FMCG news

• Amid Brexit woes London Mayor appoints deputy to reassure creative industries

  01-07-2016 18:27
  
  One week on from the contentious vote to leave the European Union, the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has appointed a deputy to take charge of the culture and creative industries – two sectors that have become increasingly worried about what the future holds for them if, and when, Britain leaves the EU.
  Justine Simons has taken on the role of reassuring them. She has spent more than 14 years at City Hall, founded the World Cities Cultural Forum and has received an OBE for contributions to
  
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• As brands take social ‘in-house’, agencies must focus on long-term strategy

  01-07-2016 17:21
  The social landscape is forever changing and the roles of agencies are constantly evolving too. It’s no secret that digital marketing agencies have to adapt to new technologies as they emerge and respond to brands’ shifting needs to stretch project budgets further and further.
  In 2016, professional marketers recognise the value that digital social channels offer, but most fear that the investment needed to truly maximise effectiveness is too much. As a result, some brands’ are
  
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• Guardian appeals directly to readers to fund its journalism – but will its plea pay off?

  01-07-2016 17:05
  The Guardian has taken the bold step of engaging with its readers around content compensation. Earlier this week, editor Katharine Viner took the opportunity to directly ask readers to help fund the Guardian’s extensive coverage of Brexit. By publishing a post on its website and distributing a newsletter to the Guardian’s membership base, Viner encouraged readers to support the publisher through monthly contributions or a one-off payment which it would use to continue investigat
  
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• Virgin Trains East Coast gets on board with Chapter

  01-07-2016 17:00
  
  Virgin Trains has appointed integrated agency Chapter to promote its train services on the east coast of the UK.
  With Virgin Trains on the west coast already on the client list, Chapter has been tasked with implementing Virgin’s brand purpose and values for the east coast business.
  Sara Borland, head of brand for Virgin Trains on the east coast, said: “Chapter demonstrated a great understanding of the Virgin brand and the specific task in hand for us. They presented an inspiring crea
  
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• Ovo energy enlists The Brooklyn Brothers to handle its creative

  01-07-2016 16:56
  
  Global creative shop The Brooklyn Brothers has been appointed to handle Ovo Energy's creative business following a competitive four-way pitch.
  The Brooklyn Brothers will handle the energy supplier's integrated account including TV, ATL, earned and owned content, social and digital. Specifically, the agency has been tasked to pave the way for OVo to become the "world’s best energy company".
  The first challenge for the consultancy is to launch the brand's Smart PAYG campaign before
  
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• Coca-Cola targets youths with influencer fronted CokeTV channel

  01-07-2016 16:48
  
  Coca-Cola GB is hoping to strike a chord with the 'YouTube generation' after launching CokeTV, a new channel on the platform that will be fronted by young influencers. 
  British YouTube stars Manny and Dodie are the hosts of each episode, which focus on passions such as gaming, sports and music, to connect young adults across GB and Ireland with the Coca-Cola brand.
  Bobby Brittain, marketing director for Coca-Cola Great Britain said: “The beauty of CokeTV is it puts the
  
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• Oxford Open Learning appoints Epiphany to boost online visibility

  01-07-2016 16:44
  
  Oxford Open Learning, a not-for-profit Trust specialising in distance learning courses, has appointed Epiphany, a Jaywing agency, to handle its organic search activity.
  Epiphany has been briefed to improve the visibility of Oxford Open Learning’s website, with the agency’s organic search strategy contributing to the business goal of increasing the number of students over the next year by 10 per cent.
  Oxford Open Learning’s owner and director, Jonathan Smith, said the decision t
  
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• Creative and digital entrepreneurs in Liverpool team up to showcase their creative edge

  01-07-2016 16:38
  
  Liverpool’s digital and creative community showcased its unique creative edge to an audience of over 500 international delegates at the IFB2016 closing Gala Dinner on Thursday 30th June.
  Delegates had the chance to see the premier of ‘Creating on the Edge’ mini-documentary and a series of creative portraits that celebrate our region’s creative and digital heroes was unveiled.
  The collaboration is led by photography agency Sane Seven with the support of Mashbo, JUXDIT
  
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• People on the move: Hires and departures at Coca-Cola, Facebook, Design Council and more

  01-07-2016 16:30
  
  This week has seen another wave of appointments and departures at brands, media owners and agencies. The Drum has rounded up the key moves below.
  Coca-Cola
  Coca-Cola’s global brand PR Judith Snyder (pictured) is set to leave the soft drinks brand to work with startup DesireList and pursue her interest in film-making.
  During her career at Coke, where she was based at the headquarters in Atlanta, she oversaw the launch of the memorable Coke Side of Life, Open Happiness, and Taste t
  
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• Marketing Moment 92: Reese’s Pieces snags product placement deal in E.T.

