HEINEKEN UK is introducing two new variants under its booming Inch’s Cider brand – Inch’s Cloudy (ABV 4.0%) and the first dealcoholised cider in the UK market, Inch’s 0.0. The new SKUs will be available across grocery, wholesale and convenience channels.
Since launching in 2021, Inch’s now has the highest value share growth (4.6 per cent) of any cider in the UK and saw an overall sales increase of 47 per cent in 2024. The brand has added £16m to the category, which sits at £819m in grocery and 372m in convenience. By adding the new SKUs to their chillers, retailers can capitalise on the brand’s popularity and grow their sales during peak cider-drinking seasons, including Easter, bank holidays and the summer.
A category first: Inch’s 0.0
The launch of Inch’s 0.0 – the first de-alcoholised cider in the UK – is a major advancement for the brand, adding a credible, premium option to the booming no- and low-alcohol market.
The no-ABV alternative to Inch’s Medium Apple will allow retailers to create excitement around moderation and wellness. Available in 4x440ml multipack cans, Inch’s 0.0 is a first of its kind, adopting the same thirst-quenching flavour as the original, with a fresh apple aroma in the form of a lightly sparkling cider.
"This process of dealcoholisation has ensured that Inch’s 0.0 retains the flavour that our Medium Apple cider has become so well-known for, and which we see as essential characteristics in a perfect cider," said Amalka Woodall, Quality Technologist at Hereford Ciderie.
“Ciders that have alcohol removed sometimes miss their sensory characteristics which can make the product taste thin and watery, whereas we have worked hard to ensure that none of the depth and character of Inch’s Medium Apple is lost throughout the process. It’s been a challenge, but after two years of research, development and collaboration across multiple teams, we’re proud to introduce this UK-first for HEINEKEN UK, and marking an exciting step forward in offering more choice to cider lovers without compromising on taste."
A fresh take on apple cider: Inch’s Cloudy
Inch’s Cloudy is a lightly sparkling, naturally cloudy cider, crafted with juicy British apples to create a crisp, highly refreshing and light summer staple.
Available in 4x440ml and 10x440ml multipacks, the off-trade exclusive aims to appeal to younger cider drinkers looking for a naturally sweeter innovation and attract new consumers into the category.
"We know that cider lovers are looking for exciting, high-quality options that match their lifestyle and preferences," said Rachel Holms, Cider Brand Director at HEINEKEN UK. "With Inch’s Cloudy and Inch’s 0.0, we’re delivering innovation that not only tastes great but also challenges perceptions of what apple cider can be.
“We’re confident these new additions will drive further growth in the category while reinforcing Inch’s reputation as a fresh, modern cider brand – encouraging existing Inch’s fans to explore new tastes, and providing a credible option for those who are looking to moderate their alcohol consumption.”
HEINEKEN UK is supporting the launches with a nationwide ATL campaign – including TV, social media, digital and OOH activations, running from April to September. Its ‘The Really Good Cider’ campaign will highlight the brand’s sustainability ambitions while driving its really apple-y, really drinkable and really delicious taste, making it unmissable for UK shoppers this summer.
Retailers can find out more about how to maximise their cider category sales by visiting HEINEKEN UK’s Star Retailer platform here. The Star Retailer scheme is an acclaimed, industry-acknowledged loyalty scheme providing beer and cider category guidance tailored for convenience stores. The scheme encourages the development of a profitable and trending beer and cider range and offers rewards which increase based on their level of participation.
After 45 years of dedicated service to the Brookeborough community, independent retailer Benny McClave is retiring from his beloved Nisa store.
A fixture of the village in Northern Ireland, ‘Benny’s Shop’ has been more than just a convenience store - it has been a cornerstone of the community, a place where friendships were formed, and countless memories were made.
Originally from Roslea, Benny took over the shop in 1978 and spent a year renovating it before opening in 1979. Over the years, the store evolved through different fascias before joining Nisa, but its commitment to the local community never wavered.
Reflecting on his time behind the counter, Benny said: “It took me a long time to get to know people and their faces, and I suppose it took them a long time to get to know me too.”
Throughout his career, Benny has been much more than a retailer. He has been a steadfast supporter of local causes, regularly donating to schools and community projects.
One of his most cherished contributions was organising Santa’s annual visit to the store, a tradition that brought joy to generations of children.
With Santa arriving on a trailer to hand out gifts, and adults treated to a warm bowl of soup, it became a highlight of the festive season. Even after the disruption caused by COVID-19, Benny’s legacy endured, with the local playgroup taking on the responsibility of continuing the tradition.
Benny, who handed over the store on Friday, 7 March 2025, acknowledged that saying goodbye was not easy.
“Of course, I will miss it,” he said. “I’ll miss the company and the pleasure of serving the customers. It’s been a lifetime - 45 years - I’m bound to miss it.”
Nigel Maxwell, Regional Retail Manager in Northern Ireland for Nisa, paid tribute to Benny’s incredible contribution: “Benny is the definition of a true community retailer.
