Heinz unconventionally tastier: How Kraft Heinz led category growth with an unconventional twist

Kraft Heinz clinched the Food & Beverage category title at the Middle East International Business Awards 2021.

Despite Kraft Heinz being a household name and having a high penetration rate in the Middle East market, the brand still faces a challenge in increasing frequency in usage.

Studies have shown that its tomato ketchup and mayo have low host dish penetration, approximately 5% and 4%, respectively. These condiments are not usually associated with local food, which results in low per capita consumption at 0.3 kgs per year. Heinz had to challenge the existing norms that Heinz was only used for Western dishes, and allow buyers to realise that it can also be used to enrich the taste of local host dishes.

A creative campaign was then crafted under the lines “Heinz unconventionally tastier!” with a single message: Heinz makes your conventional food unconventionally tastier. This is portrayed throughout carefully paired dish to sauce combinations throughout the touch points. For a span of 12 months, work was rolled out in top markets and the campaign was reflected in a 360 campaign, by promoting the brand across media platforms.

Kraft Heinz further went ahead in the business challenge of category growth, as it introduced new sauce flavours that contributed to 23% and 15% growth in the category in KSA and UAE, respectively.

“These introductions were mainly strategised to capitalise on the stay at home period during peak of COVID-19 where insights indicated people are more inclined to try new flavours and experiment food at home given the restrictions in restaurants,” the company said. 

Overall, Heinz realised significant growth in sales in top markets with KSA at 30% growth and UAE at 38% growth as a result of the combined effects of campaign and innovations. Heinz will continue to drive the category growth agenda with more flavours coming.

With its desire to increase user consumption and further penetrate households, Kraft Heinz has been persistent in improving its product line and has incorporated local tastes in its offerings. This has made them stand out to win the Food & Beverage category at the Asian Business Review’s Middle East International Business Awards 2021.