Matt Done

For Hundreds if not thousands of years Alcohol has had centre stage but almost every occasion. And with good reason for many people, Alcohol is a fun facilitator of good times. As an Englishman, I drank, when I was happy I drank when I was sad I drank when I won and I got drunk when I lost. I drank when someone was born and I got very drunk when someone died. Even somewhat ironically at the wake of someone who died of alcohol poisoning. Alcohol has owned so many moments of my life. Now we hear that there is a a new sobriety movement, one if I’m honest, I don’t actually believe in, can exclude yourself from something you don’t have interest in in the first place? This new endeavour by Heineken as a sage warning of what listening listening to focus group does to a brand The more I see reports from strategic specialists marketing experts and social gurus. The more utterly unhinged it looks so far detached from reality but it makes you wonder if they know if they’re phoning in or not? If so many people in so many companies I just finishing the next project around them before the House of Cards of nonsense statistics dead end questionnaires and do nothing data comes to haunt them. And I think this is one of the key reasons that Beverage is struggling is because it’s losing its grip on reality, because when we look at beverage, it should surprise it should delight it should excite and it should be a utility for people, simply put liquid is a human necessity. If you look at the data and you come away with ‘people spend a lot of time in the digital realm even when they are busy in the physical’. You have to ask if the real solution to that is Phone without apps, destined be sad, branded landfill. Rather consumers telling you that they’re bored with your offering and they can’t have that attention capture anymore because what we’re really looking at is a generation of people that are tired for settling for mediocrity. And anyway, I need apps on my phone because I need to be able to get home from the pub and whether that’s Uber or TFL you’ll need an app for that P.S If you are kind of person that is now going to correct me, and say if I’m reposting this if I’m talking about it then it’s doing a good job. Then, you are one of the people I’m talking about, because you’ll say there’s no such thing as bad publicity but I’d ask how the guitarist of lost prophets feels about the statement.

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Fighting harder than ever to maintain sales through current accounts? You are not alone! Continuing the GRIPPING serialisation of the latest Kindred survey of over 200 independent drinks brands by CGA by NIQ. The Duppy Share we're investing deeper than ever before in our off-trade partners in order to maintain last year's volume. The value-for-money hunting UK consumer is now buying over 75% of their spirits on-promo (vs 55% LY), meaning more investment than ever to maintain volume. On-trade is slightly different - Duppy's strength is in high volume large venue indies, where we can afford to over invest in epic experiences. Recent wins in Lucky Voice Group, Bubba Oasis | Bubba Hospitality Group, Troxy, The Clockwork Rose, Heartbreaker’s Gentlemen’s Club & Restaurant, Wing Kingz and Natty's Jerk all great examples of deep support and strong high volume opportunities. Expecting to see the market correct itself somewhat through 2025, as our multi-national competitors reduce their overfunding to deliver their sales numbers and the trade reduce their expectations of an indie sector that keeps saying NO to "opportunities" to showcase our brands in front of new audiences for ridiculous fees, and refuse to invest in accounts that aren't driving a profit or significant growth.

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UK soft-drink maker Britvic plc has rejected a £3.1bn takeover bid from Carlsberg Group , saying the Danish brewer was “significantly” undervaluing a group whose brands include Robinsons and Fruit Shoot. Carlsberg made an initial bid of 1,200 pence per share earlier this month, before sweetening its all-cash proposal to 1,250p, which London-listed Britvic rejected on June 17. As well as producing its own brands, Britvic is PepsiCo’s bottler in the UK. Carlsberg is PepsiCo’s bottler in Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Cambodia and Laos. The brewer of Kronenbourg and Tuborg said the acquisition of Britvic would offer it “long-term growth opportunities”. It said it was considering its position after Britvic rebuffed its second bid. The acquisition of Britvic would offer Carlsberg the opportunity to expand its drinks bottling in Britain, for both alcoholic and refreshing beverages products. Interesting to see how all this plays out in the weeks and months ahead for both Carlsberg Group and Britvic plc and what potential wider impact this may have on the beverages industry, across both alcoholic and soft drinks categories. #carlsberg #Britvic #beer #softdrinks #alcohol Lars Jensen Jean-Philippe Delforge Paul Villis Carol Dunne Alison Wilkinson Thomas Hahlin Ahlinder John Savage Farrah Gilsenan Sheelagh Pentony Erlon Pereira Ian Chesworth Marc LEJEUNE Breda Kelly Francois Sonneville Stephen Rannekleiv Bourcard Nesin Jim Watson John Craven Bryan Roth Mark Gallo Erika Minaguchi Kristof König Linda Chatton Gilles Halotel Jerry O'Keeffe Wayne Donovan David Deeley Brian Short Gwyneth Kelly

