Kantar OOH survey shows Chinese consumers drink beer at night, function drinks in the afternoon, soy milk during breakfast

By

-

4th June 2015

Kantar out of home panel (OOH), launched in Feb 2015, has finally released its first result. Here is the official description of Kantar OOH.

Actual consumer decisions are captured through smartphones, which allow 4,000 urban consumers to provide immediate and accurate information of every single purchase, including the exact product they consumed, where, when and why. Link

During the first quarter of 2015, the average spending on snacks and beverage in provincial capitals in China stood at RMB360 per person. The OOH gives us a clearer idea of the beverage consumption patterns. Beer is usually taken during the dinner and after dinner day parts (covering 55% of occasions), while soy milk is taken during breakfast (67% of occasions). Afternoon is the time of the day for function drinks (to keep you awake). With this information, marketers will know what and when to cross sell their products.

Source: Kantar Worldpanel

The other piece of useful information from Kantar OOH is convenience store has been identified as the key purchase channel for OOH consumption at 26%. This ties in nicely with China’s current convenience store boom. Convenience store sales in China rose 25.12% in 2014 compared with a 6.5% growth for supermarket and 2.7% for department store, according to China Chain Store & Franchise Association (CCFA). Unfortunately, most convenience stores are losing money.

Convenience store is the key channel for beverages, while supermarket is still the key channel for snacks.

For more info, please download the report from Kantar. Here is the link.

Energy drink with tea and milk helps change negative perception about the category

By

Mini Me Insights

-

3rd June 2015

Indonesia’s energy drink companies are making effort to turn energy drink into a beverage that can be consumed on a regular basis. Tea and milk are two vital ingredients that are helping to make this a reality.

The new Hemaviton Energy Tea Blazt, launched in April 2015, contains black tea extract, vitamin C and ginseng, making the drink the first of its kind in Indonesia. Tea Blazt comes with the lemon tea flavour. Tea Blazt can serve to counter the negative image consumers have about energy drink. The lemon tea flavour also helps expand the usage to women consumers who are traditionally not the key market for energy drink.

In addition, the new Tea Blazt is also an attempt to reach out to the new e-generation who may or may not be fans of energy drink. This generation has the privilege of living in times of prosperity and is exposed to a wide range of beverage choices. According to PT Tempo Scan Pacific Tbk, Tea Blazt is aimed at Generation C described at “connected, creative, communicating, content-centric, computerized, community-oriented, always clicking and creating change.” Tea Blazt does not have the strong energy drink taste but yet offers adequate energy to fuel the activities commonly engaged by Generation C.

Extra Joss Blend by Kalbe Farma is another energy drink that uses the same approach. This product has been covered in an earlier post. Unlike Tea Blazt, milk is the key ingredient. Milk is highly recognised as a key source of calcium and protein. By blending milk with energy drink, this approach effectively turns Extra Joss into an energy drink that comes with the health halo.

Both Tea Blazt and Extra Joss Blend are hybrid energy drinks. They are playing a key role reaching out to young non-energy drink consumers. The tea and milk ingredients have strong health credentials to turn energy drinks into something that is perceived safe to be consumed on a regular basis.

New MamyPoko Mini S ensures newborns in Indonesia start wearing pants-type diapers at 1 month old

By

Mini Me Insights

-

2nd June 2015

Japan’s Unicharm Corp has recently unveiled MamyPoko Pants Extra Soft Mini S pants in Indonesia. The new product is aimed at babies aged 1-3 months. MamyPoko Pants Extra Soft is a top of the line pants product made from softer premium materials with excellent absorbency. The SS size is already available in Thailand but not in Singapore and Malaysia.

The launch of the mini S size in Indonesia is interesting from a marketing perspective. Unicharm is encouraging Indonesian mothers to start using its expensive pants-type diapers on their newborn as early as 1 month. In Malaysia and Singapore, the traditional tape-type diapers are still the dominant diaper for newborns and babies.

