SUGAR CONFECTIONERY: PERFETTI VAN MELLE PVM keen to flag sugar-free assortment


Non-sugar options now account for 26% of Perfetti Van Melle Global Travel Retail’s total sales. Manager GTR Susan de Vree tells Luke Barras-Hill that the firm continues to put effort into offering consumers a wide product range, from sugar-based to sugar-free options.


P


VM Global Travel Retail has recently undertaken an external SWOT analysis


among industry stakeholders. Tell TRBusiness why you took this decision? We are looking at opportunities in the travel retail business, how to grow and what the big challenges are for the future. The research that we are conducting includes all aspects of marketing: products, channels, consumers and promotions. The sugar debate is part of this. Also, retailers are often looking at their assortment and the options they offer to the consumer. Our wide range of sugar-free products are giving us opportunities, especially for the cash till point.


How did PVM perform in DF&TR in 2017 and what segments are you prioritising and investing in this year? We grew by 20% last year across the whole business. Focuses include border shops. Airports are still our core business and Europe is still our biggest market. We do really want to grow in Asia Pacific and at least have a bigger share [currently around 9% for PVM] compared to the other regions. If you look at the total travel retail


business, the category is growing around 6% but I think it is one of the hardest growers. We focus a lot on our chewing gum, which is sugar free. Chewing gum is already a big part of our business. Mentos gum is as big as classic candy. We don’t really communicate that our Mentos


gums and Mentos Now Mints are sugar free and I think that could be emphasised more on the packaging. One of the biggest challenges for us is compliance with ingredient labelling. In the future, we really hope we can have a digital version of the ingredients list [made available to consumers instore].


Sugar taxes have been implemented in some countries. What affect do you feel this will have on the confectionery business,


including the


export trade? Personally, I don’t think this will have a big impact. The only thing is that if you increase taxes, consumers might search for cheaper options, which means it affects the quality of the products. If you are a fan of Mentos for example, you will see a difference if you replace it with a private label but it might be that some consumers change to products with cheaper ingredients. You are dependent on the demand and supply of certain ingredients. Eventually, the sugar


JUNE 2018


debate should not just be about confectionery and chocolate. People don’t realise how much hidden sugar is included in orange juice or tomato ketchup for example. Elsewhere, there is change in the


European Union [The European Union moved to liberalise the sugar markets by ending quotas and limits on production last year - Ed] so let’s see what that impact will be.


What are your key business objectives looking ahead this year and into 2019? Our key business objectives are to continue with our core strategy. We changed this two years ago. We have


“Our wide range of sugar- free products are giving us opportunities, especially for the cash till point.”


Susan de Vree, Manager Global Travel Retail, Perfetti Van Melle


TRBUSINESS 69


Above: Mentos Dhow Boat display.


Below left: Mentos Connecting Tins.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78