Importance of Branding in Retail

Brands have an important role to play in retail

There’s no doubt it has been a roller coaster ride for food and drink businesses in the UK over the last few years, with shoppers changing their spending habits. A recent YouGov survey found that a third (34 percent) of UK customers are buying mostly own-brand goods in supermarkets as a result.

Here at the Weetabix Food Company, we’re firm believers in the enduring power of strong brand equity. More than ever in the current climate, brands need to deliver value, be that convenience, superior quality or emotional reward. During turbulent times, we think iconic brands like Weetabix must pack 'more' into the average cereal box, whether that's through our great nutritional credentials, our sustainable farming practices and recyclable packaging or with major marketing investment like our partnership with the FA Senior Women England's Football team or promoting girls' grassroots football through the Weetabix Wildcats.

Encouraging value through affordable nutrition

Weetabix has always been known for providing nutritious breakfasts and healthy choices. In fact, when the HFSS legislation was introduced in 2021, we were already in a strong position with all our Weetabix-branded products being HFSS compliant and Weetabix being one of very few cereal products that celebrate all 'green traffic lights' due to it being low in sugar, salt and fat.

However, a new OnePoll study has revealed that more than half of British consumers believe increased costs have made it harder for them to make healthy food and drink choices; this is where Weetabix becomes a great choice for value and nutrition. There has never been more demand, therefore, not only for affordable meal solutions but also for advice on how to make household budgets stretch further. This is one of the reasons we created a free digital Weetabix recipe book to inspire the nation with healthy, good-value meals and snacks for breakfast and beyond.

Focus on key seasonal opportunities.

Brands should identify and maximise those occasions in consumers' lives that play to their strengths. For example, the back-to-school period is huge for the cereal category as families return to routines and last September, we saw the highest volume of cereal sales.

"Brands should identify and maximise those occasions in consumers’ lives that play to their strengths"

Breakfast is still the most important meal of the day for school-age children, with breakfast consumption found to improve memory and attention, boost academic performance, and increase in-task behaviour. That said, over half of shoppers are concerned about the cost of back-to-school shopping, highlighting the necessity that brands clearly communicate their value. At this time of year, we tend to implement campaigns in-store that offer some sort of extra value promotion for shoppers. This year, that comes in the form of a competition to win free footballs or official home nation team shirts for the senior women’s football team.  

Does sustainability matter?

Despite the economic pressures on all of us, sustainability is part of our DNA here at Weetabix and remains a consideration for many consumers. According to the 2022 UK Brand Sustainability Benchmark Report, one in four have already changed the products they buy based on sustainability perceptions. On top of this, consumers are interested in the provenance of ingredients, and sustainable shoppers spend 22 percent more than the average.

We’ve been creating nutritious breakfasts for over 90 years, and Weetabix’s sustainability credentials are hard to argue with. All the wheat used in Weetabix Original is sourced from within 50 miles of our factory in Northamptonshire, thanks to the work of our ‘Growers Group’ farmers. As of this year, all Weetabix packaging is now 100 percent recyclable and we’ve maintained a zero waste to landfill record since 2015. We’ve also donated over three million breakfasts to FareShare and Magic Breakfast in the past year to ensure healthy breakfasts for those who need them.

Investing in your brand

Weetabix is the nation's number one cereal brand and is one of the largest advertising investors in the cereal category, using media platforms like TV and social media to reach a wide range of cereal buyers. We try to have fun with the marketing that we do, most recently enjoying success from our #milkfirst viral campaign, which stole the headlines across a national newspaper and TV!

We’re in our third year of a successful partnership with the FA and have introduced a new on-pack promotion to celebrate the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023, supported by TV, radio, social, and experiential activity. With the Women's World Cup being hosted in Australia and New Zealand this year, kick-offs will be at breakfast time, making it the ideal time for a cereal brand to join the conversation. A big part of our FA partnership is also focused on developing girls’ grassroots football, with our backing of the Weetabix Wildcats initiative, which intends to give more young girls access to playing football.  

Earlier this year, we launched a new collaboration with Disney to generate excitement around breakfast tables nationwide. The fun of Disney-inspired cereal underpinned by Weetabix's long-established reputation as a manufacturer of tasty, nutritious breakfasts is a winning combination for parents as they look to keep breakfast time entertaining for the family while still giving them that high-quality start to the day.