MSc Marketing Management MKT 7010Frozen Foods for Fido
A dog is a mans best friend. Since the earliest times when man
first domesticated the wolf, the dog has been our constant
companion.
Dogs work for us, as guard dogs, as sheep dogs, as guides for
the blind; in mountainous districts they help sniff out injured
climbers, in airports they sniff out drug traffickers. At home they
warn of the approach of strangers, keep vermin down and often lick
us in affection.But have you ever stopped to think about how we
treat ourselves and how we treat our dogs? We always put ourselves
first; when we are thirsty we get ourselves a drink: a dog cant do
that; it relies on us to provide water all the time so that when it
is thirsty it can drink. And when we are hungry we eat ; a dog
needs us to provide it with a balanced diet for a long life, health
and fitness. There is nothing worse than a fat, unhealthy dog.
Unhealthy dogs smell, they cant do their job as either a pet or a
working dog. And when we have done something of which we are proud,
we treat ourselves: a little present, a special food and often an
ice cream.
Sometimes we share it with our dog: we give him little titbits
of our treats to ourselves. But a dog cant treat itself. And anyway
a dogs system cant digest all the foods that we as humans use as
treats. Chocolate, for example. We all love chocolate and often buy
it for ourselves as a treat, a little reward. But for a dog it is
poisonous, so we must not share our chocolate treat with our dog.
And cream, while it is sweet and dogs like the sweet taste of
cream, it can make it very ill. So in summer when we are hot and
stop to buy an ice cream, we cant buy our canine chum one. It will
not be good for his health. Dogs are lactose intolerant, so they
cannot digest dairy products: cheese, cream, and milk and their
processed products are all bad for dogs in anything but the
smallest quantities.
Looking to the human world provides major indications as to
where the next developments in the petcare market might be. There
may be a market for a doggie ice cream. Pets are less likely to be
owned by over-65s, although cats and dogs are still the most
popular pets. Ownership of fish and small animals drops off at an
earlier age (55+). Women are key in terms of interest and
purchasing doggie treats, partly aligned to the fact that pet
ownership is strongly associated with families. Women are more
likely to own dogs, cats and small animals. The humanisation of
pets is therefore something that has been mostly driven by women,
perhaps where the nurturing and caring instinct is greatest.
Companionship is also a more important factor among women,
especially older women and thus they humanise their animals more
than men do.
Diagram 1 Number of types of pet owned, August 2008Base: 1,013
adults aged 15+ who own a pet
Source: BMRB/Mintel
Made of lactose free, natural and organic ingredients, a new ice
cream which tastes like real ice cream to people and can be shared
with their canine companion has been developed by some students at
Birmingham City University. To pilot this ice cream 3 flavours have
been developed. They are: Burglars Ankle, Peter Rabbit (named after
the famous Beatrix Potter childrens character) and Postmans Leg.
The students suggested that Burglars Ankle should be marketed in
the country areas for working dogs; Peter Rabbit as a childrens pet
flavour and Postmans Leg for pet lap dogs. To humans, these taste
like vanilla, strawberry and caramel flavourings. Under the brand
name Frozen Foods for Fido, the pilot is being run in conjunction
with ++++ ice cream parlour in the Bullring, and will be limited to
a small area around the centre of Birmingham where all flavours
will be available.
Table 1. Pet ownership, 2005 and 200820052008
Base: adults aged 15+1,4902,088
%%
Dog/s2323
Cat/s2021
Fish1011
Small animal (eg rabbit, hamster)78
Bird/s54
Other23
Do not have any pets5251
Table 2 Household composition in Great Britain,
1979-20011979198919962001*% point change
%%%%1979-2001
One person23252731+8
Two+ unrelated adults3333-
Married/cohabiting couple with dependent children31262522-9
Married/cohabiting couple with non-dependent children
only7966-1
Childless married couple27272829+2
Lone parent with dependent children4577+3
Lone parent with non-dependent children only4432-2
Two or more families1111-
Total100100100100-
* weighted dataSource: General Household Survey/Mintel
Table 3 Most important place for eating snack products, ice
cream and ice lollies, by demographic sub-group, 2002Ice lolliesIce
cream bars
HomeSchool/On the move/HomeSchool/On the move/
college/workoutsidecollege/workoutside
%%%%%%
All6553555425
Boys6143352324
Girls6963758525
7-87523658222
9-107524064328
11-126853357424
13-146073351525
15-164473344625
ABC16343555424
C2DE6853552426
Base: 4,827 children aged 7-16, Taken from the TGI Youth
survey
Table 4. Trends in consumption of food and drink that can stain
teeth or is high in sugar content, 2006-102006**2007200820092010%
point change
%%%%%2006-10
Drinks:
Any tea86878381na-5*
Any coffee79787876na-3*
Colas5958585554-5
Fizzy soft drinks (excluding colas/mixers)5658575757+1
Red wine (18+)4040393834-6
Food:
Sweets (including sweets for children)^6668666565-1
Indian takeaway or ready meal4140414242+1
Smoking:
Any filtered cigarette smokers (18+)2220211918-4
New Information; only to be released at the examination:The
development of this ice cream has been recorded in a recent copy of
The Times. Whilst not making a joke of the concept, the article did
suggest that this was a foolish development and a waste of time
which students could usefully spend doing more useful things for
their studies. The pilot was mentioned. It appears as if it has
been successful in this restricted area.
As a friend of one of the ice cream developers, you have been
asked to help prepare a report :
Q1. What recommendations will you make to your friend about the
product and how it should be marketed?10 marksQ2.Segment the market
for Frozen Foods for Fido , and, using and explaining a model,
demonstrate which segment or segments you should target.30 marksQ3.
What Channels of Distribution are you going to recommend? Give your
reasons.25 marksQ4. How will you promote the product? Give explicit
examples.25 marksQ5. What price will you recommend to your
friends?10 marksPage 1
