Have you ever found yourself torn between two career paths? On one hand, there’s the allure of being in the spotlight and living life in the fast lane as a Love Island contestant. On the other hand, there’s the stability and challenge of a career in marketing. OK, maybe not a scenario many people might find themselves in, and it’s not the start of a mid-life crisis and career change, I promise. But I thought, hey, this would make for a fun blog, don’t you think? Well, you may be surprised to know that there are actually some striking similarities between these two paths. So, let’s take a deeper dive and explore the parallel worlds of reality dating TV and food and drink marketing.
I recently spent a long week in Marrakech to celebrate my significant other’s special birthday. For a short break in January, just a 3.5hr flight from Gatwick and boasting temperatures of 20 degrees, it was the ideal destination. The city is renowned for its rich culture, history, and of course delicious cuisine. The food in Marrakech is a blend of traditional Moroccan flavours, with a touch of Berber and Andalusian influences and during our stay we sampled some of the best that Marrakech has to offer.
HFSS brands in the UK that are unable to reformulate to achieve a lower Nutrient Profile Score or simply choose not to, will need to face into some of the strictest regulations around promotions and advertising on the planet. Marketing in this restricted environment is going to be extremely challenging and the world is watching, so it is important for HFSS brands to understand what they can and cannot do, and how to embrace the spirit of the law.
Lumina Intelligence estimate the food-to-go sector will reach £23bn by 2025.
More than 200 people attended the MCA Food-to-Go conference in London on March 9th, where Lumina Intelligence spoke, and delegates heard presentations from a range of food-to-go operators including Café Nero, Greggs, itsu, Leon, Pret and Pure.
November 2021 saw the climax of an exciting cooking competition – Golden Tomato Cook – which we developed for our client Mutti, the Italian’s favourite tomato brand*. Inspired by Mutti’s Pomodorino d’oro award which is presented to the famer who supplies the best quality produce each year, this new consumer culinary competition recognises and rewards the UK’s best tomato cook. Menus were judged on making the tomato the hero of the dish, originality, presentation, menu appeal and taste. Mutti’s mission is to raise the tomato to its highest expression and this contest challenged consumers across the UK to do exactly that by creating a three-course tomato-based menu using the Mutti Essentials range.
In April last year we sadly lost a convenience retail legend and all-round top bloke Raj Aggarwal who was taken all too soon by Covid 19. He was just 51. The following day Raj’s father also sadly died.
It all kicked off this week when 12 European football teams, including the Premier League “big six” teams, decided to create a breakaway European Super League.
Slowly but surely the hospitality industry is restarting after the pandemic. Like everyone, especially those whose livelihoods directly depend on the sector, we hope the easing of restrictions will be permanent.
I was recently asked by The Grocer magazine to feature in an article about how lockdown and CV-19 has impacted the way buyers and sellers do business. As an agency, like everyone else, we have had to adapt and pivot during these strange times. Together with our valued clients we have been able to navigate through unchartered waters and find new ways of working and new ways of selling. In the feature I discuss many of the strategies and examples of things we have been doing to help our clients find their sweet spot and achieve success with their virtual sales pitches and marketing campaigns.
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 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, jellybeanis 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’ 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.
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 jellybeanConvenience Retail Marketing team were joined at the prestigious ceremony by many of our key retail clients to toast the great and good.
