M&S seizes ‘stiff collared’ wine sector by scruff of neck

Andrew Bird, head of trading, grocery and drinks (M&S), told delegates at Wine Vision 2013 that the high-end retailer decided two years ago its wine market share wasn’t high enough. The UK’s fifth largest grocer (circa. £10bn or $16.1bn sales in 2012) knew consumers liked going to independent wine retailers, he said, who did a good job of talking to customers in a much more emotional way. This insight was backed by subsequent M&S research into consumer wine-buying behavior – conducted with M&S regular shoppers, non-shoppers and occasional shoppers. ‘We don’t need educating’ – Consumers tell M&S Interestingly – given endless talk in the wine industry about this need – Bird said M&S found that no-one really wanted to be educated in a didactic fashion about wine. Instead, the grocer discovered that customers wanted to be transported to the country of origin, to get the sense of what it was to enjoy wine close to the area of production. “They also wanted to be inspired, have a little sense of one upmanship – say to their partner: ‘Aren’t I clever? I found this bottle of wine’,” Bird said. “That’s what consumers at all levels want to get out of wine, apart from those just looking for a functional beverage,” he added, noting that customers also wanted affirmation for their wine choices – support and encouragement, basically. This need for a human touch in store – and the desire to hear about “glamorous people doing glamorous jobs ” – led to M&S crafting a narrative around its wine blenders and wine buyers that is now relayed on product back labels, in store and using trained wine advisers. Crafting exciting narratives For instance, M&S experts have created beguiling narratives around otherwise potentially risky unfamiliar products from countries such as Greece, Slovenia, Turkey and Georgia. Wine pairing with food in store is also vital, Bird said, and M&S will this week display chilled Beaujolais Noveau with French cheese and other delicacies in gondola fixtures. The grocer is also encouraging customers to sample wine matched especially with a fresh food – such as pasta at a deli counter – and from 2014 large stores will feature tasting kitchens where a chef will be filmed cook food with accompanying wine samples available. Turning to packaging, Bird said the wine world had been extremely resistant to giving up a 75cl bottle “with a piece of red bark rammed in the top of it” . Emotional importance of packaging He said that the James Nash-invented pre-filled wine glass (pictured) – sold in chill cabinets alongside sandwiches “flies out of stores” while a move from three-liter bag-in-box to 1.5 liter pouches was a better fit for smaller UK fridges, and had tripled sales. M&S is also exploring packaging innovations within other categories, Bird said, noting a box of butterfly shaped fondant chocolates packaged in a box made using candytuft seeds. Once buried in the garden, the seeds grow into candytuft flowers that then attract butterflies. “How would that look in the wine category?” Bird asked. “Well, I’m not going to give too much away. But there are things we can do with wine that other categories are doing that we can really learn from. “Relate, in a far more emotional way, to our customers, and the way they’re able to enjoy the product.”

M&S seizes ‘stiff collared’ wine sector by scruff of neck

UK retailer Marks & Spencer is shaking-up its wine aisle and insists consumers don’t want ‘education’ but instead want to be transported, inspired and affirmed during the purchase experience.

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