Iconic Australian dairy brand Bulla celebrated its centenary two years ago, a milestone which marked more than a significant birthday – since then there’s been a notable lift in the brand’s profile and market activity.
Bulla Dairy Foods, the Australian family-owned company behind the brand has, under the leadership of CEO Reg Weine, raised its game considerably in the dairy sector, implementing an innovation-led marketing strategy that has played out in a steady stream of new product launches and the recent $8 million investment in a dedicated innovation centre.
The new facility – designed as a centre for excellence in dairy to encourage collaborative research with leading institutions – is currently under construction at Bulla Dairy Foods’ Colac manufacturing site (see F&DB, March 2012) and Weine has confirmed that the project is ahead of schedule, with completion expected before the end of this year. The facility will include R&D, technical, sensory and pilot plant capability, all of which will increase the company’s speed to market significantly for new products.
Bulla’s competitors – multinationals – have access to a vast pipeline of new products from overseas markets. What Bulla is looking to create is a new product development (NPD) funnel that will deliver new and novel products to market. This move is pegged to “supercharge” Bulla’s innovation pipeline, for both retail and food service products.
“If you look across the retail dairy categories, almost all incremental category growth is coming from NPD; in cream, new products account for 60 per cent of growth; in yoghurt it’s 80 per cent of growth and in ice cream it’s 100 per cent of category growth,” says Weine.
The company has also shored up its human resources, strengthening the marketing team in recent months with professionals experienced in building teams and brands and with a deep understanding of brand categories, channels and, most importantly, consumers.
Helen Reece is one of the new appointees. She joined the executive team earlier this year (see F&DB, June 2012) as general manager marketing and innovation. Reece has a diverse background in marketing across the dairy and FMCG sectors. She moved to Bulla after nine years at competitor Lion Dairy & Drinks (formerly National Foods) where she managed the Vitasoy brand for five years and then took up the role of category marketing director for the fresh dairy brands of Yoplait, Dairy Farmers, Pura, Farmers Union and Fruche.
Apart from the obvious advantage of her experience in marketing these power brands, it’s Reece’s strong commercial awareness of the importance of innovation in driving excitement in a category that comes through in the interview with F&DB and supports the company’s newest product release – Bulla’s Cloud 9 premium frozen yoghurt. With this launch, Bulla creates a new sub-category in frozen dairy desserts, an indulgent treat that ticks the health boxes associated with yoghurt (probiotics, fresh ingredients, low fat, no artificial colours or flavours).
The product will be available through Coles and independent retailers, in pack sizes of 900ml and 120ml (with a spoon in the lid). The flavour variants, like the Cloud 9 brand name, suggest indulgence and escapism: Limoncello Bliss, Vanilla Heaven and Strawberry Dream – the dessert equivalent of dipping into Fifty Shades of Grey?
“The target market is 25-54-year-old females, who want ‘permissable indulgence’, who will respond to the health cues while being attracted by the contemporary pack design and the evocative flavours,” says Reece.
“These are consumers who regularly indulge in ice cream and are willing and able to pay for the ‘good stuff’. They may have tried frozen yoghurt at a trendy retail outlet but probably have never bought it from
a supermarket.
“They’re not impressed by hype without substance, preferring authentic brands and experiences,” she adds.
Authenticity is at the heart of the Bulla brand – it’s rich Australian-owner/ manufacturer heritage is quite well recognised but Reece believes there’s a case for taking this message to consumers in a more compelling way.
Discussing upcoming product launches off the record, it’s clear Reece is passionate about consumer-led innovation and she and her team draw on a myriad research methodologies for gathering consumer insights.
Being innovative at Bulla is not limited to developing novel products, it’s also about delivering the value proposition through creative marketing.
Reece is a strong believer in the power of experiential marketing: “Experiences allow consumers to make an emotional connection with the brand,” she stresses. “In the current retail environment, where ‘me too’-style brands are offering not much more than a price advantage, if you can find a way to make an emotional connection with the consumer, so that your brand can command a price premium, then innovation opens doors to category growth.
“Yes, things like heritage, longevity, Australian-made, are important but these are rational cues; emotional cues have more power to build brand loyalty,” she says.
Bulla’s “Dollop of Happy” campaign for its multiple award-winning Bulla Cream is a good example of drawing the consumer into the brand through positive emotional experiences. The Bulla cream website shows a movie clip of celebrity chef George Calombaris standing in a verdant field (cue authenticity, heritage) surrounded by glossy-coated cows chewing the cud (cue healthy, provenance) and inviting consumers to experience a dollop of happiness, and in turn to create happiness for their families through the meals they cook (cue emotional connection), through a series of cooking demonstrations by Calombaris and fellow chef Travis McAuley exclusive to the Bulla site. Consumers are invited to “join the dollop conversation”, download recipes, ask the chefs questions and become part of the Bulla cream community through the website, Facebook and Twitter.
By creating this opportunity for the consumer to go behind the scenes with the brand, get tips and tricks straight from the chefs and have a sense of belonging to this “Dollop of Happy” community takes brand loyalty to a new level.
The company, too, is moving quickly to a new level, reflected in its investment in technology, products and people and a string of awards at recent dairy product competitions. Bulla Dairy Foods’ belief in the value of innovation is a core part of this success.