  01-07-2016 16:30
  
  To celebrate the Ad Club of New York's 120th anniversary, The Drum is inviting readers to share their favorite marketing moments from the past 120 years.
  Today’s marketing moment was chosen by Sara Bailer, associate planning director at Maxus. Below, see why Hershey’s product placement of its Reese’s Pieces candy in the movie E.T. is her favorite marketing moment.
  I can still vividly remember watching E.T. for the very first time, and immediately wanting a handfu
  
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• Walmart demands new date labelling from own-label food suppliers

  01-07-2016 16:27
  
  The retailer estimates 21% of US household food waste arises due to confusion over date labels
  
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• Nisa beats profit forecast in “transformational year”

  01-07-2016 16:27
  
  Highlights included a 6% increase in fresh sales to £201m while Heritage own label sales were up 7.9%
  
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• Mixed picture for UK grocery revealed by latest market share data

  01-07-2016 16:27
  
  The uncertain trading environment for UK grocers was compounded by the release this week of market share figures
  
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• Wilko hails 'year of recovery' as sales grow for first time in three years

  01-07-2016 16:27
  Wilko has halted three consecutive years of declining sales thanks to a “buoyant” Christmas and its growing portfolio of stores.
  
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• News Corp head sees Facebook as a competitor and wants publishers to create alternative 'networks'

  01-07-2016 15:58
  
  Robert Thomson, chief executive of News Corp, has expressed a fear that media groups must create their own networks in order to compete with Facebook which is making its ecosystem slightly less publisher-friendly in a push to emphasise user content.
  Earlier this week Facebook said it was going to show users “more posts from your friends and family” with a tweak to its algorithm. This of course means that media outlets will have a harder time reaching their followers with co
  
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• Branded video review with RedPill: The best ads of Euro 2016

  01-07-2016 15:50
  
  Every fortnight, REDPILL reviews three new branded videos and assesses the reasons behind their social performance. REDPILL’s rating system scores videos across five categories (awarding a maximum of 20 per cent for each category): originality; on brand; creativity; craft; and shareability. The sum of all five scores produces a rating out of 100 per cent. 
  This week is a UEFA Euro 2016 special. Looking over the multitude of Euros-themed branded content, we’ve selected the top th
  
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• Clear Channel wins Barcelona street furniture ad contract

  01-07-2016 15:40 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Clear Channel has been awarded Barcelona's outdoor street furniture ad contract in a two-year deal.
  
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• Creative Work of the Month: Good Food Products colourful new look attracts votes for Minima Advertising People

  01-07-2016 15:33
  
  Poland’s Minima Advertising People has triumphed to be crowned June’s Creative Work of the Month with its vivid new brand identity for Good Food Products.
  Challenged by the Polish-based health food suppliers to freshen up the brand, Minima centred a colourful rebrand around the brand’s flagship rice and corn cakes.
  Spanning online, print and more, Good Food Products’ new look features extensively on recipe suggestions, leaflets and cards and hopes to make the brand even m
  
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• Partnership marketing holds clues for collaborative success post-Brexit

  01-07-2016 15:20
  As a small business owner I was hopeful to see the business leaders letter ahead of the EU referendum with support of 1,280 executives to remain. I was not divided on the vote, I, like most business owners voted and hoped for remain majority but political opinion is not a mandate in marketing, so my concern in this article is how spectacularly collaboration failed throughout and what we must learn from this series of judgements and decisions that lead us here. 
  No matter what your opinion,
  
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• I, Marketer: AI and the future of marketing

  01-07-2016 15:17
  Like many people, I start most mornings digging myself out of an inbox that often feels like more trouble than it’s worth thanks to the seemingly infinite amount of newsletters I receive. And although these newsletters cross verticals as varied as marketing, technology, advertising and the agency world, lately each one has a headline that includes artificial intelligence. Not surprisingly, all of us are curious to know how this growing field of technology is going to infiltrate our profess
  
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• Publicis Groupe reveals the startups it will be backing in Publicis90 initiative

  01-07-2016 15:06
  
  Publicis Groupe has officially unveiled the winning participants in its 90th anniversary start-up programme at the Viva Technology conference hosted in its native Paris, with London-based outfits Rezonence, and SoPost among those making the final cut.
  The overall programme – dubbed Publicis90 – is the brainchild of the agency network’s CEO Maurice Levy, with today’s announcement ceremony the culmination of six month vetting procedure that has seen thousands of application
  
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• Waitrose profits slump as John Lewis pension costs bite

  01-07-2016 15:05
  
  Waitrose pre-tax profits slumped 17.4% last year as the supermarket slugged it out in a brutal price war with the big four and the discounters.
  
