Product news summary 13th March 2015

HEADLINES THIS WEEK:

– MARS ICE CREAM LAUNCHES GALAXY VANILLA AND LARGEST EVER PROMOTION
– WKD EXTENDS PMP PORTFOLIO
– COCA-COLA REVEALS NEW UNIFICATION STRATEGY
– LINDERMAN’S SIGNS SPONSORSHIP WITH FOOD NETWORK 

CREAMY SENSATION! MARS REVAMPS ICE CREAM PORTFOLIO

Mars Ice Cream has extended its Galaxy Ice Cream collection by introducing a new Vanilla flavour.

Available in a single-wrapped handheld format, Galaxy Vanilla has an entry level price point of 75p (rsp) and joins existing single Caramel and Almond variants – both of which retail at around £1.60.

This follows the introduction of Mars Ice Cream’s largest ever on-pack promotion. Backed by an outdoor marketing campaign, the ‘1 in 6 instant win’ promotion mirrors the same promotional strategy employed by Mars Chocolate and rewards one in six purchasers with a free ice cream bar from the Mars portfolio.

Running until the end of October, the offer features across single packs of Mars, Snickers, Bounty and Maltesers, as well as Mars and Snickers six-packs.

Elsewhere, Mars Ice Cream has announced that single packs of Bounty Ice Cream (rsp £1.49) and Twix Ice Cream (rsp £1.49) will be relaunched this month with new recipe improvements, while Maltesers Ice Cream will be rebranded as Teasers Ice Cream (rsp £1.76), capitalising on the success of the Teasers chocolate range.

Tel: Mars (0800) 952 1234

WKD RED JOINS PMP RANGE

SHS Drinks has extended its PMP range of WKD multipacks by displaying a £2.99 price on WKD Red.

Available exclusively to independents via cash & carries and wholesalers, the six-pack 700ml bottles of WKD Red now feature eye-catching neck labels to highlight the ‘Only £2.99. RESULT!’ deal.

WKD Red joins WKD Blue, the RTD’s top-selling SKU (Nielsen), and WKD Iron Brew which were launched in 700ml PMPs a year ago, to complement the WKD Blue and Iron Brew 275ml £4.99 PMP four-packs.

Debs Carter, marketing director – alcohol at SHS Drinks, says: “PMPs are having a big impact within the RTD category, where they now account for £11.8 million of the £61 million-worth of RTD sales through impulse stores – almost double compared with a year ago (Nielsen). WKD has been at the forefront of the RTD PMP revolution.”

Tel: SHS Drinks (01452) 378555

COCA-COLA TO UNIFY BRANDS UNDER ONE NAME

Coca-Cola Great Britain (CCGB) has announced the unification of Coca-Cola’s product portfolio – including Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Coca-Cola Zero and Coca-Cola Life – under a new “one brand” strategy to promote the full choice of flavours and formats.

Launching in May, the four variants will all be marketed under the Coca-Cola brand, with television advertising and new packaging redesigns set to promote the distinct characteristics of each Coca-Cola product.

This coincides with the company’s announcement that it will be doubling its media investment in low/zero sugar and calorie Coca-Cola variants for 2015.

Jon Woods, general manager of CCGB, said: “By focusing on building one brand and extending the appeal of the original Coca-Cola across our lower and no-sugar variants, we believe we can drive sustainable growth for our business in Great Britain in the years ahead.”

Meanwhile, Coca-Cola has marked the centenary anniversary of its Contour Bottle by unveiling a new global market campaign.

The “I’ve Kissed…’ promotion, which is backed by a television advertising campaign this month, shows legendary icons Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe and Ray Charles being ‘kissed’ by the Coca-Cola bottle.

Out-of-home advertising will also run from the 30 March, for two weeks, and will feature on Oxford Circus tube station’s ‘Wonderwall’ – creating an eye-catching display over the entire length of the underground platform.

Tel: Coca-Cola Enterprises (0845) 722 7222

LINDEMAN’S JOINS FORCES WITH FOOD NETWORK

Treasury Wine Estates (TWE) has announced a two-month TV advertising campaign for Australian wine brand Lindeman’s, as part of a new sponsorship agreement with lifestyle channel, Food Network.

The above-the-line campaign, which displays the strapline ‘Lindeman’s sponsors the bright side of life on Food Network’, comprises one 15-second and one five-second advert, during and after primetime cooking shows.

As part of the sponsorship package, the Food Network website will also promote Lindeman’s via digital advertising and sponsored recipes.

Mathew Bird, marketing director EMEA at TWE, commented: “Consumers continue to eat at home more frequently instead of dining out, and often treat themselves to a bottle of wine to enjoy with their meal.

“With this campaign, we will tap into this intrinsic link between food and wine to engage Food Network’s audience of almost four million foodies with the brand, as well as the wider wine category.”

Tel: Treasury Wine Estates 020-8843 8400