Cereal thrillers Character licences are moving beyond on-pack promotions in the children's market and into the pack itself, with a variety of cereal shapes based on popular characters. In the last two years there's been an upsurge in character shaped cereals, led by Dailycer's Thomas the Tank Engine, Jordan's Action Man and Bio Familia's Teletubbies. New manufacturing technology has made it possible, says Dailycer assistant product manager Louise McLintock. "The market has been slow to seize the opportunity and in comparison to other categories, character licensed products are sparse, but they are developing at a great rate. Asda has a lot of own label shapes. It's a real area for npd and is most effective when combined with character licensing," says McLintock. Dailycer believes the children's market has room for two or three strong character licensed cereals. "Boys are well served, but there's nothing for girls. We considered Barbie, but have gone for creating our own Funky Girl, which comes out next month. We've also secured the Tweenies licence," says McLintock. The three brand leaders have yet to take a gamble on character licensed shapes, preferring to stick with the safer territory of on pack promotions. Cereal Partners' strategy has been to maximise "hot licences", such as Toy Story 2 and Euro 2000, its latest being Digimon on the Shreddies brand, Honey Nut Cheerios and Golden Nuggets. Marketing director Dez Timmiss says the sales uplift on a successful promotion can be as much as 20%. Catering to intolerance With organic cereals now mainstream, the market is opening up for niche products that fulfil a specific health need. Pertwood Organic Cereals is re-packaging its five organic cereals to emphasise that they are wheat-free and suitable for people with a wheat intolerance. "Demand is growing for wheat-free because of allergies," says production manager Chris Walford. Gluten Free Foods is creating a growing market for its cereals which are promoted as wheat and gluten free. It has just introduced an organic porridge which is also free of milk, egg, soya, yeast and nuts. The early snacker's rumbled it Since its debut three years ago, Ennis Foods' Rumblers, an all-in-one fresh milk and cereal twin-pot, has given workers a convenient, out of home breakfast. Marketing controller Fiona Burles says the majority of sales are in the morning to the 18-35 age group, with a strong female bias. "Sales are maximised if it's available early in the morning and merchandised in a chiller near the front of store to catch the rush," she says. Rsp is 89p, but in city locations it is sold for much more. "Price is not an issue when people are in a hurry," Burles adds. Cereal and milk Rumblers comes in four varieties. Last summer it launched Bio, a yogurt and cereal variant, now in four flavours. {{FOCUS SPECIALS }}