Aspects of convenience

As life is short, the quick solutions offered by convenience products represent added value. I had some questions for Zoltán Fekete, Category Operations Ma nager of Unilever about their convenience products. – How would you define the role of the convenience category? – According to the popular definition, these are products purchased frequently, on a routine basis, and often impulsively. However, a more precise definition is to say that convenience products are those which save us time and effort. For example, our Knorr products are practically all convenience products. – What are the POP peculiarities of convenience products? – We regard convenience categories as being impulsive, which means that placement is more important than price. Regarding pricing, relative price is the priority for us. – Are there major differences between distribution channels regarding the convenience category? – The „convenience” channel can be important for some products, like Knorr. – Are there any peculiarities to keep in mind regarding promotions? – There are three major differences in promotional activities, compared to routine categories. Promotional displays are measurably more effective, often producing a two or even threefold increase in sales. The size of price discounts is less important than in routine categories and we focus on getting customers to buy a larger quantity per purchase. –Do private labels play a significant role? – As quality is a priority for customers of convenience products, private labels do not represent a major challenge for leading brands. – To what degree are these products seasonal? – Knorr convenience products are not really seasonal, but we expect the vegetable variants of Knorr Rafinéria to be one of the favourites of this summer season.