Rebirth of an iconic brand

Sunny D was a soft drinks phenomenon of the late 1990’s, selling millions of cases and scooping a plethora of awards. The brand has now undergone a major repositioning and is set to make another major assault on the soft drinks category. Asian Trader caught up with Jean-Jacques Fredj, Managing Director, Sunny Delight Beverages Company, Western Europe, to find out more.AT: In the 1990’s, Sunny D was a massive brand in impulse – can it ever get back to former glories?

 AT: So just what have you done to reshape the brand?

JJF: It’s been a long evolution process. We realise that we are a global company but we have to act locally as different countries have different tastes and need states. The first thing that we did was to set up a Parents Advisory Group in 2005, basically consisting of mums with children who fitted the demographics of our target audience. This advisory panel has over the past four years driven development of New Sunny D through honest discussion about what parents want for their children. New Sunny D directly reflects what today’s parents really want to give their children, which is a healthier soft drink.

 AT: So what exactly did the Parents Advisory Group do?

JJF: They reinvented the brand, simple as that. Meeting with us four times a year they gave us valuable insights on what the wanted from the brand from the liquid right through to the packaging. We developed Sunny D with the UK market at the core. For example the Sunny D product in France is totally different from the UK. In France there is 15% juice content but this was not enough for UK mums. So Sunny D in the UK now has 70% juice, no added sugar, no artificial flavours and no artificial colours or preservatives. Therefore New Sunny D will replace the existing product and be available in Florida style, Caribbean and Apple & Blackcurrant flavours.

 AT: Sunny Delight did have a few challenges in the early 2000s. How can you reassure retailers that it will be a worthwhile brand for them to stock?

JJF: The old Sunny D still has great empathy with impulse retailers. Our research in January showed that 96% of retailers were aware of the brand and that 58% of convenience retailers were still stocking at least one SKU. This is remarkable considering that there has been very little activity over the past few years – all our investment has gone into reformulation and rebranding. To be honest, your retailers know what products sell and the fact that Sunny D was the soft drinks launch of the 90’s still sits dear with many retailers and therefore they still have it in their chiller. However we are now a much healthier society and this needs to be reflected in the new product. New Sunny D has the same great taste that kids love but has been developed by mums who want the best for their kids. We truly believe that new Sunny D will appeal to mums and kids alike.

AT: How much advertising support do you have planned?

JJF: We realise that your readers have to have confidence in the brand and so we are investing heavily in the relaunch package. We will be investing £4.5m in the relaunch from April through to September picking up the key summer holidays and back to school opportunities. This includes heavyweight sampling, as we believe that the taste itself will drive sales, but we will also be featuring heavily in women’s magazines and TV advertising. To support the trade we will be offering a £1 introductory price offer for the 1 litre SKU and point of sale material for impulse retailers.AT: If you had only 20 seconds to tell readers why they should stock Sunny D, what would you say?

JJF: Sunny D invented the chilled kids business in the UK and we have a new Sunny D range that kids love and parents can buy with confidence. Sunny D now ticks all the boxes, has a massive support package that will drive demand for Sunny D and consequently retailers should stock up soon to ensure they are well placed to maximise their sales and profits.