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• Ocado suffers rollercoaster as Brexit vote hammers market

  01-07-2016 15:05
  
  Ocado shares leapt by 8% to 226p on Tuesday after it announced a 15% jump in first-half sales to £584m
  
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• Oreo brings Strawberry Cheesecake and Mint variants to the UK

  01-07-2016 13:54
  
  The two new flavours are based on ones popular in the US
  
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• Bots, IoT and cancer research among projects chosen for Publicis90 initiative

  01-07-2016 13:44 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  The French developer of a bot messaging platform and Israeli start-ups seeking to detect skin cancer and bring the Internet of Things to retail are among the 90 companies to win up to €500,000 in funding as part of Publicis Groupe's anniversary celebrations.
  
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• Creative England and Karmarama join for project to match small agencies with big brands

  01-07-2016 13:34
  
  Creative England and Karmarama have come together to launch ‘Creative Nation’, an initiative that promises to help small agencies work with big brands.
  The joint venture composes two separate arms: Creative England Talent and Creative England Accelerate.
  The first will give creative businesses the opportunity to respond to specific innovation briefs developed in conjunction with Creative England and large corporate brands. Up to £500,000 will be match funded and made available
  
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• EasyJet consults European authorities on moving its HQ out of the UK post-Brexit

  01-07-2016 13:27
  
  Budget airline EasyJet is in talks with European aviation authorities around the possibility of moving its headquarters out of the UK and into Europe in light of the UK’s choice to leave the EU.
  The move was first reported by Sky News, which claimed that the brand’s chief executive Carolyn McCall signalled during private meetings that the company may move its legal head office from the UK post-Brexit.
  In an official statement sent to The Drum, EasyJet confirmed that it was in the pro
  
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• Hands on with Tennent's Barcade: A retro way to brighten up your boozer

  01-07-2016 13:03
  
  Scotland’s unofficial national lager Tennent’s is brewed a stone’s throw from the heart of Glasgow within the Wellpark Brewery; its iconic T logo adorns the blokey boozers dotting the city, colourful murals from its online comedy shorts appear unexpectedly in alleys and it sponsors Scotland’s largest music festival, T in the Park – literally Tennent's in the Park.
  The brand has the exposure, is embedded in Weegie culture and won't be going anywhere an
  
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• Supermarkets and suppliers to be probed on shelf space payments

  01-07-2016 12:46
  
  Tacon this week launched a 12-week consultation into whether supermarkets have been demanding huge payments
  
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• Heinz rolls out new four-strong kids' dry pasta shapes range

  01-07-2016 12:46
  
  The four-strong line-up is available as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; DC Super Friends; Minions; and Peppa Pig
  
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• SunLife announced as headline partner at the Mirror’s Money Matters pop-up

  01-07-2016 12:46
  
  Trinity Mirror Solutions, the publisher’s commercial arm, has inked a deal with insurance company SunLife to headline the Daily Mirror’s Money Matters pop-up event.
  In addition to its headline partnership, SunLife has commissioned Tricia Philips, the Mirror’s personal finance editor and Money Matters chief financial advisor, to curate financial tips and content for readers across the media-owner’s national titles and a range of regional titles including the Liverpool Echo
  
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• If the polls were wrong on Brexit does it mean marketing research is wrong too?

  01-07-2016 12:39
  At 10pm on Thursday 23 June YouGov released a recontact survey showing that Remain would win the EU referendum 52 per cent to 48 per cent. People had obviously feared change as they entered the voting booth, and before the first results Nigel Farage gave a semi-concession speech and many Londoners and global observers breathed a sigh of relief.
  Only, they turned out to be wrong.
  Earlier that day many polling companies released surveys from just before the election showing Remain would win,
  
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• Oriental food store Seewoo expands its London premises

  01-07-2016 12:36
  
  The retailer, which also has stores in Greenwich and Glasgow, has extended into the adjacent building
  
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• Purity presses ahead with £4m investment despite Brexit shock

  01-07-2016 12:35
  
  The investment is intended to “propel the business forward”
  
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• Grocery Adjudicator says suppliers are 'signing away rights'

  01-07-2016 12:34
  
  Christine Tacon has revealed she is launching a probe into how supermarkets are getting around GSCOP
  
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• AmazonFresh Expanded To Another 59 Postcodes In London

  01-07-2016 11:56
  Amazon has rolled out its fledgling grocery delivery service to another 59 postcodes in North, East and South London. AmazonFresh was initially launched in 69 London postcodes on 9 June. However, Amazon said that its Prime members in 128 eligible (more…)
  
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• Tesco Has Disrupted The Price Hierarchy In Supermarket Own Label With Its New ‘Farms’ Range