Unicharm diaper market share in Indonesia – Unicharm annual report

Unicharm has the advantage in Indonesia because it has the first mover advantage in the country’s disposable diaper market having entered in 1997. The company is number one in Indonesia and Thailand with Indonesia contributing 10% of global sales and Thailand 5%. Unicharm baby diaper sales in Indonesia grew 591% between 2008 and 2013, exceeding industry growth of 440%.

As a market leader, Unicharm has been aggressively promoting its pants-type diapers in Indonesia as an easy fit on, thus saving mother’s precious time. However, pants-type diapers is more expensive. On a per-unit basis, the Mini S is about 27% more expensive per piece than Extra Dry.

From Lazada.co.id

The TVC of the new MamyPoko Pants Extra Soft Mini S shows how quick and easy it is for diaper moment with the new Minis S pants. Compared with the tape-type diapers, mothers are having a tough time because their babies are constantly moving their legs. The Mini S product ensures the diaper fits nicely and quickly and does not leak.

Legs moving making it difficult for tape-type diapers

With Unicharm as the market leader, Indonesia is leapfrogging neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore in adopting the premium pants-type diapers. This shows companies need to educate consumers and not waiting for consumers to say they are ready to make the shift if companies really want to promote something that is more premium but offering more convenience and quality.

Matcha fuelling Indonesian F&B innovation

By

Mini Me Insights

-

30th May 2015

Matcha has become a sought after ingredient for food and beverage application in Indonesia. Kiyora Matcha Latte is the latest F&B product using matcha, making it the first RTD tea of its kind in the Indonesian market. Kiyora Matcha uses imported Japanese powered green tea and milk supplied by Ultrajaya. Kiyora is a joint venture between the Japanese RTD tea company Ito En and the Indonesian RTD tea and dairy company Ultrajaya.

In the chocolate segment, the Cimory’s Chocomory Matcha Chocolate Bar is made using Japanese matcha. The chocolate bar was launched in early 2015 and is available at Cimory Riverside, Cimory Mountain View, Flavorbliss Alam Sutera, and Cimory Restaurant and Milk Factory in Bawen, Semarang.

In Indonesia, matcha is added into cakes and beverages to add flavour and for premiumisation. For example, one of the popular traditional food in Jakarta is kue cubi green tea. A normal kue cubit costs IDR 7,000 but when green tea is added, the price goes up to IDR 15,000 to IDR 20,000.

The Japanese powdered tea is promoted as a health food and among the benefits of matcha are reducing body weight, providing the body with energy and helping to prevent diseases thanks to the high antioxidant levels. In neighbouring Malaysia, the DASTO energy bar with matcha is used for weight control, which shows matcha is being promoted as a functional ingredient in both countries.

Matcha’s rising popularity bodes well for Japan, which is a key source for the ingredient. The use of matcha in food and drinks also helps spur functional food innovation in Indonesia.

China RTD Cocktail: Rio charging ahead, 2014 revenue rose by over 4 times

By

Mini Me Insights

-

30th May 2015

Shanghai Bakesi Wine Co., Ltd. (上海巴克斯酒业有限公司), the maker of Rio (锐澳) is basking in the limelight. Bakesi is owned by Shanghai Bairun Flavor & Fragrance, a Shanghai-listed company. The share price of Bairun has surged by nearly 8 times within less than 1.5 years following its acquisition of Bakesi Wine.

The earlier blog in December 2014 contains the financials from 2012 to the first half of 2014. This blog provides an update with the latest 2014 full year results and revenue forecast for the coming three years as provided by the company.

Shanghai Bakesi Wine Co., Ltd. financials 2012 to 2014 (actual) and 2015-2017 (forecast). All the data comes from the company

As you can see, the growth is extraordinary and the momentum is likely to continue in the coming months as distribution improves. Evidence on the ground as reported by the media in Changsha, capital of central China’s Hunan province, has confirmed the rapid growth of alcoholic cocktail drink. Sales of alcoholic cocktail drink saw a 20 fold increase at Hunan Jiarunduo Supermarket (家润多超市) in 2014 compared with 2013. In Q1, 2015, sales continued to grow rapidly, up by 90%. Alcoholic cocktail entered the Changsha market only in 2013.

