Innovate, don’t stagnate says Unibic
While a cup of tea and a biscuit has long been favoured by Aussies, most don’t realize they have been conditioned into buying the same types of biscuits for decades, according to Victorian biscuit manufacturer Unibic.Michael Quinn, Managing Director of Unibic says, “The biscuit industry is notoriously lazy, not only in Australia but around the world. Huge trademarks rest on their laurels and dominate the market for decades with a single iconic brand, never bothering to invest in innovation to give consumers any variety or choice.”
That’s the way the cookie crumbles…
A new survey1 of 1205 people aged between 18 and 64 conducted by Newspoll on behalf of Unibic highlights how Australian consumers have been conditioned into accepting this lack of innovation:
* Nearly a third (29%) of Australian consumers buy the same one to three types of biscuit on autopilot every time they shop and never experiment beyond that
* A mere 7% have four or more regular favourite types of biscuit
However the survey identifies that whilst most of us are buying our biscuits on autopilot, there is still an underlying demand for variety and innovation:
* While they have their regular favourites, 35% still hunt for new types of biscuit every time they shop
* Nearly a fifth (18%) have no loyalty to regular favourites, and only make a decision after browsing the supermarkets full selection
Quinn continues, “Savvy consumers don’t accept such a lack of innovation and variety when shopping for their family’s lunch or dinner. And the confectionary industry is constantly innovating with new chocolate bars, snacks and lollies to meet consumer demands. The biscuit industry is archaic by comparison.”
