves the way open for smaller players.
Health issues have created a new area for innovation in food and drink, building in momentum over the past 10 years. In the next five years there will be a concentration of interest from all parties.
Retailers have a wonderful opportunity to satisfy all concerned - consumers, government, lobby groups and, of course, their shareholders. Before we had 5,000 packs on shelf we were getting 15,000 hits a month on our website, a great illustration that new products are a point of real interest. We view health as a central theme to the Pomegreat offering, but never considered it as a health product. The fact that our packaging carries the logo and approval from one of the major heart charities in the UK speaks volumes to the consumer and trade alike.
By innovating with ingredients it is difficult but achievable to arrive at a product that is not only healthy, but delivers on taste and appearance. In Waitrose, Sainsbury and Booths we are able to demonstrate that the consumer will pay a premium now that they have been given access to the product.
With the right support from the trade the wannabe brands can play their part in a healthier tomorrow.
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