Yoplait guide identifies yoghurt sales opportunity for c-stores

Yoplait launched From Chiller to Checkout: Winning in Yoghurt and Dairy Drinks with Yoplait on 23 September. The report is intended to help convenience retailers use existing refrigerated space more effectively by responding to shopper occasions and the parts of the category expanding fastest.

Yoghurt is bought by 96% of UK households, according to the report. Yoplait said the category therefore provides an opportunity to increase spending in stores through a fixture that customers already visit regularly. Its recommendations focus on improving the selection and presentation of products rather than necessarily allocating more room to them.

Grant Yates, Yoplait’s UK sales director, said chilled products could be overlooked by convenience retailers despite the opportunity in yoghurt. He said the product was often treated as a breakfast item, although purchases take place across the day. In his view, retailers can improve performance by arranging products around the fastest-growing segments and the occasions for which shoppers buy them.

The report lists health, value and convenience as the three trends supporting category growth. Plain, natural and Greek yoghurt recorded annual growth of 22.2%, while food-to-go and meal-deal occasions are creating opportunities for portable dairy drinks such as Yop.

Yoplait’s recommended range includes children’s products, functional items, dairy drinks and treats. It advises grouping products by intended use, including breakfast, lunchbox purchases, eating while travelling and products bought for later. The company also recommends additional placements and clear point-of-sale materials in food-to-go areas and heavily used chilled locations.

Yates said the guide was designed to provide practical, evidence-based advice that retailers could implement easily. It covers Yoplait brands including Petits Filous, Wildlife Choobs, Yop, Frubes and Skyr.