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The latest data for the UK low & no alcohol market is game-changing! While the UK's overall alcohol market is facing a decline, the low/no segment is absolutely 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜! 🚀 According to the yesterdays IWSR report: 📈 No/low-alcohol volumes grew by 47% from 2022 to 2023! 𝗬𝗲𝘀 - 𝟰𝟳%!! 🔮 Forecasted +19% CAGR from 2023 to 2028. 💷 Adding £800m in value by 2028. As the UK's largest low & no retailer, DRYDRINKER LTD is excited to confirm that we are seeing the same trends with a 30% YoY growth this year. In a recent survey of our customers, the number one motivation for drinking low & no alcohol was to live a healthier lifestyle - and I don't see this motivation changing anytime soon! 🍻 Link to article in the comments.

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More news from our fascinating industry. 8 things you need to know about going in to the new week: ♻ Welsh Deposit Return Scheme will not include wine and spirits glass 💷 Aldi CEO raises concerns about validity of price match campaigns - pointing to significant differences in ingredients 📈 Morrisons quarter 3 sales growth below expectations 🚛 Creed Foodservice Ltd is acquired by Kitwave Wholesale Group 🥘 Quorn Foods and Cauldron owner Marlow Foods announces losses in excess of £60m 🥃 William Grant & Sons and Sons acquires The Famous Grouse scotch brand from Edrington ⛽ UK petrol prices fall to their lowest level in three years 🖥 YouGov poll states that 7/10 sub-postmasters have experienced unexplained discrepancies since January 2020 www.sellex.co.uk #CommercialConfidence #CommercialCapability #CommmercialOrganisationalEffectiveness #RevenueGrowthManagement

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🌟 Industry Insights Coming Soon! 🌟 We’re thrilled to announce the upcoming release of the Food and Drink North East 2024 State of Sector Survey - an in-depth look at the food and drink industry in the North East. Covering insights from businesses across primary production, food, drink, hospitality and manufacturing, this report reveals the resilience, challenges, and ambitions shaping our region’s vibrant sector. 👀 Sneak Peek: 45% of businesses grew in 2024 despite economic pressures, with many expanding, creating new jobs, and thriving at local events. Inflation, staffing, and supply chain issues topped the list of challenges, with rising ingredient costs and recruitment hurdles impacting operations. Financial support, training, and consultancy are high on the agenda to support sustainable growth. The timing of this report is perfect, arriving just before the Rt Hon Rachel Reeves Autumn Budget and in light of the government’s recently released - and underwhelming - Industrial Strategy Green Paper. It’s a crucial moment to shine a spotlight on the support our sector needs to drive sustainable and inclusive growth across the regional agri, food, drink, manufacturing and hospitality supply chain. Stay tuned - full results coming in the next few weeks! 🔗 Join us to be the first to access the survey results. https://lnkd.in/eXPZcESW #FoodandDrink #NorthEast #FADNE #BusinessGrowth #SectorInsights #SurveyResults #AutumnBudget The North East Combined Authority Tees Valley Combined Authority Kim McGuinness Ben Houchen RTC North North East Chamber of Commerce Ian Pilkington Karen Berry Julia Austin Lesley Hawke MIEx NBSL Erudus Jon Shayler Lockton Colin Donohoe Johnston Carmichael Chartered Accountants and Business Advisers ADAM HARDIE