Shanghai Bakesi Wine Q1, 2015 sales already reached 78.9% of total sales for the whole of 2014. Sales volume by boxes surged to 8,173,021 in 2014 from 514,236 in 2012.

The sales mix is increasingly moving towards the more expensive products – Rio in glass bottle and 佐餐酒 (alcoholic drink as a meal accompaniment) as the company moves up the value chain.

Rio is focusing on the right segment. According to a survey by S&P Consulting (尚普咨询), the composition of cocktail drink consumers in China is very young. Over 80% of them are below the age of 30. The low alcoholic and sweet taste make alcoholic cocktail drink ideal for both male and female.

S&P Consulting – alcoholic cocktail drink consumer by age group

A cautionary note:
China has seen many examples of categories suddenly experiencing explosive growths and attracting many new entrants but their growth eventually tappers off.

Uni-President China milk tea revenue yoy growth (%) – data from annual report

Examples include kvass (格瓦斯), a Russian non-alcohol fermented drink, which saw a spurt in growth in 2013 as well as milk tea (奶茶) and pear tea. The advice is enjoy the ride now because eventually the party will end.

Update: 1H 2015 results and Q1-Q3 2015 projections

First half cocktail segment revenue surged 3.4 times to RMB1.62 billion. The company has already achieved 85.9% of it full year target for 2015.

The company has revised downwards its first three quarters earnings projection citing inventory and macro economic factors. The new net profit projection for the first nine months of 2015 has been lowered from a 280-330% year-on-year growth to 200-230% growth.

Rio’s distributors are facing problem with clearing the inventory due to the massive influx of products not only from Rio but from other competitors. The key problems faced by distributors are fake goods, the inability to sell more products due to weakening demand and disarray in product prices. Will the party ends for Rio? The risk is there.

Probiotic cultured milk: Nutrigen upsized to 300ml

By

Mini Me Insights

-

30th May 2015

Evolution of cultured drink — Evolution of cultured milk in Malaysia

Mamee Double-Decker Nutrigen is carving a market for itself in the probiotic cultured milk market in Malaysia dominated by Malaysia Milk’s Vitagen and Yakult Honsha’s Yakult. Apart from new flavour, low sugar and collagen, the cultured milk market is a category that has little or no innovation.

At the moment, the normal pack comes in the sizes of 125g/ml (Nutrigen & Vitagen) or 80ml (Yakult) suitable for one-off consumption for kids and adults. Cultured milk is mainly targeted at children but there are efforts to introduce it to women.

Nutrigen has recently introduced a Nutrigen cultured milk in 300g. It reminds me of Thailand’s Betagen cultured drink with sizes ranging from 85ml to 700ml. I believe Mamee Double-Decker is using the upsized cultured milk (300g) to target adult drinking occasion. 125ml is ideal for children as a portion control but not for adult. A larger volume is more reasonable for adult. The 300g Nutrigen is relatively new and the launch has so far not being supported by any marketing at the time of writing. I believe the new pack is in a right size and a good move by Mamee Double-Decker to expand the usage of cultured milk to adults.

Updated comment: – 17 August 2015

So far, the 300g Nutrigen seems to be going no where. It is not supported by ATL and BTL marketing activities. The existing Nutrigen is for children. If the 300g is for children, it should be positioned for children but it seems the new product is for adult but consumers already associate Nutrigen as a probiotic for kids. So there is a disconnect and there is a high possibility the 300g Nutrigen will be discontinued in the future.

Supplementary materials:

Energy Drink: Sido Muncul needs to revitalise its languishing energy drink segment

By

Mini Me Insights

-

29th May 2015

Indonesia’s herbal remedies maker Sido Muncul, famous for its Tolak Angin remedies, is seeing a continued decline in energy drink sales. According to its IPO prospectus, the company is number one in energy drinks in 2012 with a market share of 60.02%. The market survey is focused on traditional and modern channels in Greater Jakarta areas and is not a representation of the entire country.

