The past year has been a big one for CPG marketers. As consumers hunkered down, category sales exploded, as did new distribution and sales channels, particularly online shopping and delivery. At the same time, long-developing functional food trends, particularly natural immunity-boosting additives, spiked. According to IRI, 38% of consumers want products that contain probiotics to help with digestion. The number is higher among Millennials, according to the firm.
In addition to its expected launch of a vegan product in 2021, Bel Brands USA launched Babybel Plus+, a line extension of its popular wax-covered snack cheese with added probiotics and vitamins. The two new products, Babybel Plus+ Pro-Biotic and BabybelPlus+ Vitamins, will begin appearing in stores in February, with full distribution expected in April.
The products are a direct response to consumers’ changing snack habits, says Ridhi Barber, senior brand manager for Babybel. “We’re thrilled to be the first in the category to deliver on this growing consumer interest in functional foods,” Barber says. “With these two offerings, we’re delivering on rising consumer trends with the cheesy, delicious taste consumers expect from Babybel.”
Brand Innovators caught up with Barber to discuss the new product, how the pandemic has affected the company’s business, and how the new product fits into the brand’s recently launched “Join for Goodness” marketing campaigns.
How is the launch of Babybel Plus+ meeting consumers’ needs?
We are always working on products to meet evolving consumer needs. In the past few years, we’ve seen interest in products with probiotics and vitamins really explode. Fifty-seven percent of consumers are looking for products with added vitamins, and the number is even higher for products with probiotics. That trend has been on the rise, but we’ve really seen it explode during the pandemic. We think this is a great time to bring Babybel Probiotics to life, and we’re really excited to launch this as the first in the category to deliver on this need.
We’re launching Babybel Plus with two different offerings, vitamin and probiotic. The probiotic product is made with live and active cultures that evidence suggests will boost a person’s natural immunities, while the vitamin line has added Vitamins A and B12, which are known to support eye health and metabolism.
How did the pandemic accelerate the growing functional food trend?
We’re always working on and looking at a number of different products from an innovation standpoint. Babybel Plus+ was in the works for a while, and this felt like the right time to bring it to life. Taste is obviously king, and convenience is a huge driver for us. But consumers are always looking for more benefits and functionality from the foods they eat. We wanted to make sure we were capitalizing on the explosion we are seeing from a post-pandemic standpoint but also doing it in a way that’s true to Babybel.
Who is the target market for this product?
Kids are a huge part of our product base, and that remains with Babybel Plus+. Almost one in two parents say immunity is the reason they would give their kids products with vitamins, according to our research. In addition, we’re targeting Millennials because, in general, they seem to have a big interest in functional foods. But this product is great for anyone that’s just looking for a functional dairy snack that’s still tasty and convenient. It really fits a wide range of consumers in terms of who would be the target.
How are you going to reach consumers and inform them of this new product? Has the pandemic affected any of your launch marketing plans?
We are definitely approaching it in a holistic fashion. We have a very on-trend product/ We want to make sure consumers are aware of it, and we want to get our consumers to try it. We will include samplings and coupons, and we are working on a larger campaign that’s going to roll out in the April time frame to support the product when it has reached more mature distribution.
As consumer trends have evolved during the pandemic, we want to be sure we’re showing up in the right places. We want to be wherever our customers are looking for us, and that definitely includes e-commerce platforms. We’re making sure we’re including digital preshop tactics to make sure we’re convenient and available as consumers work through these platforms.
How does this fit in the babybel portfolio and how can the brand marketing absorb this?
Our overall brand positioning is really around inspiring consumers to “Join the Goodness” of Babybel. This product is really an extension of that campaign. It’s really staying to what the brand is. We’re also making sure from a taste and experience standpoint that Babybel Plus+ fits within what our brand is about. It has that cheesy delicious taste and the iconic red wax that gives something that is both playful and approachable for adults and kids alike. We think it fits really well in terms of what we stand for and what we’re delivering.
