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Halfway through her three-year transformation plan to return Kraft to reliable growth, Irene Rosenfeld is beginning to enjoy momentum gained from last year’s focus on a strengthened managementteam, enhanced product quality and improved marketing capabilities.
“As a result, we delivered the best top-line performance since going public in 2001,” the chairman and chief executive officer of Kraft said during the Consumer Analyst Group of New York conference in February. “Put simply, we’ve done what we said we would; it’s working, and we’re going to keep doing it.”
Today, 50% of Rosenfeld’s team is either new to Kraft or to their role, and business leaders enjoy profitand- loss accountability. By having streamlined headquarters functions, Rosenfeld now hopes to leverage overhead cost savings and create a much more nimble organization.
The supplier credits the leader’s Wall-to-Wall initiative — which focuses on having one sales lead manage all Kraft brands at retail — for helping it realize an increase of 60 basis points of incremental revenue growth in 2007.
Kraft — which, with 488 new-product introductions last year, launched more than any other CPG manufacturer — also realized success by reframing its categories, company spokeswoman Lisa Gibbons told SN.
“The Oreo brand took a 5% bite out of the $1 billion snack cake business in just six months with its Cakester platform,” she said. “Additionally, Kraft made its maiden voyage into the $500 million probiotic food category with its LiveActiveplatform in cheese, cereal and beverages.”
The new additions were just a few of the beneficiaries of Kraft’s close to $400 million investment in product quality, innovation and marketing.
“We’ve also invested in categories that matter most, like coffee, chocolate and biscuits internationally, and pizza, coffee and the Oscar Mayer brand in North America,” said Gibbons.
Last year, the company grew or maintained share in categories accounting for almost half of its North American revenues, while managing a 9% rise in commodity costs that equated to $1.3 billion.
To ensure brand relevance during the difficult economy, the supplier plans to maintain its focus on new products — including its Bagelfuls; Oscar Mayer Deli Creations flatbread sandwiches; Di- Giorno and California Pizza Kitchen Pizza for One; and its Kraft salad dressings — as it moves forward.
“We’re giving consumers the products and brands that fit their lives,” said Gibbons, who noted that overall, Kraft’s health and wellness items are growingat two times the rate of the other products it merchandises.
Among its better-for you offerings are foods that support weight management, such as 100 Calorie Packs and South Beach Living products, and more than 500 Sensible Solutions products (700 in the U.S. and Canada) across almost every aisle of the supermarket, from salad dressings, to cheese, to beverages and cookies and crackers.
Some of these items are using less packaging or leveraging containers made from more recycled content.
Kraft has replaced the traditional glass jars used to contain its Miracle Whip with plastic packaging that is recyclable.
— JULIE GALLAGHER
