Sales are up and innovative new launches continue to be introduced, so there’s no reason why retailers can’t grow their gum sales with the right approach – and that’s before we even think about the mint category.
by Kevin Scott
Gum sales in Scotland are on the increase with a boost in value sales of 1.3% bringing in £29.3m in sales – and with a 92% market share most of those sales go to products from Wrigley’s range, which includes Extra, 5 and Orbit. Among trends that are helping drive this growth are oral healthcare and fruit flavours. But for a category that has struggled for growth of late, is there much further it can go? Yes, according to Adrian Toomey, Senior Brand Manager at Wrigley “There is still enormous potential for growth in the UK gum category,” he says. “Focussing purely on Extra and its ‘Eat, Drink, Chew’ strategy, Wrigley’s aim is to encourage UK consumers to chew Extra whenever they eat or drink. With an enormous number of these occasions not yet followed by chewing Extra sugarfree gum, Wrigley is confident of future growth.”
Wrigley has boosted its offering with the recent launches of Extra White, Extra Ice Peppermint and Airwaves 46 Pellet Bottles, and 5 Turbulence, a watermelon flavoured gum backed by a new pack format and rrp.
The advice from Wrigley is that retailers must ensure that gum takes prime position at the tillpoint and that they regularly check their display and keep it fully stocked.
And Wrigley products are getting a touch of glamour in the firm’s latest ads, which see Antonio Banderas appear in an ‘Eat, Drink, Chew’ campaign. The ‘Break Up With Lingering Food’ creative forms part of its £20m gum marketing investment for 2013, and will be aired in top TV spots.
Within the mints category Wrigley doesn’t have the same dominance – although its Extra branded mints are important, it is Mondelez’s Trebor brand which tops the sales charts with 40.4% of sales. Susan Nash, Trade Communications Manager at Mondelez International, comments: “There is a range of core products across the Trebor brand we would recommend retailers stock. Within the mints and gum category these are Trebor Extra Strong Peppermint and Trebor Softmints Peppermint which are the number one and three selling mints respectively.”
Key SKUs for Trebor mints include Extra Strong Peppermint, Extra Strong Spearmint, Softmint Peppermint, Softmint Spearmint and Softfruits.
To achieve optimum sales, it is important to stock the right range and flag the mints and gum category with key brands, according to Nash, who says: “It is important for retailers to ensure that shoppers see these products. Mints and gum are not usually top of mind for shoppers when entering a store and can be easily forgotten.
Nash adds that extensive research demonstrates that when consumers see these products, the majority of them go on to purchase, so Mondelez recommend retailers do all they can to maximise presence and location of mints and gum in their stores.
Top tips for gum
- Gum is one of the most impulsive categories with 96% of retailers thinking it is important to keep gum at the tillpoint. To maximise impulse sales, your display unit should be highly prominent at the primary tillpoint.
- The gum unit should always be in the shopper’s line of vision whilst cash is being exchanged… if it’s out of sight, or most importantly out of reach, your sales will be affected.
- Secondary sitings should always be employed, e.g. next to a coffee machine, to drive purchases and ultimately maximise sales.
- Did you know? Multiple gum sitings in-store can increase sales by up to 55%!
- With strong profit margins, gum presents a great profit driver for retailers, so ensure top-selling brands are well stocked, and that you provide enough space for them on the cash zone gum display.
- Did you know? Chewing gum is also one of the highest turnover drivers per square metre in store!
Top tips for mints
- Mints are highly impulsive and should be sited in the shopper’s path to purchase to drive sales, e.g. close to the cash zone.
- Remember to use impactful displays to drive purchases and, where possible, place mints separate from chocolate to prevent flavour exchange.
- Ensure products are displayed on the correct fittings – mints should be stocked on single units to maximise sales.
Gum Fast Facts
- The gum display’s small footprint in store delivers high margin, fast turnover and strong sales.
- More than £9 out of every £10 spent on gum in store is spent on a Wrigley product.
- With a 92% share of the total gum market and value sales of £26.9 in Scotland, the Wrigley portfolio is growing ahead of the category at 2.8% YOY.
- Sugar-free gum accounts for 97% of Wrigley gum sales in Scotland.
- In Scotland, Wrigley’s Extra Ice portfolio is growing at 18.3% YOY.
Acting through impulse
Through significant investment in NPD, strategic partnerships and TV advertising, tic tac has managed to push value sales up 6.4%, and Levi Boorer, Customer Development Director, Ferrero says that the main reasons people buy mints is for travel, to eat on the go and for mouth freshening. “Pocket Confectionery is one of the most impulsive categories in confectionery, with seven out of 10 purchase acts being unplanned, which makes merchandising the right products at till points and on fixture the secret to unlocking sales in this area,” he says. “If a display is cluttered, or there is no secondary siting near the till point, there is no question that sales are lost. We have been working with our customers to help simplify the main pocket confectionery display, and through supplying branded counter display units, which have seen sales increase by up to 161%.”
