Refresco sees Mr Freeze, the UK’s No.1 freezepop brand with a 77% market share, as one of its key brands.
Suitable for vegetarians and vegans, the brand offers a guilt free alternative to other snacking options which are high in sugar and calories.
The brand will be backed with its biggest ever marketing budget this year including support on TikTok.
Terri Cooper, Senior Brand Commercial Manager at Refresco, tells Wholesale Manager what trends are driving the freeze pop market and how wholesalers can maximise sales of Mr Freeze.
How would you sum up Mr Freeze’s history?
Mr Freeze is one of Refresco’s star brands, which is impressive given our portfolio of household name brands. Refresco’s brand portfolio covers all drink sectors from mixers to functional energy drinks to juices, CSDs and water, with brands like Mr Freeze dominating its category.
Known and loved by all generations, Mr Freeze has been around since 1966 – many parents and grandparents have nostalgic memories of the brand. To this day, Mr Freeze can be seen as a great multigenerational snack to be enjoyed by the whole family.
There has been a multi-million-pound investment into new machinery on Mr Freeze in order to meet the growing demand of the brand and to help maximise line efficiencies.
Can you talk us through your brand portfolio?
Mr Freeze is the UK’s favourite freezepop, sold in all major retailers and wholesalers over summer months. Mr Freeze Freezepops & Jubbly are a range of treats that are low calorie, low guilt and affordable.
Mr Freeze has a variety of formats and flavours including an exclusive bulk pack for Wholesale which is 140 x 45ml, the pack includes all of Mr Freeze’ leading flavours of Orange, Lemonade, Strawberry, Cola and Raspberry.
What trends are driving the market?
Mr Freeze is driving innovation in the category as consumers are increasingly health conscious. Mr Freeze is a healthier alternative to other children’s snacks in the market, it is a guilt free snack for parents to give to their children, which is also hydrating and doesn’t spoil appetite. All Mr Freeze products are made with natural colours and flavours. There are no artificial colours or flavourings and Jubbly is made using real fruit juice.
Mr Freeze is also great value. A standard retail box of Mr Freeze freezepops contains 20 products, meaning the average cost per freezepop is less than 10p, which is great value for families.
How do you work with wholesalers to improve sales?
The summer months continue to be a particularly strong period for the brand, with trade stores noting record sales during this period. However, Mr Freeze wants to educate its consumers that the product is not just for summer and is a great year-round product, largely because it is a low calorie, low guilt and affordable alternative to snacks or desserts.
How can wholesalers maximise sales of your products?
Mr Freeze is the UK’s No.1 freezepop brand with a 77% majority share of the market and is driving innovation for the category. Wholesalers should ensure they stock up early in order to capitalise on peak Summer sales. As consumers are increasingly focused on health, Mr Freeze offers a guilt free alternative to other snacking options which are high in sugar and calories. Mr Freeze is suitable for vegetarians and vegans, making it an all-inclusive treat enjoyed by all.
Mr Freeze has the flexibility to be stored as ambient or frozen, which is perfect for wholesalers which may be restricted on space. Where possible, we recommend retailers dual sight Mr Freeze in store to increase visibility.
Retailers should dual site Mr Freeze by merchandising the multipack with ambient ice cream products, whilst single 45ml formats should be in the freezer to capitalise on impulse Summer sales.
What marketing support do you have for your range this year?
2022 is set to be an exciting year for Mr Freeze. In the coming year the brand has allocated its largest ever budget from both a marketing and promotional perspective which it hopes will help achieve the ambitious objectives in 2022.
With its heavy investment in marketing, Mr Freeze plans to build on its already strong social presence, launching new initiatives such as new customer led brand campaigns as well as creating and developing the brand on platforms such as TikTok where it hopes to target and educate younger consumers to the brand and category.
New photography is planned for the whole range for use across all marketing communications. The brand even plans for a host of celebrity and influencer collaborations in 2022.
Mr Freeze will be activated via a keen promotional plan and disruptive trade media presence across a breadth of channels to achieve maximum impact. All activity will be paired with a brand-new consumer campaign which has launched this year.
Do you have any NPD planned?
We’re launching three take-home Mr Freeze products, available from wholesalers in cases of eight. These flavours are Mr Freeze Sours, Sugar Free and Blue Raspberry. Retailers should ensure they stock a variation of Mr Freeze products to meet a variety of consumption occasions. Mr Freeze is suitable for the whole family and offers great value all year round.
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