Spicy Walkers Crisps: New Product Launching Report

Executive Summary

Inspired by the increased customers’ interest in the cultures of Asian and Latin American countries, Walkers, the leading manufacturer of snack foods in the United Kingdom, currently launches new ‘Luxury’ spicy Walkers Crisps. The main feature of the new product is the uniqueness of the taste. These crisps differ from the other Walkers products in a variety of spicy tastes proposed. The customer receives the opportunity to taste the variety of flavours from the world and enjoy the healthy potato and non-potato snacks produced from the high-quality products.

New spicy Walkers Crisps can be discussed as the perfect choice for those persons who prefer tasting the high-quality products with the unique flavours which can be considered as non-harmful to their health. The company with the impressive reputation makes the emphasis on using only clear and rather unique spicy flavours. Furthermore, the levels of salt and fat containing in the proposed new spicy crisps are reduced significantly in order to provide the consumers with the opportunity to enjoy ‘luxury’ Walkers Crisps without affecting their health negatively.

Background

Walkers is the company with a long history. Today, Walkers can be discussed as one of the largest snack food producers in the United Kingdom. The company was founded in 1948 by Henry Walker, and now the company is the leader in the market of crisps and other snack foods (Walkers Crisps 2014). Walkers specializes in proposing the high-quality potato and non-potato snacks which attract the public with the variety of tastes and flavours (Sensations: Walkers 2014).

The launch of every new product proposed by Walkers can be discussed as the sensation within the market because of the focus on the remarkable tastes, unexpected variations, high quality, and available prices (Cooper 2010, p. 3; Sensations: Walkers 2014). The launch of new ‘Luxury’ spicy Walkers Crisps is one more step to creating the line of the most popular flavours based on the world traditions while comparing to the products presented in the UK market.

Market Research

To understand the positive effect of launching the new product by Walkers, it is necessary to research the influential market tendencies. While discussing the current tendencies associated with the UK market of snack foods, it is possible to note that the launch of new spicy Walkers Crisps is the effective strategy to respond to the public’s demands in new tastes and impressions. During the period of 2010-2013, the sales in the market of snack foods increased in 14% in the United Kingdom (Sensations: Walkers 2014; Walkers Crisps 2014). However, the customers note the necessity of expanding the market offer (Chitale, & Gupta 2007, p. 54; Walkers Crisps 2014).

The focus on addressing the customers’ expectations can result for the company in achieving 7% share of the market while focusing on the category of potato spicy crisps (Walkers Crisps 2014). As a result, it is important to find the balance between following the traditional approach to manufacturing the high-quality products and the necessity to propose new tastes and opportunities for customers.

Findings: Product Launch

The integrated campaign associated with launching new ‘Luxury’ spicy Walkers Crisps provides the customer with the opportunity to learn more about the product, company, and expected benefits (Walkers Crisps Range 2014). The position of the company’s leaders associated with launching high-quality unique products is reflected in the words of Neil Campbell, Walkers General Manager, who states that “over the years people’s needs have changed and so have we. Nowadays our customers are looking for snacks that do not just taste great but are also better for them” (‘£20 million relaunch for Walkers Crisps’ 2006, p. 4). The current complex launching campaign is based on the massive TV campaign and the use of advertisements in press (Walkers Crisps 2014).

While comparing Walkers Crisps with the competitors in the market, it is important to note that Walkers Crisps contain 30% less fat (Edgecliffe-Johnson 2006, p. 3; Walkers Crisps Range 2014). Furthermore, the company uses only the high-quality potatoes. Thus, the products proposed by Walkers are not only tasty and really spicy but also healthy (‘Facts and figures: Walkers Crisps’ 2005, p. 31).

It is important to focus on new ‘Luxury’ spicy Walkers Crisps’ features:

1. New spicy flavours are inspired by the traditions of Eastern, Asian, and Latin American countries (Walkers Crisps 2014).
2. New spicy Walkers Crisps are characterised by the improved flavour and crunch.
3. New spicy Walkers Crisps are cooked in Sunseed™ oil which is more appropriate for cooking because of containing mono-unsaturates (Walkers Crisps 2014).
4. New spicy Walkers Crisps are extremely spicy, but the level of salt used in the products in reduced.
5. New spicy Walkers Crisps are characterised by the high nutritional value.
6. New spicy Walkers Crisps offer a third of the daily wholegrain (‘£20 million relaunch for Walkers Crisps’ 2006, p. 4).
7. There are no artificial colours and preservatives in these high-quality snacks.
8. The Walkers Crisps are available in single 90g packs, 126g packs, 145g packs, 165g packs, and 175g packs (‘Get a taste of the Mediterranean with Walkers’ 2004, p. 10; Rigby 2010, p. 3).