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EPR then.. what and who is a bit of a mess isnt it.. I mean PRNs continue as they always have done, but for ‘household’ waste whats the score? Obviously we know that any wine sold in an off trade environment is - assuming the ‘producer’ is a £2m business payable. But what about the on-trade? Well to the letter of the law, the end consumer buying a bottle of wine in the on trade makes that bottle count as household waste. But wait, if the consumer buys a glass of wine then it is exempt.. to the letter of the law as written.. we can take that further a 75ml carafe or jug of wine is also exempt.. so if a publican opens a bottle of wine and pours it into a carafe then technically that becomes exempt. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs this seems a bit foolish? Surely we should just have one simple way to manage this. After HM Treasury put the boot into Hospitality recently, the last thing we need is yet more admin burden and bureaucracy that risks higher levels of avoidance in the system. EPR is a good thing, but lets keep it that way and make it clear, consistent and easy to manage.

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A couple of thoughts to ponder: i) with limited numbers boards need to consider the balance between narrow-but-critical expertise in an area (say AI, or e-comm) and experience of growing/transforming a business (e.g. ex-C-Suite); ii) what's the right balance of leaning on a board member's specialist knowledge (e.g. on Net Zero) vs needing that directly at exec level. An energising start to the day, including some great discussion on AI use cases and turning use case to full business value, thanks Directorbank

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⏱️ 60 second read - Highlights of JS Performance ⏱️ Simon Roberts has plenty to smile about this week as Sainsbury's posted a H1 investor update... In summary: Sainsbury's reported a +3.7% increase in #retail underlying profit to £503 million on the back of a 5% rise in #grocery sales. The company claimed some significant gains in share versus the rest of #ukgrocery, driven by customers opting for larger baskets and choosing to trade up to the premium Taste the Difference range, (delivering +18% sales increase YoY). Chief Executive, Simon Roberts highlighted the strong performance and continued volume growth in their food business, attributing success to the combination of value, quality, and service, bolstered by a £1 billion investment in recent years. Looking forward, Sainsbury's plans to open about 20 new #supermarkets and 20 to 25 #convenience stores in the next 18 months. They recently acquired eleven Homebase and two Co-op stores to expand their presence. Looking forward, Roberts expressed confidence in maintaining strong profit growth, expecting retail underlying #profit to reach £1.01 billion to £1.06 billion, a growth of 5% to 10%. The company is also preparing for another robust performance during the #festive season. #striqenews #bfg

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Most of my SME clients are facing financial challenges 1. Residual inflation is still impacting on their business and as they are already more premium products, they are struggling to put through further price increases 2. Cost of labour - the budget changes to national insurance and minimum wage have hit hard - one client is facing a £1m increase in labour costs from these two elements alone next year But the big corporates are mostly thriving. Check out this summary of top 150 grocery suppliers (not sure if it behind The Grocer paywall but take a look if you can). The key headline is that average net margin is 5.1% and well up on last year. There are some incredible profit growth figures upto 159% (well done Bakkavor). So how are they achieving this success when the smaller companies are floundering? The difference is two fold - they have managed to invest in automation reducing the reliance on humans and they are able to negotiate better selling prices more easily due to their size and strength of the brands (and also corresponding lower ingredient costs) It is only going to get tougher out there for the small companies who are going to need to negotiate harder, differentiate better and find the pockets of value https://lnkd.in/eTkqqjcm

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#Food and #drink #startups and #scaleups...a quick survey to support Alex Brown's work, with Impact on Urban Health (do check them out!) on understanding the funding gap for startup and scaling food and drink brands, focused on health and wellness... The right finance is always key, and barriers to it can be the biggest hurdle scaling businesses face, finding equitable solutions is essential. links to the survey are in the post below.

