SME Forum – 4 Sep 07

1992 - 2005

• Family owned start up• Key strengths:

– great tasting, natural recipes– high % fruit, nuts & seeds– clear packaging– low pricing

• Available in independent stores and Waitrose– plus small exports to 50 countries

• Very small number of very loyal consumers– 65+ / retired / widowed

• Steady growth to £4m turnover• Classic “producer led” discovery brand• But …………

The SME dilemma• Sales growth was slowing• No new consumers were coming in• No wider distribution opportunities• Ingredients costs rising fast

• Q: How does the business move on to the next stage?

• New owners take a fresh look

• A: Become a consumer led brand, not a producer led recipe

• Strategy:– Take the good bits of the old– Radically rework the rest– Create a real brand (and support it)– Innovate, innovate, innovate – at speed

• What is the scale of our ambition?• What is our attitude to risk and reward?

Dorset Cereals, what we are all about..

Brand philosopy

If you’re not careful life will fly past and before you know it, you’ll be on your last legs wondering what’s happened to the last 30 years.We believe real happiness comes from the soul, not from your bank account. That’s why it’s important to take pleasure from the things in life that are truly rewarding. Take time out for yourself, go for a walk along the cliffs on a windswept day, feel the sand between your toes.Happiness is a life filled with real pleasure, not a life stressed out.

Dorset CerealsSimple Pleasures

Dorset CerealsSimple Pleasures

People who prefer to take their kids/

grandchildren outside to play

… even if it is a city park

People who appreciate simple

pleasures

…wherever that space may be.

People who appreciate the

simple things in life

… wherever they are

A poem rather than a pyramid…..

2006: the re-launch

2006: the re-launch

Fruity porridges

Variety pack

organic

• The Variety Pack

• Organic muesli

• Fruity Porridge

2006: new products

The results so far

Dorset Cereals now the Number 2 muesli brand

Value Sales % Chg YoYValue Sales % share Total Grocery

Source : IRI InfoScan All Stores 4 w/e 14 July, 07

Value Sales % Change vs YrAgo

-10.8

-5.5

100.4

-84.2

-13.9

-21.8

10.1

4 week Value Share of Muesli category within Total Grocery

W Jordan (Cereals) Ltd,17.9%

All Other Muesli, 1.9%All Other O/L,

10.3%

Waitrose O/L, 4.0%

Tesco O/L, 8.5%

Sainsbury's O/L, 9.5%

Pertwood Farm, 0.2%

Dorset Cereals, 20.7%

Alpen Muesli, 26.9%

With market share trebling in 15 months

20.7

6.8

0.0

5.0

10.0

15.0

20.0

25.0

4 w/

e 3

Dec,

05

4 w/

e 31

Dec

, 05

4 w/

e 28

Jan

, 06

4 w/

e 25

Feb

, 06

4 w/

e 25

Mar

, 06

4 w/

e 22

Apr

, 06

4 w/

e 20

May

, 06

4 w/

e 17

Jun

, 06

4 w/

e 15

Jul,

06

4 w/

e 12

Aug

, 06

4 w/

e 9

Sep,

06

4 w/

e 7

Oct,

06

4 w/

e 4

Nov,

06

4 w/

e 2

Dec,

06

4 w/

e 30

Dec

, 06

4 w/

e 27

Jan

, 07

4 w/

e 24

Feb

, 07

4 w/

e 24

Mar

, 07

4 w/

e 21

Apr

, 07

4 w/

e 19

May

, 07

4 w/

e 16

Jun

, 07

4 w/

e 14

Jul,

07

DC Val Share of Muesli

But let’s keep this in proportion

Manufactuer's performance Snapshot Value Share of Total Cereal

0.0% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0% 25.0% 30.0% 35.0% 40.0% 45.0%

Kelloggs

Total O/L

Weetabix

Cereal Partners

Quaker

Jordans

Dorset Cereals

Morning Foods

Pertwood

Whole Earth

YoY Perf

5.5%

3.6%

16.4%

2.5%

-8.4%

3.5%

165.5%

-13.2%

2.2%

-4.7%

-50.0% .0% 50.0% 100.0% 150.0% 200.0%

Source:- IRI InfoScan – All Outlets 52 wks 14th July 07

• Tasty Toasted Spelt– New ingredient– Alternative to wheat– Make it tasty

New for 2007

our standards: - honest, tasty & realour goal: - unadulterated breakfast pleasureour attitude: - simple, but then the best things in life usually are

-

-we make sure we’re using the best possible ingredients.

