Page 25 - BOSS Today Issue 22

drinks but, anecdotally, office
Figure 1: UK Impulse Food £1.6bn demand for these products
Category Size & Growth 2013
3.4% is believed to be growing at
least in line with the overall
£867m
market. Certainly, Hurley sees
-6%
real opportunities for both
£399m £463m
Britvic and the OP channel here:
-1% -3%
“Soft drinks is a completely So how is Britvic able to
different proposition to selling encourage and support those
office supplies. It’s creating ‘thousand’ doors to take
more of a service for OP advantage of the opportunities
resellers’ customers, so there’s offered? “We can provide market
an education process needed. insights into consumer trends;
The challenge for us is selling we’ve got very recognisable
Crisps and Sugar Chocolate Soft
Snacks Confectionery Confectionery Drinks the benefits of stocking soft brands that are advertised
drinks when OP resellers have nationally; we can also reinforce
There are a number of factors interest in own label products traditionally been doing furniture that message at an outlet level.”
driving this growth, including less widespread and more or stationery.” Promotional support is also
the continued proliferation discriminatory. Indeed, Hurley is keen available, but Hurley is quick
within the wider UK population Another factor driving the to emphasise that Britvic is to recognise that these should
of generations who ‘grew up’ market is a trend towards higher encouraged by the opportunities be tailored to the channel:
on soft drinks, as well as the unit value sports and energy that the very structure of the “Generally, in terms of volume
widespread use of ‘Meal Deals’ drinks, which now have a 24% UK OP industry presents: “The of stock, some OP resellers
which include soft drinks as part share of the overall market. Also opportunity for us is with the are pretty small, so buying
of the promotion. However the growing are juice and squash resellers within the OP industry, promotions don’t really work.
main factor is believed to be the drinks, while the cola sector – from large national to regional What works is to get the stock
growth of value offerings, since one of the largest categories – is accounts, but the difference they have bought moving
demand for value ranges and in decline, suggesting a wider as we see it is the amount of faster.” With the shelf life of
own label products tends to trend for energy drinks, as well resellers. Where historically we soft drink products being six to
grow during recessions. as a demand for drinks with a have operated on an outlet to nine months, this makes a lot of
Nevertheless, it is worth higher fruit juice content. outlet basis, we find here that an sense.
noting that the MWA/OPI OP [wholesaler or dealer group]
research study found that A Thousand Doors catalogue opens up a doorway Mine’s A Latte
demand for proprietary brands According to Stephen Hurley, to a thousand outlets, whereas As a nation, we consume 9.85
was particularly strong in the Customer Development traditionally we have got to billion cups of coffee in an out
catering category, with B2B Manager at Britvic Soft Drinks, knock on a thousand doors. of home (OOH) environment
1
end-users being less interested there is no recognised data on That’s one of the key benefits every year , representing c30%
in just taking any brand, and UK office consumption of soft with the office trade.” of total drinks consumed out

May 2014 | BOSS TODAY 25

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