Top slimming brand Slim-Fast has expanded its offering, but it appears to be keeping a low profile

Unilever’s Slim-Fast might have fallen out of favour with some slimmers who defected to the Atkins diet, but the brand is a tried and tested favourite with many, who use the milkshake products to keep their weight in check.
However, just over a year ago, at the height of the Atkins’ diet popularity, it caved in to pressure by launching the Low Cal Low Carb sub brand, which includes soup, frozen ready meals, shakes and snack bars. Simon Whitehead, Slim-Fast business manager at Unilever UK Foods, insists: “The range is still part of our offering and meets the needs of consumers looking for this type of diet.”
Slim-Fast is the UK’s biggest brand in the slimming aids market and there are now more
options to choose from, such as meal replacement bars and snack bars. But the brand appears to have been keeping a lower profile, as its adverts haven’t been on screen for a while. Explains Whitehead: “We have been concentrating on below-the-line activity and promotions this year. For example, we ran a nationwide £3m Kickstart Your Summer campaign.”
It will run direct marketing activity on meal replacement bars in the run-up to Christmas and direct mail activity and in-store promotions in January.
But not all retailers will be buying into the concept. Although Tesco says Slim-Fast remains popular among its core customers, David Stokes, senior buying controller at Nisafreeze, says: “Slim-Fast has not transferred well out of basic ambient/grocery and we do not currently have plans to support it further within our business.”