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📣 Huel Ready-to-drink Chocolate is officially the #1 in ‘Dairy Drinks’ in the UK 📣 This means Huel RTD Chocolate 500ml is bigger than any: 🥤 Iced Coffee sku (Starbucks, Jimmy’s, Costa etc) 🐮 Milkshake sku (Yazoo, Frijj et al) 💪 RTD Protein sku (UFit, For Goodness Shakes and others) Whilst Huel is neither ‘dairy’ nor a ‘drink’ (well, it is and it isn’t) this is the category we often sit with in store and therefore we have to compare our performance. A couple of things that make this all the sweeter: 🌍 Huel is plant-based. Plant-based products have really struggled to gain a foothold in this category in the UK…the next non-Huel plant-based sku is ranked at 70th! 🏪 Huel Choc is the #1 despite being the lowest distributed product in the top 5. Therefore, a clear #1 at sales per store. …So if you’re reading this and you’re a buyer and you have Iced Coffee/Milk Shakes/Protein RTD on your shelf BUT don’t have Huel…then get in touch and get involved 🤝 💸 Big shout out to the team for the awesome work and all the wins that have propelled us to the top of the charts. Natalie Stanton Daniela Nacul Jon Morris Jamie Barr-Byford Alicia Abrahams Nicola Nicholson George Markham Lauren Baker Jake Kearley  Also, a shout out to Starbucks who’s very strong growth and performance have made this feat all the more challenging! Source: NielsenIQ, Total Coverage, Dairy Drinks/Flavoured Milk, Total Coverage. 8 weeks to w/e 13/07/2024.

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PROMOTIONS ARE LIKE BAD CHOLESTEROL Sir Martin Sorrell, former Chief Executive of WPP once said “Brands should view promotions as “bad cholesterol” which boost sales but at a cost to brand health. In contrast advertising should be seen as “good cholesterol” which delivers sales whilst also maintaining profitability and brand equity.” The digital commerce equivalent would be Brands should treat Paid Search & promotions as “Bad Cholesterol” both of which boost sales in the short term at the expense of profit and loyalty. In contrast building relevance to a customer’s needs and missions along their digital shopping journey through portfolio, advertising, marketing and targeted digital retail media should be seen as “good cholesterol” which delivers sales whilst also maintaining profitability & brand equity and building customer engagement, experience and loyalty. A bit more of a mouthful, but then I haven’t spent 40 years at the helm of a global advertising giant. #digitalcommerce #ecommerce #cpg #cpgindustry #fmcg #fmcgindustry #digitalstrategy #digital

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Koninklijke Grolsch reduce its UK alcohol content from 4% to 3.4%.   Prior to the drop in ABV, sales had dropped 55.8% to £3.4m which will save Asahi UK 23p in per 440ml can 💸   Asahi Beverages UK have also lowered the strength of other brands, like Dark Star Hophead when revenue rose 2.9% to £527m in 2023, but pre-tax losses increased to £14.1m.   Other brews to be ‘drinkflated’ down to 3.4% abv in recent years include:   🍺 Danish Pilsner by Carlsberg Group 🍺 John Smith’s Extra Smooth by The HEINEKEN Company 🍺 Bud Light by Budweiser Brewing Group UK&I   An Asahi spokesperson said: ‘Following much analysis, we decided to reformulate Grolsch to a new ABV of 3.4%, which went into market earlier this year. We are confident this still delivers an excellent premium beer that will appeal to a broad range of consumers.’ Grolsch is available at Sainsbury's.

