Page 38 - RetailWorld-May2021-Tobacco-Updated

HOT BEVERAGES FROM PAGE 35 30 years”: handpicked and made in the traditional, artisanal way. The product is “packed in Sri Lanka – right where it’s grown – within days of harvesting, to preserve great taste, freshness and natural antioxidant goodness”, he adds. “Our NPD offering will focus on the health and wellness of consumers with our commitment to sustainability through our packaging and our Conservation Foundation.” ‘Elevated’ tea experiences Madame Flavour is said to be dedicated to supplying the highest quality tea experiences since emerging in 2008. These experiences, according to Ms Noyes, are “elevated with hand- plucked leaf teas from named estates, interesting locally developed flavour twists, biodegradable translucent pyramids and a series of in-pack elements that surprise and delight tea lovers, including mindful colouring and, most recently, an origami series”. “These value-add elements translate to a premium offer, and strong loyalty,” she said, “bringing premium customers and growing category average price per bag.” In recent times, Madame Flavour has noticed more conversations around Australian natives. With this in mind, the brand has included natives in several of its blends, such as lemon myrtle in Grey de Luxe. Madame Flavour has also been approached more often to collaborate or to create new tea combinations, including cocktails and a whisky barrel- matured small-batch leaf tea. “We highlight these \\\\\\\[innovations\\\\\\\] through social media to showcase the versatile nature of the category, encouraging uptake by younger consumers,” Ms Noyes said. Discussing the impacts of Covid-19, Ms Noyes says intermittent out of stocks as a result of the increased demand have continued into 2021, with several imported brands suffering raw sourcing challenges and/or being impacted by port congestion and shipping delays. “At Madame Flavour, we’ve managed to minimise the impact on our customers by extending order lead times and air freighting where necessary,” she said. “It has certainly been a challenging time for executing innovation, with our team running new ingredient taste tests and new packaging printing via Zoom.” In addition, Ms Noyes noted: “Greater remote working has resulted in more tea purchased from supermarkets for at-home consumption, at the expense of foodservice tea sales, both corporate and cafe It’s been a great opportunity for trial of new blends as consumers have experimented to bring variety to their otherwise constrained lifestyles. “The growth of specialty tea in supermarkets is replicating trends we’re seeing in foodservice. As a supplier to hotels, airlines, cafes and hotels, this gives Madame Flavour great oversight of trends to come.” When it comes to maximising category sales, Ms Noyes advises retailers that it’s a “delicate balance” of understanding your store’s demographic, staying close to what’s new and working in the market, keeping premium lines at eye level to encourage trial and purchase, and constantly reviewing to reduce SKU duplication. “Tea is notorious for the sheer number of SKUs, with consumers’ number one complaint being the difficulty in finding \\\\\\\[their\\\\\\\] favourite,” she said. “The other issue can be a lopsided category not catering sufficiently to core segments.” 36 RETAIL WORLD MAY, 2021