-we balance and blend everything together carefully, using our knowledge of what tastes delicious.

-we understand the importance of the simple things in life.

- we start moving beyond muesli…

Doing a Dorset:

Our on-line

competition prize

• Beyond muesli - Chunky Slices

– Just natural kitchen cupboard ingredients: – NOT REFINED SUGAR – Agave: natural

juice from cactus plants. – NOT VEGETABLE / PALM OIL - Nut

butter – take some roasted hazelnuts mash them up and you have nut butter

– Innovative and new to the category paper bags of 3 x 50g slices

– Holes to see what’s inside

2007

• Beyond Muesli - Naturally light flakes

• Low fat cereals the Dorset way:– Flakes, we choose the tastiest grains,

do the bare minimum with them, then we blend them with delicious premium freeze dried fruit

– Natural, tasty, less than 2% fat– Younger target market– Non consumers of muesli

2007

Marketing strategy

Dorset Cerealstouch points

One Way communication

Two Way communicationExperiential

Person to person

•TV•Press•Radio•Outdoor (inc. ambient)•Cinema•Online (eg Banners)

•PR•Advertiser funded/ sponsored (programming or publishing)

•Online- rich media•Interactive TV

•Direct response•Coupons•DRTV/Radio•Text response•Mail outs (online / offline)

•Point of sale•Packaging•Transport•Loyalty schemes•Promotions•Literature

•Digital (e.g. online/mobile)• Content creation•Gaming (+ content)•Websites (communities/interactive)

•Events (creation or sponsorship)•Roadshows•Initiatives•Sampling•Stunts

•Viral•Word of mouth

•Blogs•Community sites

•Guerrilla activity

The conventional map

Our plans

• The principles:– Interactive– Affordable– Simple Pleasures

• The priorities:– Sampling– PR– Website– Fun competitions

One of our on pack prizes

• ‘Win Beach Stuff and a Landrover to put it in’ on pack promotion– redemption level so far of 10% – 126,000 entries so far

• Innovative on-line and database activity– Database of 75,000, up from 12,000– Monthly competitions:

• 8,729 people entered to winone of 10 hessian bags

• Over 10,000 entries in 3 daysto win a wooden truck

– Website changes every day– 50,000 unique visits a month to

website

Unvalentines day

Mother’s day

2007

Our father’s day ‘win a shed competition’ –Country Living

July 2007 –Fresh magazine

• PR – numerous competitions and coverage in the national and regional press

Wellies -competition prize

Now magazine – Aug

Sunday Express July 2007

2007

• Sampling: 400,000 samples to the right people in the right place in the right way:– Country Living shows– BBC Gardeners World– Glastonbury– Innocent Village Fete– Bristol Balloon Fiesta– Pooh Sticks championships– Kite flying championships– Food fairs– The London Boat Show– Cowes Week

Chunky slices backstage and in the mud at Glastonbury

2007

We get more ‘good’ consumer contacts than ‘bad’ – biggest comments are: ‘I love your recipes’ and ‘where can I find them?’.

Name: Mrs Sarah Leatherdale

Message:I've just had my first bowl of 'unadulterated breakfast pleasure' and it was. A pleasure. And unadulterated. I'll definitely be having it again tomorrow. The cereal I mean. Actually, some other unadulterated pleasure would be nice, but I've got to be up early in the morning. Well, my husband has. For work. Not pleasure. So I'll have mine later. When I have another bowl.

SME strengths

Play to our strengths

• The big boys– Slow and bureaucratic - excessively analytical– Marketing via the chequebook and large agencies– Double glazing cuts out sound

• SMEs– Flexible and nimble– Passionate and human– Willing and able to take “impossible” steps

How we do it

• Have belief, as well as data– Ride the big trends to find our own space– Guided by consumers, not taken prisoner by them– Never research the creative process

• Use Sales Prevention to our advantage– Do the things the big boys can’t or won’t

• Use organ grinders – flee from Account Directors– Work with people who “get” the brand– The South West is rich with refugee talent

• Be happy to be roughly right – focus our energies on fast and effective delivery

• Form REAL bonds with consumers (usually cheaper, too)

• Invest in professionalism in front of our customers

Simple, but then the best things in life usually are