Why CPG Companies Could Soon Be Competing With Loblaw For Good Marketers
Thursday, January 12th, 2012You have probably already heard that the two largest CPG brands in Canada are 1) President’s Choice and 2) no name. Of course, these two brands compete in almost every category in the supermarket giving them an advantage over one-category wonders such as Pepsi or Lays. However, given that PC and “no name” are only [...]
Canadian Grand Prix New Product Awards – Credible or Not?
Sunday, June 19th, 2011This week the winners of the Canadian Grand Prix New Product Awards were announced at a gala in Toronto. The list included some neat products for sure, but I have always had the feeling that these awards were not really reflecting the consumer’s choices in the marketplace. It all goes back to my time working [...]
Extreme Couponing: Why Sales & Marketing Need To Better Coordinate Discounts
Friday, April 22nd, 2011American specialty cable channel TLC started reruns this week of “Extreme Couponing” which highlights the lifestyle and couponing tactics of shoppers who dedicate huge amounts of time and resources to using supermarket coupons to deliver huge savings (up to 98%) for their family. It is intriguing television, but for those of us in the CPG [...]
Price Tag / Scanner Accuracy Really Grinds My Gears
Sunday, November 21st, 2010Almost ten years ago now, the retailing industry was getting a lot of heat from consumer groups regarding the accuracy of the pricing information both on-shelf and in the item databases used by checkout scanners. In 2002, the Canadian Council of Grocery Distributors announced to great fanfare their Scanner Price Accuracy Voluntary Code which states [...]
Loyalty Cards – There Should Be An App for That
Tuesday, November 9th, 2010I usually start any discussion about loyalty cards by highlighting the irony that most of us carry over half a dozen cards in our wallets. There is not much that’s “loyal” about that… These cards have evolved to mini-loyalty cards that are designed to be put right onto your key ring (Calgary Co-op and Club [...]
Barbie & Joe – Building National Brands and Private Labels Together
Thursday, November 4th, 2010It is obvious that Private Labels have become a larger part of the CPG landscape in recent years. Retailers (or at least the good ones) are using their range of private labels to reinforce connections with their shoppers and strengthening the brand above the door. Suppliers (or many of the ones that I speak with) [...]
More Ways To Do Good and Drive Sales
Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010A few weeks ago I blogged my thoughts on how the CPG / Retail industry could be more innovative with their support of local food banks through the Buy One, Give One promotion strategy. Yesterday, I saw another interesting spin on the concept that could be used by our industry. Women’s fashion retailer Jacob is [...]
A Sign of The Times – November 1st
Monday, November 1st, 2010Halloween’s Over and Christmas is Coming! The cycle never ends.
QR Codes – The Next Generation of In-Store Communication
Saturday, October 23rd, 2010To restate the obvious, mobile technology has changed our world forever. We live in a wired world where dinner party questions are answered by Google or Wikipedia instead of through lively debate. We demand information immediately. Shoppers are also using on-line and mobile tools to help them gather information to help them make decisions in-store. [...]
Dollar Store Battle in Canada Heats Up
Sunday, October 17th, 2010You may have missed the story this week (maybe because the deal was announced on Thanksgiving Monday), but the dollar store market in Canada is set to get another boost through increased competition for channel leader Dollarama. The new competition comes from south of the border, with US operator Dollar Tree purchasing the Vancouver-based, Dollar [...]
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