CPGmatters: Major Marketers Collaborate with Kroger to Simplify Shopping for Beverages, Snacks
Through a special arrangement, presented here for discussion is a summary of a current article from the monthly e-zine, CPGmatters.
Kroger is testing a new display idea for one of its most popular categories: beverages. The idea behind the former initiative is to create a handy destination that brings all the beverages in the store together in a four-aisle section where signage and color codes help shoppers select their drinks quickly and easily.
Kroger launched the Refreshment Center concept last winter at an unspecified number of its roughly 2,500 supermarkets in 31 states.
Ocean Spray has joined Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Coca-Cola, Gatorade, Lipton and Tropicana as major participants in the Refreshment Center concept.
Gondolas are reserved for specific categories that are identified by color: green for Ocean Spray and other juices, red for carbonated beverages, blue for water and sports drinks. Color-coded floor strips and other indicators help identify the categories. In-line headers carry lifestyle images and appropriate phrases. The juice headers, for example, say "healthy, fruity, flavorful," while sports drinks "restore, refuel, replenish."
"The color coding makes Refreshment Center visually appealing, and it was the most obvious way to go," Steve Logan, sales manager of the Kroger team for Ocean Spray, told CGPmatters. "And we were all for the informational wording. Where waters wouldn't necessarily need that kind of thing, we thought, 'Let's tell the consumer at point of purchase what juice is all about.' Our brand is all about tasting good and being good for you, so we wanted to differentiate it from, say, coffee. And Kroger wanted to make it simple, not complicated. They didn't want the categories to argue."
Ocean Spray sales at Kroger stores overall were up by more than 10 percent for the year ended in May compared with a year earlier.
Products from Ocean Spray and other brands including PepsiCo's Lipton and Tropicana are housed in semi-permanent floor stands. Outer gondolas span the length of the department in the stores experimenting with the Refreshment Center housing carbonated beverages and water, while the interior aisles feature shorter gondolas, two of which run into coolers devoted to energy drinks and New Age beverages including enhanced waters and teas. End-caps include permanent three-sided displays from Coca-Cola and PepsiCo's Gatorade. Generic displays showcase beverage brands as "Weekly Features."
Mr. Logan believes bringing all beverages together in a Refreshment Center makes sense. "Traditionally, they're scattered throughout the store, but this puts all the choices in one area for shoppers. And there are high levels of relationship among all these beverages. Consumers don't necessarily have a switching mentality when they enter the area; you'd be surprised how highly complementary the relationships are among different types of beverages," he said.
Kroger also has been experimenting with a similar aisle-arrangement program in the snack aisle, using color-coded graphics to identify six distinct categories, such as orange for "Multi-Pack" and green for "Sensible Snacks." PepsiCo's Frito-Lay unit gets special attention in this initiative, with aisle signage calling out its specific product lines.
Discussion Question: What do you think of Kroger's Refreshments Aisle? Should grocers be making more unified statements around categories such as beverages and snacks? In particular, would more consumer education be beneficial around these categories?