To find the additional information about new spicy Walkers Crisps, it is helpful to visit the company’s website where there is the latest information on the launching products and the facts about all the details associated with the launching campaigns (Walkers Crisps Range 2014).

Discussion

The campaign which is developed to launch new ‘Luxury’ spicy Walkers Crisps concentrates on proposing new spicy flavours based on the traditions and tastes typical for the Eastern, Asian, and Latin American countries. Today, the company proposes the variety of spicy tastes which are the Thai sweet chilli, Mexican chipotle, Indian spices, and other ones. However, the launch of ‘Luxury’ new spicy Walkers Crisps is the new approach to addressing the variety of the public’s tastes because of proposing more flavours which can be chosen not only by the brand’s fans but also by the persons who are not oriented in the market of snack foods (Lodato 2008, p. 112; ‘Walkers invests millions to meet demand for crisps’ 2009, p. 6). From this point, new spicy Walkers Crisps can be discussed as the immediate response to the consumers’ needs.

Walkers also chooses to follow the effective strategy of focusing on the high quality and remarkable tastes. New spicy products from the ‘Luxury’ series which are proposed by Walkers are launched to address the tastes of the lovers of snacks because Walkers offer the variety of spicy tastes and the healthy approach to snacking (‘Promotion works Walkers Crisps’ 2004, p. 7). New ‘Luxury’ spicy Walkers Crisps can be discussed as the example of the snacks appropriate for persons following the healthy lifestyle because these products are characterised by the high nutritional value, these new spicy crisps offer a third of the daily wholegrain, and there are no artificial colours and preservatives in these high-quality snacks (‘£20 million relaunch for Walkers Crisps’ 2006, p. 4).

With the focus on the innovative healthier recipe and unique spicy flavours, new Walkers Crisps known as ‘Luxury’ because of their quality can be discussed more attractive for the consumers, and followers of the brand (‘Get a taste of the Mediterranean with Walkers’ 2004, p. 10; Mehra 2009, p. 98). Furthermore, this new category of snack food can be discussed as even irresistible for the persons interested in consuming Walkers Crisps.

Conclusion

Walkers can be discussed as the leader in the market of the United Kingdom while focusing on the actively developed industry of snacks. The progress of the company is closely associated with constant changes in the market and industry because more and more innovations and propositions are necessary to attract the customers’ attention. In this case, the leading position of Walkers depends on the fact that the company leaders are inclined to reflect the trends and address the demands.

To respond to the customers’ increased demands, Walkers chose to stimulate the production of new ‘Luxury’ spicy Walkers Crisps which can satisfy the customers’ needs at the current stage of the market development. Walkers propose the most impressive range of tastes related to snacks in the UK market. There are also many healthy snacks proposed by the manufacturer, and new spicy Walkers Crisps belong to this category. As a result, more customers are expected to pay attention to the new products proposed by Walkers.

Reference List

‘£20 million relaunch for Walkers Crisps’ 2006, Vending International, vol. 40, no. 3, p. 4. Web.

Chitale, A & Gupta, R 2007, Product design and manufacturing, PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd., Delhi. Web.

Cooper, W 2010, ‘Walkers begins search for the top crisp flavour from around the world’, New Media Age, p. 3. Web.

Edgecliffe-Johnson, A 2006, ‘Walkers to use own nutrition labels on new crisps’, Financial Times, p. 3. Web.

‘Facts and figures: Walkers Crisps’ 2005, Marketing Week, p. 31. Web.

‘Get a taste of the Mediterranean with Walkers’ 2004, Vending International, vol. 38, no. 6, p. 10. Web.

Lodato, M 2008, Management of new product launches and other marketing projects, AuthorHouse, London. Web.

Mehra, A 2009, Advertising management: media approach for market research, Global India Publications, Delhi. Web.

‘Promotion works Walkers Crisps’ 2004, Promotions & Incentives, p. 7. Web.

Rigby, E 2010, ‘Crunch time for Walkers ‘grab bag’ of crisps’, Financial Times, p. 3. Web.

Sensations: Walkers 2014, ‘Walkers Biggest ever crisp’ 2012, Campaign, p. 8. Web.

Walkers Crisps 2014. Web.

Walkers Crisps Range 2014. Web.

‘Walkers invests millions to meet demand for crisps’ 2009, Food Manufacture, vol. 84, no. 9, p. 6. Web.