Louise Marsland’s (@Louise_Marsland) pick of new product, packaging and design launches.
The world’s most famous cookie gets a new pack size; Pakco aims to turn you into a master curry chef; designer commuter shelters provide new brand opps; and a new wine cola drink we’re not quite sure of…
Cookie with a twist
The launch of a new pack size for Oreo cookies was an opportunity for a sampling campaign to allow consumers to experience Oreo’s “twist, lick, dunk” characteristics.
Oreos have long been associated with being dunked in milk to create a unique flavour combination and this is what promoters encouraged consumers to do in supermarkets in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, the Western Cape and North West Province. The core aim of the campaign orchestrated by Provantage, was to drive awareness of the new pack sizes: the 44g snack packs in original and chocolate crème; and the 176g family pack.
Another element of the campaign was a dunk and win competition, where consumers had to ‘dunk’ a foam Frisbee in the shape of an Oreo cookie on a game board. Prizes ranged from branded Oreo lunchboxes to branded tumblers.The campaign ran over two months.
Spice up your cooking
Fountainhead Design recently assisted Pakco in repositioning their Curry Made Easy range as an easy to use, pre-made sauce that will bring out the “curry expert in all of us”.
The humorous packaging tone was combined with new photography to ensure the product “jumps off the shelf”. The launch was accompanied by a trade presenter which made use of custom illustration and fun graphics.
New ‘heat icons’ enable customers to choose their degree of curry spice with the ‘Tame but not lame’ mild variant, ‘Spicy but nice’ medium and ‘On the spot’ hot.
Billing themselves as the curry masters since 1948, Pakco want to bring out the internal Master Chef in all of us by showing us how to produce authentic Indian cuisine with a dash of spice.
Designer shelters
Stylish new commuter shelters with advertising incorporated into the shelter design have been launched in Alexandra in Gauteng by Public Transport Media, a JV between Provantage and the Taxi Operating Investment Companies.
They will be rolled out across the Johannesburg municipal transport hub (from Midrand to Ennerdale and Soweto) in spots where additional shelters are needed, before eventually replacing all the current shelters too. They provide an attractive new design to the urban landscape, complete with advertising opportunities for brands.
Advertisers have the opportunity to provide a continuous design on the larger shelter, and on the slimline version, there is the addition of an upright alongside the shelter which allows for additional space for advertising.
Public Transport Media have the branding rights for the next 12 years.
The shelters were manufactured in South Africa and designed by Brian Steinhobel. The whole structure is made from recyclable material and some will be illuminated using solar powered LED lighting technology.
Steinhobel explains that they had to cater for SA conditions and protect people from the elements. “It is cool in there and cool to sit in.”
Inspiration came from the curves of the acacia tree and the protective space of a cave.
“Good design doesn’t happen by mistake. A thousand things have to come together.The most important word in a design like this is ‘appropriate’.
Red, red wine… and coke?!
[This story contains a health warning to readers resident in the Cape winelands. Fit of snobbism highly likely. – ED] Stellen Fine Wines has launched a new sparkling red wine product with cola added, called Colathemba.
They claim to be giving South Africans “a refresher they really want”.
We asked why anyone would want to add coke to red wine?
But apparently this combination is “very popular” in Europe and South America and was originally brought to Africa by the Portuguese and is a favourite mix enjoyed by “many South Africans”, including on student campuses.
While we have yet to meet anyone who would do that to wine – they have listed in Pick ‘n Pay and initial tastings have apparently gone well, with South Africans finding it a refreshing cold drink, says Rudolph du Toit, the company’s marketing and sales manager.
“As a young innovative company, Stellen Fine Wines is leading by example with new, stylish and trend-setting drinks. We jumped at the opportunity to create a sun-kissed cooler with an African twist for the local market. Colathemba is a cooler with a strong South African identity. Themba is the isiZulu word for trust.”
The 8% cooler is marketed in PET bottles with a six-month shelf life and is available in 1litre as well as 1.5 litre bottles, retailing at R14.65 and R20.65 per bottle respectively.
– Shelf Life by Louise Marsland is a weekly column on MarkLives. Tweet new product, packaging and design launches to @louise_marsland or email her at louise.marsland at gmail.com.
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Louise Marsland has written about the FMCG, media, marketing and advertising industry for 18 years of her 25 year media career as a former Editor of magazines AdVantage, Marketing Mix and Progressive Retailing; as well as websites Bizcommunity.com and FMCGFiles. She currently edits the weekly Wednesday Media & Marketing Page for The New Age newspaper; and is the co-founder and Publishing Editor of SA’s newly launched industry trendwatching portal, TREND. at www.trendlives.info, in partnership with MarkLives.com.
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