IPO prospectus

As you can see, it is very obvious the company is losing prominence in the energy drinks category. Its Kuku Bima Ener-G! is in the form of powdered sachet. The company blames the 5.5% decline in energy drink revenue in 2012 on market saturation. According to Sido Muncul, “the sales of energy drink has reached an optimum point in the market, therefore it would be difficult to penetrate the market further in order to increase sales.”

Sido Muncul seems to be experiencing a collapse in the category with sales in 2014 marking a 20% decline from 2013. In the first quarter of 2015, the situation remained bleak with energy drink sales falling 29% year-on-year.

Energy drinks share of total revenue, 2010-2014

The rapid decline in energy drinks segment does not bode well for the company as overall revenue was impacted by the fall in energy drink contribution.

Sido Muncul total revenue, 2010-2014 and Q1 2014 – Q1 2015

Sido Muncul’s success rested on flavour innovation and advertising (muscular man image) but these are waning off.

Sido Muncul has taken steps to address the fall in sales by launching new products including Kuku Bima Energi Colamill (2013), Kuku Bima Vitamin C (2013) Kuku Bima Energi Bir (2014), an energy drink with a beer flavour minus the alcohol. In 2015, the company released the Kuku Bima Ener-G (orange and grape) ready-to-drink energy drink to tap the impulse drinking occasion and to target young consumers. This is a right step to position Kubu Bima away from being a drink for the working class.

Kalbe Farma’s Extra Joss, the number two player in the market, is on the right path to success. It has improved the healthy image of Extra Joss with the new product Extra Joss Blend. Extra Joss Blend is a new variant of energy drink with added powdered milk in sachet packaging targeting young consumers. The milk content (calcium and protein) gives an added healthy twist to an otherwise unhealthy drink. The product claims to be fresh and not PHP (Pemberi Harapan Palsu) or a giver of false hope.

Extra Joss Blend TV ad featuring Coboy Junior

For Sido Muncul to revitalise its energy drink segment, it is important to focus on the new generation of consumers and to continue to make its product more easily accessible in convenient format.

New app for popular Anis Choc Moist Cake launched

By

Mini Me Insights

-

25th May 2015

Anis Chocolate Moist Cake with a figure of a Muslim woman asking if you want (nak?) is a familiar sight in petrol stations, convenience stores, supermarkets and in some kiosks in Malaysia. Recently, Anis Food Sdn Bhd has launched a new mobile app for both Android and iOS. The app provides the locations where the Anis Chocolate Moist Cake is available.

Anis Chocolate Moist Cake is currently available at 650 Kedai Mesra Petronas, 95 Tesco outlets and 600 7-Eleven stores. Also launched in May 2015 was the formalisation of an agreement to make the moist cake available in more 7-Eleven outlets in Malaysia.

Anis Food recorded revenue of RM 10.2 million (USD 2.8 million) in 2014 and plans to increase sales to RM 15 million in 2015 through exports and a new factory in Bukit Jelutong. The new factory has the capacity to produce 50,000 cases of chocolate cake [a month?] compared with the current capacity of 15,000 cases.

The company has also expended into Indonesia through PT Anis MekarSari in Bandung, a shopping paradise for Malaysian tourists.

The simple Anis Chocolate Moist Cake has a strong following with the Malay population because of its taste and competitive price. The company not only sells directly through the modern retail outlet, it also provides individuals the chance to do business by becoming an agent/distributor. Such an approach improves the distribution and reach of the product. The company is also indirectly doing charity. An example of this is an Islamic religious teacher who becomes an agent selling to cakes to raise funds for his orphanage.

The success of Anis Food shows how a simple chocolate cake can become successful with right marketing technique, business model and distribution channel.

