Marketing moves 'milk' products

The revelation that milk could soon be sold in plastic bags could herald the demise of traditional doorstep bottles. But it's a brave marketing executive who thinks they have it all wrapped up.

Take Kellogg's Coco Pops. When the company changed the cereal's name to Choco Krispies, in line with its US market, it received a shock from British consumers. They didn't want their favourite breakfast cereal re-branded and sales plummeted.

"Kellogg's was forced to hold a nationwide poll over the name and eventually changed it back to what it was originally," said Charles Lury, of London design agency Springpoint. "Unlike Marathon - which successfully became Snickers - and Opal Fruits - which was re-launched as Starburst - the product couldn't move forward with the new name in Britain."

Changing the format or style of a well-loved household product can affect sales significantly. "For years, Fairy Liquid came in an iconic white bottle, but is now sold in a clear bottle with a waist," said Marketing magazine's Jennifer Hiscock. "Although Fairy remains the second biggest household brand, sales have recently dropped by nearly three per cent. It's open to question whether this can be attributed to the packaging change."

It's not only consumers who can force products back into their original packaging. "Doritos were originally sold in square crisp packets and then changed into a pyramid shape," said Ms Hiscock. "These packets were rejected by the supermarkets because they were difficult to stack on shelves. As a result they changed back again."

We could see a similar situation developing over the plastic bags being trialled by United Dairy Crest to replace milk bottles and Tetra Pak cartons. "Other companies tried to introduce milk in plastic bags in the early Seventies," said The Grocer magazine's Simon Mowbray. "The advantage is that the packaging is cheaper and there is less waste. But customers preferred their old-fashioned pinta and the experiment failed"

"It's a gamble whether new formats will take off and it's interesting to see that United Dairy Crest is being very careful," added Mr Mowbray. "The trials are only taking place for eight weeks at 12 stores in south-west England and in a limited area of doorstop deliveries.

"Co-op Dairies delivered milk in plastic bags in Bristol, Nuneaton and Nottingham for about four years from 1971," said a Co-op spokeswoman. "They thought it would be possible to post it through letter boxes rather than leave it on doorsteps. But cats and dogs got to it first and the concept proved unacceptable with customers and was dropped."

Recently, the traditional foil and paper wrapper on Kit Kat bars were replaced with flow-wrap plastic to match bars sold abroad. A spokeswoman for makers Nestlé Rowntree denied sales were affected. "We've had a few queries from consumers but most have just accepted it," she said. But Springpoint's Mr Lury said the move had prompted a debate in design and product packaging circles ahead of substantial feedback from stores and shoppers.

Some products do make the switch successfully. Washing powders made the change from boxes to pouches and soft drinks gushed from cans into small plastic bottles. But it's significant that the majority of soups are still sold in cans. If it ain't broke, why fix it?