The retail landscape is evolving, and new channels are gaining ground. The division between consumer and shopper is blurring. To better respond to these shopper trends, PepsiCo created the ‘Demand Acceleration’ division, bundling data and insights across all channels.
Acceleration
The Covid crisis has changed shopper behaviour significantly, says Christophe Piron, responsible for ‘Demand Acceleration’ at PepsiCo Benelux. The new division unites all initiatives with which the brand manufacturer wants to generate growth, in consultation with its retail partners: trade development, category management, space optimisation, shopper insights and advanced analytics based on big data and AI, shopper marketing and Perfect Store. For over a year now, the Benelux implemented this approach and was one of the first in Europe to do so.
“We link the data from Nielsen, GfK, shopper and consumer surveys or from other sources to the retailers’ store data. We do this not only for brick-and-mortar supermarkets but for every channel.” PepsiCo is also active at cinemas, petrol stations or amusement parks and, of course, online: in the webshops of large food retailers and with pure players like Picnic in the Netherlands or with delivery services such as Deliveroo. “Covid has accelerated everything. Things will never be just as they were before. After all, we don’t think in terms of post-Covid but since-Covid.”
No pigeonholing
Due to the enormous growth in e-commerce, the gap between Belgium and other countries has narrowed considerably. That comes with consequences: “The path to purchase looks different online. The packaging is not that important per se; other factors determine the shopper’s journey. People also wonder why they should still go to a supermarket if they can have their shopping delivered to their doorstep.”
In this new retail universe, the traditional distinction between consumer and shopper is blurring. Gone are the days when mothers did the shopping for the whole family. “We are now looking at all the moments during the day in which food can play a role. We can no longer put things in a pigeonhole: just because you are at the office, it doesn’t mean you can only eat something at the cafeteria. There are so many other channels available that offer an answer to the same need: think of delivery services and convenience stores, for example.”
Remaining relevant
Will all these new channels, online and offline, eventually threaten the supermarket’s dominance? “People can only eat so much in a day. Delivery services, for example, are going to take a bigger slice of the pie. That will impact not only the physical supermarket but also the out-of-home consumption or convenience segment. I see that retailers recognise the danger but also the opportunities. There is a synergy to be found between these different models: think of the bicycle couriers that deliver the groceries from the Carrefour stores, for example. Or look at how Colruyt further responds to the needs of consumers in different stages of their life by also taking over a gym chain. Everyone is looking at different ways to remain relevant in the future. There is still a lot of evolution to come.”
In any case, the time of one size fits all is over: “We no longer talk about standard shelf plans. Retailers ask us to deal with their different channels actively. The shopper in a store at the Belgian seaside town Knokke is not the same as at the centre of Brussels. Based on the shopper knowledge retailers have and the consumer knowledge we have, supplemented with other elements, we have to place the right products in front of the consumer who will buy them in that place. That is what we strongly believe in: store clustering, making sure we have the right proposition in every store. For example, you can have three large clusters of store types with seven different planograms underneath, depending on the size of the store and the type of shopper that visits it. Albert Heijn is a pioneer in the Benelux in that respect.”
Cosy moments
PepsiCo’s approach also relies heavily on emotional components. “People feel the need to come together again. They long for cosy moments at home or elsewhere. As an FMCG company, we can help facilitate this with our products and concepts, such as the ideal combination of our Bugles with fresh cheese, the perfect pairing of Lay’s Strong with a beer, or the Lay’s Iconic Restaurant Flavours programme.” Indeed, it is not only the demand for healthy products that increased but also the demand for ‘mindfulness’: people want the right balance between nutritional value and pleasure. The preference for strong, trusted brands is also here to stay, Piron believes.
Christophe Piron will tell more about how PepsiCo converts this vision into strategic partnerships with its retail customers at the Trade & Shopper Marketing Congress of RetailDetail and LD&Co, taking place on Thursday, 30 September in the Antwerp Stadsfeestzaal. Speakers from Carrefour and Shopperware, among others, will also be present at the event.
It will be a hybrid event: 200 tickets are available for participants who want to experience the congress in person and Covid-proof. Face-to-face networking is possible again. Other participants can follow the live stream remotely. Through this link, you can find more information and tickets.
