Case Studies

Case Study - Grove Fresh

Any regular shopper will have seen the vast choice of different juices on supermarket shelves. It may, therefore, be considered brave to launch yet another competitor in what could be defined as a market nearing saturation point. But the team at Product Chain were sufficiently convinced by the quality of Grove Fresh to believe that it was a product that the buyer would welcome, and one that would fill a gap in current supply.

The story began with food entrepreneur, John Taylor, who had built up, and subsequently sold, the brand Freshbake. Living in Florida, surrounded by trees bearing succulent sunshine packed oranges, John saw an opportunity to bring pure, organically grown juice to the UK. After a faltering start during which little real progress was made, John approached Product Chain who took the organic juice and applied their unique enthusiastic approach to its marketing. In 1997, Grove Fresh orange juice was listed with Waitrose, whose buyers recognised the potential of a juice made from pure organic oranges, without additives, and without concentrate direct from the fruit, with no added water.

From there, the Product Chain team successfully gained entry to health food stores and other major supermarkets. Orange was soon joined by a number of other juices to create a wider choice whilst retaining the exemplary quality for which Grove Fresh is recognised. Apple, apple and mango, and vegetable juice were eagerly received, and today the range has been expanded with cranberry and apple, and ruby orange.

 

The company’s involvement in this product produced dramatic results:
Grove Fresh is now a multi million pound concern and is a winning product in most of the leading UK supermarkets. With Product Chain’s input into the packaging, marketing, and positioning of the product, Grove Fresh has become a brand that has a distinguished history and promises to grow again this year, next year and so on!

Case Study – Dentyl

In common with many business opportunities, Product Chain’s involvement with Dentyl pH began with a touch of serendipity.

The Fresh Breath Centre in London, whose premises were at one time occupied by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, was looking to raise awareness of the problems of bad breath, its causes, and what could be done for sufferers. The Centre wanted to create PR by running a story about how bad breath could be cured, and they were to aim this story at the female leisure readership via a woman’s magazine. For this they needed a model, and that is where serendipity came into play. The model in question turned out to be the wife of Simon Dunn, owner of Product Chain.

Never one to let an opportunity pass, Simon was intrigued by the mouthwash pictured alongside his wife in the press. Unlike anything he had ever seen before, the mouthwash contained a layer of oil on top of liquid, requiring the bottle to be shaken and an emulsion created before use. Imported from the Middle East, with local branding, the result was somewhat unappealing to the discerning UK market.

On further enquiry, Simon discovered that this mouthwash was used regularly in the Fresh Breath Centre. The oil content allowed the active ingredients of the mouthwash to effectively bind to particles and plaque in the mouth. Gargling and rinsing for thirty seconds produced incredibly effective cleansing and eliminated the major cause of bad breath – food debris!

Before long, the team at Product Chain had thought up the name Dentyl and added the pH tag, successfully introducing it to Superdrug, where it was listed in 1997. Today, Dentyl pH is the number one unit selling mouthwash in the UK. Listed in all major supermarkets and health stores such as Boots, its efficacy at treating bad breath has been proven beyond doubt.

Simon Dunn and his team saw a unique product in Dentyl pH, but they saw too the opportunity to create a brand that would be eagerly received. Their in-depth knowledge of the routes to market enabled them to transform Dentyl pH from a little known – and little used – product to one that is on every UK supermarket buyer’s list and in many consumers’ bathroom cabinets.

Case Study - Cawston Vale

The Cawston Vale story has always been about apples. It began way back in 1987 when Cawston Vale apple juice cans were launched as a premium juice range. Other variations followed, including orange juice and pink grapefruit juice, until the brand was acquired by Copella in 1993 and was re-focused on the foodservice sector. In 2000, Cawston Vale established itself as an independent brand. The can sales were in decline, despite a revamp of the packaging. It was clear the market had changed and Cawston Vale needed to change with it. The team at Product Chain recognised the need for more retail-friendly packaging and decided to concentrate on apple juice. In the autumn of 2006, a new product launched – the Cawston Vale Apple Juice 1 Litre Tetra Pak carton. It was a revolution for the juice market – pure, premium pressed, not from concentrate apple juice at a non-chilled price. In addition to this it was 100% natural with no preservatives, colourings or sweeteners. The retailers liked it and it met with success, initially in Waitrose and soon the other major multiples followed.  Other variants were quickly launched – Apple & Ginger and Apple & Elderflower. Today there are 5 flavours in the 1 Litre portfolio, with distribution in Waitrose, Tesco, J Sainsbury, Ocado, Booker and many major wholesalers.

 
Harvesting the apples                           Delivery of apples to the plant

 
Washing and grading the apples          Pressing the apples into juice

 

New Zealand Honey Case Study

New Zealand Honey Specialities came to us with a range of alpine honeys from New Zealand. At the time they were being sold all over New Zealand but were yet to break the UK market, however with 40% of New Zealand’s honeys exports coming to the UK this was clearly a market to tap into. Most of the honey coming into the UK from New Zealand is of mixed origin but these were a range of pure New Zealand honeys. Honey from New Zealand is widely accepted to be the finest honey in the world, being made by bees that are foraging in areas untouched by humans and in some of the purest air on the planet. The team at Product Chain recognised it as a great product but it didn’t sell itself and the provenance of this pure honey was not being communicated on the pack. With Product Chains help, the range was rebranded for the UK market, focusing on New Zealand as the source of pure honey with unique antioxidant qualities. 

Since New Zealand Honey Co has been selling in the UK, Product Chain has helped them to:

·         Gain distribution in 1000 stores

·         Sell 50% of New Zealand’s annual production of honey

·         Win “International Trader of the Year” award from the prestigious 2008 Otago Chamber of Commerce business excellence awards

 

Beekeepers on South Island, New Zealand