“You will want more after trying it”

Instant coffee maker Power Root turning to sachet to improve affordability

By

Mini Me Insights

-

24th May 2015

Malaysian consumers are constantly complaining about the declining purchasing power following the implementation of the 6% GST in April 2015. As part of the efforts to ensure their products remain competitive, manufacturers are selling some popular items with extra volume, while keeping the prices unchanged.

Power Root has adopted a novel approach. The coffee company behind the Ah Huat and Alicafe brands has made its women-focused coffee products appear affordable by selling the 15 sachet Per’l Cafe Premium Gold Coffee Drink with Oligofructose & Collagen in a pack of three sachets. The price for a 15 sachet pack at Giant Supermarket is RM 15.57, while the pack of three sachet costs only RM 2.29. Of course the unit per pack is more expensive for the pack of three but it suits consumers who are on a limited budget and for those who want to try it out for the first time.

Perhaps it is time for manufacturers to turn to sachet to ensure their products are reaching out to consumers with different purchasing powers.

Nestle Milo Nutri G unexciting

By

Mini Me Insights

-

24th May 2015

In an earlier blog in March 2015, I mentioned about the potential for RTD drinkable oat in Malaysia. Nestle recently introduced a product similar to what I have in mind. The Milo Nutri G is a chocolate malt drink. What makes it different from other Milo in can or paper carton is the addition of four whole grains. Here is the official product description on the Nestle website:

“With a wholesome selection of 4 whole grains: oats, barley, brown rice and wheat, perfectly blended with PROTOMALT^®, milk and cocoa for a rich, delicious goodness that will fuel you towards all that you can be.”

The key point is Milo Nutri G has been added with four whole grains: oats, barley, brown rice and wheat. The 190ml drink is a pick-me-up energy-giving drink for people on the go or as a meal replacement.

Even though it claims to have four whole grains. Milo Nutri G tastes like a Milo albeit with a thicker taste, which is probably attributed to the four whole grains in hydrolyzed whole grain liquid form. Since it is in liquid, there is no need to chew and this makes the drink unexciting. This is one key drawback for Milo Nutri G.

The second drawback is the price. At RM 3.60 in 7-Eleven, Nutri G is considered expensive given the fact that one can purchase a 200ml Milo in paper carton from the same store for RM 2.20. As a consumer, I would rather purchase a Milo in paper carton and a sweet bun (RM 1) and the total cost is only RM 3.20. This Milo-bread combination is also more filling.

The expensive price and a rather similar taste to the ordinary Milo make Milo Nutri G a product that does not have a unique selling point. Yes, it claims to provide a wholesome energy but consumer cannot feel the existence of wholegrain in the drink since it is in liquid form. Adding something that can be chewed does make a whole lot of difference.

Mini Me Insights

Kantar OOH survey shows Chinese consumers drink beer at night, function drinks in the afternoon, soy milk during breakfast

Energy drink with tea and milk helps change negative perception about the category

New MamyPoko Mini S ensures newborns in Indonesia start wearing pants-type diapers at 1 month old

Matcha fuelling Indonesian F&B innovation

China RTD Cocktail: Rio charging ahead, 2014 revenue rose by over 4 times

Probiotic cultured milk: Nutrigen upsized to 300ml

Energy Drink: Sido Muncul needs to revitalise its languishing energy drink segment

New app for popular Anis Choc Moist Cake launched

Instant coffee maker Power Root turning to sachet to improve affordability

Nestle Milo Nutri G unexciting

HOT NEWS

7-Eleven Singapore offering new items on its Korean menu

MUST READ

CARSOME FIRST TO SELL USED CARS ON SHOPEE

Gardenia adds Hazelnut Chocolate and Pandan Gula Melaka QuickBites Gold cream...

Chitato sports new packaging to maximise flavour authenticity

Taokaenoi combines Jajangmyeon and Kimchi flavours into seaweed snack

EVEN MORE NEWS

Punthai showcases kraton in new lineup

Six flavours. Endless cravings — Hutt’s Slider has arrived in Thailand

Kaspersky Partners with Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia to Advance Malaysia’s...

POPULAR CATEGORY