UPDATING THE VIEW

BARBARA MURRAY

Frozen foods are consistently priced, convenient and not limited by season, and new technology has improved the taste, quality and portion control due to flash freezing. Yet, many retailers are still struggling with how to promote them as viable meal solutions.

The frozens department faces the peculiar dilemma of having to overcome the stigma of what some call "the 1950s Silver Tray," or TV dinner. But, at the same time, manufacturers are offering family-sized packages of lasagna, or macaroni and cheese, which can create a hearty meal when paired with a precut salad and a loaf of frozen garlic bread.

"When we look at this from a consumer's point of view, if they are in the store thinking about dinners throughout the week, frozen food can offer menu diversity, ease of preparation and the ability to prepare meals of a certain taste and quality," said Michael Sansolo, senior vice president of the Food Marketing Institute, Washington.

Some retailers try to drive this point home to customers by hanging big banners over their frozens aisles, playing up Meals in Minutes or a similar theme.

"We have in the past run a promotion that represented a meal solution for a family, a Prego frozen family-sized lasagna, frozen garlic bread and a frozen layer cake for the price of $9.99. We don't do it often," said Andy Carrano, spokesman for A&P, Montvale, N.J.

"The biggest part is getting retailers to commit to space, and space is tight. That's the No. 1 thing," said Joel Westrate, category manager for Spartan Stores, Grand Rapids, Mich. "You don't know how well the product can do unless it's in there. First, define what a meal solution is. Is it just a large serving, or a totally different item with a totally different name? It's different things to different people," Westrate said. Sansolo agreed that it can be tricky trying to target the right consumer.

"There are some companies that will succeed with chefs in the store and a tremendous culture of prepared foods. You need the right demo for that to work, and the right people in the stores. Frozen foods can fit into the answer, depending upon how the consumer approaches the question," he said.

"It may be a matter of pointing out the obvious: 'Don't forget, they're here! Five to seven minutes, and it's ready, with a microwave.' You've got to sell it," Sansolo added.

Signs and banners have worked in promoting frozen-meal solutions at Marsh Supermarkets, Indianapolis, according to Bryan Nichols, category manager for frozens and snack items. "We separate out our frozen selection into a Dinner Tonight section, where we group items that would make convenient meal solutions together."

Some chains use the weekly ad to promote frozens, and Web sites as vehicles of communication, as well as radio spots, which Price Chopper Supermarkets, Schenectady, N.Y., uses, said Maureen Murphy, consumer services manager for the chain. "We will do food demonstrations in-store, with some of these frozen meal solutions, and we'll feature a recipe in our ad, using some of the frozen items," she added.

Sue Ellen Bohac spoke about targeting the right consumer when she addressed the National Frozen Food Convention last year. Bohac, president of Alcott Group, Chicago, researched purchase patterns and home cooking habits. She sent her target consumers to the supermarket and asked them to create meals with what they found, using only frozen foods.

Because of the way freezer sections are set up, and due to the fog that sometimes forms as soon as doors are opened, the section does not lend itself to browsing, Bohac noted. "The onus is on the retailer to make sure they [consumers] find it," said Bohac. "It is not a section that lends itself to discovery. That's where the retailer really has to be partnering with the manufacturers, and the associations. It's to their benefit. People are looking for convenient meal solutions, and that's what frozen owns. We need to make this work for them more. It should result in bigger sales and higher rings, and help stave off some of the food sourcing that's going out to food service," Bohac said.

In many ways, "it's as simple as signing the area in the freezer cases, communicating that these are frozen dinners and entrees," said Bernie Rogan, spokesman for Shaw's Supermarkets, East Bridgewater, Mass. "There are a host of SKUs that weren't there as recently as a year or so ago. In those coffins, it's a little tough to see, not as easily as on a shelf. We clearly market them as dinners or frozen entrees. Couponing, and other merchandising tools help, absolutely."

The price of frozen food is always consistent rather than fluctuating as fresh products do according to the market, said Ira Blumenthal, president of the Atlanta-based consulting firm Co-Opportunities. The problem, he said, is that "frozen food people are locked into the Ice Age. They market frozen foods the way they always have, in a vacuum next to other frozen foods." As an example of what could be done, he pointed to the ''Fast Lane Merchandiser," or, "that little fridge that broke the rule that soft drinks must be on the beverage aisle [Coca Cola Co.'s "Shop Refreshed" campaign]. Now it's with the magazines, next to TV Guide."

Meal solutions "resonate with consumers, based on the 161.5% jump in frozen meal-starter sales," according to ACNielsen's third annual Consumer and Market Trends Report. Blumenthal said dual-income families will represent 76% of American households by next year.

"June Cleaver is not home," Blumenthal said. "We're going to have to get chicken from the Colonel, or pizza delivered, or go to a deli. In the supermarket, a meal will be either shelf-stable, frozen or refrigerated," he said.

Blumenthal cited a test Kroger in Atlanta is currently conducting in which the store is putting frozen chicken next to Fresh Express salad, wine and salad dressing to create a convenient meal solution center only 15 yards from the express checkout lane.

The old rule of retailing, he went on, was to have a whole aisle for beverages, a whole aisle for produce, and so on. "Maybe that's no longer a relevant cue. The innovators -- Wegmans, Ukrop's and H.E. Butt -- develop a frozen food meal solution center. By putting some bread and produce around it, they have given the consumer permission to buy an entree. I think frozen is a big opportunity, but we have to identify it as such and we have to get out of our own way."

Restaurant branded items on grocery shelves are a relatively new player, and will drive sales, Blumenthal predicted, because of their great credibility. "Marie Callender's pot pie, Pizzeria Uno, the new TGIFriday's line of potato skins, chicken wings and dips; Skyline Chili; the list goes on and on. And these products are all frozen. That is going to help build credibility."

Joe D'Alberto, new president of the Frozen Food Council of North Carolina, Charlotte, said retailers in his area have shown more creativity in the last eight months, and more willingness to tie merchandising with concepts, seasons or events, from the Super Bowl to Lent.

D'Alberto, who is also business manager in the Frozen/Perishable division of Acosta Sales & Marketing, Charlotte, spoke to SN about a June promotion called Super Summer Savings. The campaign tied in with Chef America, maker of Hot Pockets, and with Ore-Ida fries and Winn-Dixie private-label cola in 12-pack cans. All were promoted with signage, along with Heinz ketchup, for what he called a successful event at Winn-Dixie Stores, Jacksonville, Fla. "Retailers have really gotten behind it [event promotion]," D'Alberto said.

Nevin Montgomery, president of the Harrisburg, Pa.-based National Frozen Food Association, thinks the frozen-food department generally can be better merchandised. "We think it requires an initiative with the manufacturers and retailers working together," he said a few weeks before the national convention.

However, Bohac told SN that in the last 10 months, some shared direction has developed in the industry. "There is now an agreement among manufacturers toward the common need to be very focused, which is a great stride, compared to a year ago," she said. "I hope in the next year to see some tangible programs and tactics come through to the consumer."