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💭 CREATIVITY IN RETAIL MEDIA An excellent post below by Darren Jacobs focusing on creativity in retail media. I have long believed that many manufacturers have forgotten how to be creative. Reaching the size and scale of some brands has been hard fought and no one in any manufacturer wants to damage the brand. Many manufacturers are now risk averse and more focused on ‘efficiencies’ that grow profitability than on creativity that grows demand. I believe that manufacturers need to get good at creating demand again, and creativity is the way to do that. Creativity in marketing, creativity in media, creativity in creating solutions to consumer needs, creativity in execution and creativity in innovation. To back up my belief I present two paragraphs from Darren’s post: “A recent article in Mumbrella by Hugh Cameron from Zitcha & Peter Smyth from Velocity Made Good (VMG) goes into great detail on importance of creative within retail media. One paragraph wraps it all together nicely 👇 𝘼 𝙨𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙮 𝙗𝙮 𝙈𝙖𝙜𝙣𝙖 𝙈𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙖 𝙏𝙧𝙞𝙖𝙡𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙔𝙖𝙝𝙤𝙤 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙚 𝙢𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙖 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙚𝙣𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙪𝙢𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙧𝙚, 𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙞𝙨 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 56% 𝙤𝙛 𝙥𝙪𝙧𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 23% 𝙖𝙙-𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡. 𝙁𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙙𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙥𝙤𝙤𝙧 𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮, 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙙𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙨 𝙩𝙤 2%. 𝙎𝙤 𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙡 𝙢𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙖 𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚.” Read that again, “CREATIVE QUALITY IS RESPONSIBLE FOR 56% OF PURCHASE INTENT. ADS WITH POOR CREATIVE QUALITY, THIS DROPS TO 2%” Digital media and digital retail media are becoming evermore crowded spaces. Competition for customer eyeballs is only going to increase. The only way to cut through is to stand out and the best way to do that is to be … Creative. I personally believe that, as digital generations become the primary customer base for most product categories, focusing on ‘efficiencies’ and being risk averse will become the least efficient and highest risk strategy of all. #digitalcommerce #ecommerce #cpg #cpgindustry #fmcg #fmcgindustry #omnicommerce

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Love a good news story on a cold rainy Monday. Heineken is investing £39m to refurbish over 600 of its UK pubs, with plans to reopen 62 pubs and create over 1,000 jobs. The investment aims to revitalise suburban pubs into premium local spots, in response to reduced city-centre commuting. This initiative includes enhancements for various customer activities like sports watching and dining. Two pubs in Essex and another in Bromsgrove have already been renovated, with several more scheduled to reopen throughout the year. This move by Heineken's Star Pubs operation seeks to enhance community engagement by offering versatile, value-added pub experiences. By Eri Sugiura in the Financial Times: The HEINEKEN Company to reopen closed UK pubs as cost of living pressures ease https://on.ft.com/4b3ns7H Mark From-Poulsen #HeinekenInvestment #UKPubs #PubReopening #LocalPubs #PubJobs #CommunityPubs #SuburbanPubs #PubRefurbishment #HeinekenUK #StarPubs

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Following the news yesterday of Mars and Kellanova. There is significant change underway within large FMCG companies as they refocus and reshape their strategies to prioritise profitability. It seems inevitable that more large acquisitions and consolidations are on the horizon. Below is a good round up of recent FMCG M&A's and portfolio reshuffles.

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What channel could add nearly 5000 stores to a food & drink #manufacturer's customer base? The fastest growing bricks & mortar channel currently has to be "Variety stores" - those discount stores traditionally associated with selling vast ranges of #generalmerchandise at amazing prices - but who now are expanding their #food and #drink ranges rapidly. In the #privatelabel sector, UK retailers such as B&M Retail, Poundland & Dealz, and TJ Morris T/A Homebargains, have launched some great #ownbrand products over recent years, with many new products appearing in 2024. 🔅Many categories are covered, especially ambient, pet, and household. 🔅We are now seeing some PL in chill, such as #foodtogo and #readymeals in Home Bargains. 🔅Designs are appealing, packaging quality is good, and "exclusive brands" are used, much in the same way as at #aldi and #lidl. 🔅Prices are on occasions lower than Aldi, but are mainly pitched in between the discounters and the main supermarkets. 🔅Quality is OK - but definitely an opportunity to work with them on improvements. Last week I saw the first PL product in the fastest growing European retailer, Action - coffee pods under the Palazzo exclusive brand. Action's volumes are huge - an attractive proposition for any PL manufacturer. B&M have around 755 UK stores currently, targeting 1200. Poundland have 845. Home Bargains have nearly 600, targeting 800-1000, and Action have 2650 across many European countries. Surely a sector for all #suppliers to have on their radar right now. #supermarkets #ukretail #competition #opportunity #sales #FMCG #discount #brands International Private Label Consult (IPLC)

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