FINDING A SHELF-STABLE MEAL at the supermarket is often no easy task. That's because some are stocked in the pasta section, while others are in soup, ethnic or other parts of Center Store.
Several manufacturers want to change that.
ConAgra recommends that retailers create a fully signed “Ultra Convenience Meal Set,” according to brand director Paula Ford.
“We want to help consumers find our products,” she said.
Hormel foods is also actively working to create a destination for these types of products.
“We are taking a very brand-agnostic approach to the category with the goal of creating an identity and a home for these types of products,” said Bob Pepper, Hormel's group marketing manager, Simple Meals Team.
In 2008, Hormel teamed with Cannondale Associates/Kantar Retail to study how shoppers made their choices and what habits they had. The research showed that awareness of convenience products was 68%, while only 35% knew where to find the item in the store.
“Our research told us that the way we were arranging convenience items in Center Store wasn't working for shoppers,” said Pepper.
Hormel then developed recommendations for a “Convenience/Prepared Meals” aisle concept, which it began introducing to retailers in late 2008. Today, more than 50% of the all-commodity volume (ACV) in the U.S. is testing one of the three phases of aisle reorganization, according to Pepper.
In phase one, retailers group all microwavable items together in a dedicated convenience set. In phase two, they add microwavable soups. And in phase three, they create a designated convenience aisle with ultra-convenient meals in the front of the store so shoppers can get out quickly, and the convenient foods with a little more prep in the back, like Hamburger Helper, closer to the meat case. When the aisle is complete, it includes the full spectrum of convenience meals that take from 90 seconds to 20 minutes to prepare.
Food Lion, Winn-Dixie Stores and Spartan Stores are among the retailers who've tested the concept.
“By creating the convenience set we can create a central location that can more easily communicate the benefits and solutions that convenience meals provide and puts them together in a relevant context,” said Pepper.