"For 45 years, he has served Brookeborough with dedication, kindness, and a wonderful sense of humour. His generosity and commitment to local causes have made a lasting impact, and he will be greatly missed by customers, colleagues, and the wider Nisa family.
"We wish him all the best in his well-earned retirement. Although Benny is stepping away from the shop, he and his family will remain in Brookeborough, a place he fondly refers to as home.
"As he hands over the reins, the entire community celebrates the remarkable career of a man who truly made a difference.
Employment Rights Bill has been passed at all its stages in the House of Commons and will now be considered in the House of Lords.
The landmark legislation seeks to end unfair employment practices and make work more secure.
The Employment Rights Bill will ban exploitative zero-hours contract and provide a right to a regular hours contract and make Statutory Sick Pay available from day one of absence and to all workers, regardless of income.
Day-one access to employment rights, including challenging an unfair dismissal, will be granted while the bill require employers to protect staff from customer harassment.
The bill also give trade unions the right to access workplaces, to recruit and organise workers, simplify the trade union recognition process to give workers a voice and introduce statutory rights for workplace equalities representatives.
The bill will limit the use of fire and rehire and create a fair work agency to put enforcement of employment rights into a single body.
The Bill will now proceed to the House of Lords.
Although it may be a few months before we have the final version, and much of the detail will in any event remain to be set out in regulations, employers may wish to start considering how the new rights will impact their business.
Commenting on the progression of the bill, Paddy Lillis – Usdaw general secretary says,“Usdaw has long campaigned for a new deal for workers and the Employment Rights Bill delivers on that.
"This landmark legislation will contribute to Labour’s mission to grow the economy, raise living standards across the country and create opportunities.
"The Bill also builds on the action already taken by Labour in Government to significantly increase minimum wage rates from April, with the Low Pay Commission for the first time required to take into account the cost of living and make progress towards ending rip-off youth rates.
“Labour won the last election on the promise of change and because the Conservatives failed to grow our economy, didn’t protect workers in the cost of living crisis and repeatedly attacked workers’ rights and trade unions.
"It is disappointing that Tory MPs were whipped into opposing the Employment Rights Bill, which only demonstrates that they’ve not listened to voters or learnt the lessons of 14 years of failure.
“It was no surprise that Reform leader Nigel Farage voted against the Bill. It is clear that Reform is no friend of working people. They continue to seek to divide workers, rather than supporting critical measures to improve their working lives.
"Recent polling shows that voters in every constituency overwhelmingly support key measures in the Bill. We will be asking Members of the House of Lords to give their full backing to this crucial legislation and ensure that it is delivered in full.”
“This historic legislation will help end years of low-paid, insecure employment, which failed our economy, businesses and working people. The Employment Rights Bill will help secure economic growth by improving productivity after years of stagnation.
"It will help stop rogue employers undercutting those who treat their staff properly, while giving workers security, respect and the decency of an income they can live on.”
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Domestos Bleach Foam is the fifth product to join the Power Foam range
Leading toilet and bleach brand Domestos has expanded its successful, multi-year innovation Power Foam range with the launch of Domestos Bleach Foam.
This is the first product in the range to contain bleach and targets those consumers looking for a superior bleach clean for the toilet and bathroom.
Domestos Bleach Foam combines the performance of Domestos bleach with Power Foam’s unique and convenient upside-down 360-degree spray trigger technology to kill germs in the hardest-to-reach places.
The new variant delivers effective stain removal and unrivalled whitening, leaving bathroom surfaces whiter and shinier for longer. The thick foam allows the product to cover a larger surface area, providing an even more efficient cleaning experience when compared to liquid bleach alternatives, where one Domestos Bleach Foam bottle lasts as long as two Domestos Thick Bleach bottles.
The launch is supported with a strong media investment, including a TV campaign from May, as well as a high shopper investment to drive visibility in store. In addition, Domestos will continue investing in retailer e-commerce channels to ensure the Power Foam range remains unmissable online.
“Domestos Power Foam is our most disruptive innovation in a decade and now we are expanding our range to meet the needs of consumers looking for a superior bleach clean. We know that our consumers find the upside-down bottle easy to use allowing them to reach those hard-to-reach places in the bathroom like under the toilet rim, under sinks and behind taps,” said Sophie Brooke-Jones, Unilever Home Care UK & Ireland home & hygiene lead and Home Care net revenue management lead.
“Domestos has the highest brand awareness in this segment and is the signpost brand for the toilet and bleach category. The Power Foam range has built on the success of the brand by bringing innovation to market that delivers a true point of difference when it comes to effective household cleaning and hygiene, helping retailers to drive incremental sales in this category and also attract new shoppers.”
The launch continues to build on of Domestos’ multi-year innovation support, which also sees the brand’s three core Power Foam variants - Arctic Fresh, Citrus Blast and Floral Burst – reformulated to offer an improved foam with more effective cleaning power. The portfolio is also receiving updated, premium packaging with enhanced messaging to better guide shoppers in selecting the right product for their needs.