  01-07-2016 11:54
  Tesco has “disrupted the price hierarchy” in supermarket own label following the recent launch of its ‘Farms’ range. In a recent briefing note to clients entitled ‘Tesco The Disruptor: Now The Cheapest Supermarket For Own Label & Leading (more…)
  
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• Barclaycard teams up with Buzzfeed and Snapchat as it eyes millennial market

  01-07-2016 11:54
  
  British payment firm Baclaycard is celebrating its 50th birthday this year but that doesn't mean it isn't trying to woo younger customers. 
  As part of a push designed to mark the occasion, and celebrate its longstanding partnership with Hyde Park's British Summer Time music festival, the finance brand has turned to BuzzFeed and Snapchat for an integrated, and personalised, marketing push. 
  Centered around the idea of a 'Great British Music Showdown,' Barclaycard is launc
  
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• Are you up to speed on GSCOP? British Brands Group launches new ½ day refresher training

  01-07-2016 11:54
  The last 12 months have seen big GSCOP developments and all buyers are re-trained annually to keep them up-to-date. To help suppliers be current too, the British Brands Group now offers a half-day refresher training course for those who already (more…)
  
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• Owner Of Bernard Matthews Confirms Sale Plans

  01-07-2016 11:53
  Following on from yesterday’s report, the owner of the struggling poultry producer Bernard Matthews has confirmed that it is looking to off-load the business. In email seen by the BBC that was sent to Bernard Matthews staff, (more…)
  
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• Blakemore Wholesale Distribution Agrees Confectionery Deal With Halfords

  01-07-2016 11:48
  Blakemore Wholesale Distribution has secured a contract to supply Wrigley confectionery lines to Halfords. The company will begin distributing the products to Halfords’ 430 sites across the UK and Ireland from 1 September. Blakemore said that it has (more…)
  
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• Sales Edge Up At Warburtons Despite Tough Bakery Market

  01-07-2016 11:47
  Latest accounts filed by Warburtons for the year 26 September 2015 show a slight increase in turnover, despite the tough trading conditions and volume declines in the bakery market. Turnover for the period edged up 0.7% to £551.5m. (more…)
  
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• Al Mana Group Buys BHS Overseas Business

  01-07-2016 11:45
  The administrators to BHS have off-loaded the failed retailer’s international operations to Qatari retail group Al Mana. The deal includes 70 overseas stores and BHS online business. Al Mana runs stores for the likes of Harvey Nichols, (more…)
  
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• Irish Retail Sales Now Up 8.1% In A Year But Warning Brexit Could Hit Consumer Confidence

  01-07-2016 11:44
  Ireland’s retail sector is continuing on the road to recovery with latest figures showing that retail sales were up 8.1% in May when compared to the same month of 2015. On a monthly basis, data from the Central Statistics Office (more…)
  
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• Waitrose Opens First Store Worcester; Second Outlet To Include Draft Beer Pump

  01-07-2016 11:42
  Waitrose opened its first store Worcester yesterday. The 38,000 sq. ft. outlet is within the top ten largest Waitrose stores in the UK. The London Road store is also only the second Waitrose store – and the first outside London (more…)
  
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• Pork Farms Airs First TV Campaign In A Decade

  01-07-2016 11:41
  The Pork Farms brand is launching its first TV ads in more than a decade, as part of a major new £1m marketing campaign. The campaign focuses on popular British destinations, and will see the brand’s pork pies (more…)
  
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• GLORIOUS! Introduces New ‘Super Soups’

  01-07-2016 11:34
  The GLORIOUS! Brand has added to its fresh soup offer with the launch of a new ‘Super Soups’ range. Containing superfoods, the vegan and vegetarian range has been designed for “the health-conscious, the fitness focussed, and those wanting something healthy (more…)
  
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• Kettle Serves Up Limited Edition Summer Variant

  01-07-2016 11:30
  Kettle Foods has introduced a new limited edition summer flavour to its range of Kettle Chips. The company said the new Chorizo, Feta & Olive variant (150g/ RRP £2.00) “combines the savoury moreishness of spicy chorizo, with the (more…)
  
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• Facebook's chatbots now know customers' names and preferences

  01-07-2016 11:22 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Facebook has added a raft of new features to its Messenger chatbots, including linking a customer's account so a bot can make personalised suggestions.
  
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• US: Hershey Rejects Unsolicited Mondelez Takeover Bid

  01-07-2016 11:21
  Hershey has rejected an unsolicited bid from Mondelez International, a move that would lead to the creation of the world’s largest confectionery maker.  Mondelez is currently the second-largest confectionery maker in the world in terms of revenue, while Hershey is (more…)
  
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