Now more than at any other time in recent history, food and drink suppliers, retailers and the whole of the supply chain are in the spotlight as they pull together to feed the nation. For food and drink brands looking to not just survive but thrive through these unprecedented times, now is not the time to step back from trade communications – quite the opposite is true. Stepping up, planning and managing effective trade communications is the right thing to do as it will ensure suppliers are providing retailers, trade press and other key industry stakeholders with the support and information that is desperately needed and so critically important.
Right now, business in retail and across the supply chain is very far from usual. Amidst the hell of this pandemic, the mantra of ‘business as usual’ should be followed by suppliers because that’s exactly what retailers need now more than at any other time in recent history. Effective communication, business continuity and your firm support is critical to them and critical to feeding the nation. Retailers need to hear how suppliers are working hard to not let them down and how they are pulling out all the stops to meet the unprecedented demand for food and drink.
I think many of us may take for granted that the tools we need to do our jobs are readily available to buy or will be provided by our employer, but for those less fortunate in poorer communities around the world, employment opportunities, training and tools are not so easy to come by.
I was recently asked to contribute to a feature in Convenience Store magazine about how a growing number of retailers in the sector are creating their own label brands and delivering a real point of difference and big profit opportunities. In the article https://www.conveniencestore.co.uk/your-business/retailer-brands-make-your-mark/596052.article I provided some important advice and top tips for any retailer who is looking to develop and launch a brand for themselves. For a full and extended list of the top 10 steps you need to follow and how to get you brand launch right you can read them here in this blog.
What continues to fascinate and excite me about the convenience sector is just how resilient and entrepreneurial independent retailers are. In the face of tough competition, with bigger supermarkets all around them, as well as increased cost pressures that impact their margins, they continue to innovate and thrive. As the leading Convenience Retail Marketing agency, Jellybean is working with Chicago Town Pizza to demonstrate this opportunity,
I was recently interviewed by The Grocer magazine for its feature on “how to get in front of a food and drink buyer”(The Grocer 27th April 2019). You can find a link to the full article here.
Helping challenger brands to explode onto the market
A prestigious food and drink award, particularly one that is voted for independently by consumers and or industry professionals has the power to help a challenger brand explode onto the market and unlock huge sales growth.
We recently attended the annual MCA Food to Go Conference at Ham Yard Hotel, London. With the MCA forecasting that the Food to Go market is set to reach a value of £21.2bn in 2019 and continue outperforming growth from the wider eating out market, it therefore represents a vital area of growth for operators. We heard from an array of fantastic speakers including Welcome Break, Sustainable Restaurant Association, LEON, Pret A Manger, Yo! Sushi, Eat and many more.
Here are 5 Food to Go Trends arising from the day that we think will impact and drive Food to Go growth in 2019.
We recently attended the HIM Future of Convenience 2019 event and spent a fascinating day immersed in the exciting and ever-changing world of convenience retail. We heard from an array of speakers from retailers, suppliers and industry experts.
Today marks the official launch of an exciting new Jellybean Creative Solutions’ platform and service for challenger brands wanting to take-off in the food and drink market. JellyPad has been created especially for innovative and disruptive brands and offers a suite of essential food PR & marketing services from our expert team who have a wealth of experience and a proven track-record in launching and growing new food and drink brands.
Swapping Foodservice PR for ER – Volunteering as a Community First Responder
God forbid you need to dial 999 this Christmas or at any another time of the year. But if you do and you need emergency medical assistance, what many of us don’t realise is that the first medically trained person who comes to your aid could well be a Community First Responder (CFR), rather than an ambulance crew.
Glory for Independents at the Retail Oscars! The Retail Industry Awards, widely regarded as “The Oscars” of the grocery retail sector is the annual get-together of the whole industry to celebrate and reward the best of the best, from the smallest independents, to the largest supermarket groups. Having hot-footed it from the Quality Foodservice awards the Jellybean Convenience Retail Marketing team were joined at the prestigious ceremony by many of our key retail clients to toast the great and good.
This month we visited the National Space Centre in Leicester for the launch of the hotly awaited Association of Convenience Store’s Local Shop Report. This annual report provides a wealth of information about the performance of the sector as a whole and highlights the key trends and developments that everyone working in convenience needs to know.
Super-premium extra virgin olive oil brand Morocco Gold, is the latest new client to join the Jellybean food and drink agency family. The owners of the single estate extra virgin olive oil from Morocco appointed Jellybean following a competitive pitch earlier this year. We are excited to be working with this luxury food brand on an integrated B2B and B2C campaign which will create widespread brand awareness and drive long-term sustainable sales through traditional retail and e-commerce channels. Here’s the low-down on this high quality oil.
We’re delighted to welcome ManíLife craft peanut butter to our growing list of clients here at Jellybean. In case you’ve not already heard of ManíLife or been lucky enough to try their amazing peanut butters (you really must!); we thought we’d tell you a little bit about the brand and what we’re doing to help explode their sales and growth potential in retail and foodservice.
The grocery convenience sector is experiencing seismic changes and trade communications is rapidly evolving too. Neil Brenson discusses the six key trends and take outs that suppliers need to act upon in order to re-focus their trade communications and ensure they win with convenience retailers. Watch the video to learn more about:
I recently attended a breakfast briefing with key players from the convenience retail sector to hear an announcement from one of the leading trade publishers about changes they are making to the way they deliver content to convenience retailers. Read More
Over 250 of the great and the good in convenience-land gathered at London’s Barbican for the hotly awaited HIM Future of Convenience 2018 event. Here are my top seven take-outs and the key actions for convenience retail marketing communications that I think suppliers need to consider in the brave new world of convenience retailing.
As 2017 draws to a close in what has been one of the most tumultuous years in convenience retail, I wanted to find out how the industry is feeling and what they are doing to face up to the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in the sector.