Since its launch in 2022, the Domestos Power Foam range has played a huge part in growing the category, with 5.7 million consumers purchasing the range since launch.
Highland Spring Group, leading UK producer of natural source waters, said it successfully completed a competitive process to refinance its business.
The company has announced that the Bank of Scotland and Barclays, as its funding banks, will provide support as it progresses towards its stated ambition of £200 million sales by 2030.
In 2023, the business grew its sales in the year by 15.5 per cent to £130.6m and the Highland Spring brand consolidated its position as the UK’s number one plain water brand for a seventh successive year.
The company said the financial backing, which includes term and revolving credit facilities of £50m, will further accelerate the evolution of the brand and business to meet the growing demands of retail partners and consumers for healthy, high-quality, British products.
“The Bank of Scotland and Barclays funding provides a springboard for us to further invest in our business to boost sustainable growth. This package reflects their confidence in our strong operational and market performance, talented team, and iconic brand,” John Young, finance director, Highland Spring Group, said.
“We are delighted to work with both organisations as we continue to scale up and bring our exceptional products to even more retailers and customers across the UK.”
Building on the strength of the Highland Spring brand continues to be the main priority of the business, with an emphasis on expanding the business’s portfolio of products and packaging formats. A recent successful launch into the 400 million litres flavoured water category, with a new Highland Spring Flavoured Still Water range was supported by a £10m investment at the group’s main site in Blackford, Perthshire which will provide circa 25 per cent of extra capacity.
The group’s dedicated rail freight facility in Blackford, Perthshire transports 40 per cent of the water supplied from the main bottling plant by rail, removing 8,000 HGV movements from the roads, and saving over 3,000 tonnes of CO2 every year. This landmark project supports the businesses decarbonisation roadmap which aims to reduce emissions across their entire operations from source to shelf.
“Highland Spring Group was the first major water brand to introduce a 100% recycled (cap and label excluded) and recyclable bottle in the UK in 2019 and it is clear that its drive to innovate, grow the business, and prioritise environmental sustainability remain its top priorities,” Simon Sweeney, director at Bank of Scotland, said.
“We’re pleased to support the business with this financing package as it progresses in its next chapter of delivering its ambitious growth plans, including initiatives which reduce carbon emissions across its operations.”
Jamie Grant, head of Barclays corporate banking in Scotland, said: “We are committed to supporting lending via our £22bn Barclays Business Prosperity Fund and so are very pleased to have been chosen as a banking partner for Highland Spring. We look forward to supporting their exciting plans going forward.”
A persistent shoplifter targeting stores in Northumbria is now behind bars after stealing from a South Tyneside store just weeks after being handed a suspended sentence for the same offences.
As informed by Northumbria Police on Thursday (13), Michael Wright, 35, visited the Co-op store on Mortimer Road in South Shields last Thursday (6) and took laundry products without paying.
Less than a month earlier, Wright was given a 14-week suspended sentence by South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court for stealing chicken from the same Co-op store, and toiletries from the Sainsbury’s on Prince Edward Road.
After being quickly identified as responsible, Wright, of Lumley Avenue, South Shields, was arrested on Sunday (9) in connection with his latest spree of offending. The South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court on Monday (10) was sentenced him to 22 weeks imprisonment.
Following his court appearance, Constable Thubron, of South Shields Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT), said, “Wright is a repeat thief who has flagrantly disregarded his previous suspended sentence he was given only weeks prior.
“Wright has a vast history of this type of offending – and his brazen attitude towards the orders imposed on him by a court shows his lack of regard for anyone his criminality affects.
“Crime sprees such as these do nothing except leave businesses out of pocket, and I’m pleased he’s now behind bars to prevent him causing more disorder in the local community.
“As a Force, we will continue to tackle this type of criminality.”
Rapid rise in retail crime continues to impact stores across the country with multiple industry as well as government reports showing the similar record levels of theft, abuse and violence against shop workers.
Meanwhile in Essex, two prolific shoplifters who stole almost £20,000 worth of goods have been sentenced after being caught with stolen items in their car.
Thomas McDonagh, 21, of Warren Crescent, Headington, Oxford, was jailed for 16 months after admitting to eight counts of theft across Essex in December 2024 and January 2025. His accomplice, Martin Stokes, 23, of Aylesbury Street, Bletchley, Buckinghamshire, received a 16-week jail term, suspended for 18 months, and must complete 80 hours of unpaid work.
The duo were stopped by police on 19 January while driving on the A12. Officers had linked them to multiple thefts from Boots and Next in the Stane Park retail area in Stanway, Colchester.
Upon stopping their Ford Focus, police found the boot packed with stolen goods, swiftly connecting them to 11 separate shoplifting incidents across the county, including in Chelmer Village, Chelmsford.