Berocca has created a new single serving functional vitamin sachet aimed at those that 'don’t routinely shop' for vitamins. New Berocca Singles also offer consumers a healthy alternative to more traditional energy drinks. Berocca Singles is a unique proposition for the convenience and impulse channel offering an incremental sales opportunity for retailers and further providing perfect link sale opportunities with bottled water. The Vitamin and minerals is market is worth circa €8.5m in grocery with Multivitamins the largest category within this and Berocca the No.1 brand with 46% share (Nielsen Scan track May 18th 2014). Berocca Single sachets offer retailers an opportunity to unlock a share of this market with a tried and trusted brand. Berocca Single Serve Sachets are available in shelf-ready countertop packaging to assist ease of shop and merchandise in-store. The launch will also be supported by nationwide Outdoor, Morning Radio, Sampling and In-store POS including Clips Strips for dual siting. Speaking about this brand development Enda Ryan, Brand Manager for Berocca said: “We developed Berocca Singles to address the growing consumer demand we see for healthy functional vitamin products on the go. Berocca Singles provides consumers with a sugar and caffeine free, refreshingly tasty functional vitamin product packaged in a convenient foil sachet, perfect for that on the go consumer.” New Berocca Single Sachets will be available from September 14 in grocery convenience and forecourt stores nationwide.
The Employment Appeals Tribunal has awarded €13,500 to a Dunnes Stores worker who was fired for selling alcohol to a minor. Lorraine Fitzpatrick made the sale during a Garda test at a Dunnes Stores branch in December 2011, without asking the customer for ID. She claimed that she had not been thinking properly, as she had been worried about her sick child. In spite of her 12 years experience at the company, with no previous issues, Fitzpatrick was suspended and then let go from Dunnes Stores a few days later. In its evidence, the store revealed that as part of a training event on the sale of alcohol, Fitzpatrick had signed a declaration that included the words “up to and including dismissal”. Furthermore, the manager claimed that he had reminded Fitzpatrick of the need to check ID shortly before the purchase. However, the Tribunal concluded that Fitzpatrick’s dismissal was unfair, because fair procedures were not made available to her. It also felt the store’s actions were disproportionate, given Fitzpatrick’s experience. As well as an award of €13,500 under the Unfair Dismissals Act, the Tribunal awarded Fitzpatrick a further €1,623, as she had not received notice.
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) is running a series of free, informal breakfast meetings for food businesses. The ‘Breakfast Bites’ series provides information on a range of topics affecting the industry. The next meeting, set to take place on October 2, will see Dr Mary Flynn, FSAI, outline what businesses need to know to make nutrition and health claims on food products. She will explain where to find lists of approved claims; how to figure out if a product can make claims; and what way claims should be worded on pack. The event takes place at the Food Safety Authority of Ireland office, Abbey Court, Lower Abbey Street, Dublin 1. Registration is required and can be done via the FSAI website.
Senior executives from Tesco met Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) President Eddie Downey and National Livestock Chairman Henry Burns to discuss the challenges in the beef sector, particularly the branding and labeling of cattle exported to Northern Ireland. Afterwards, Downey revealed that Tesco had said it would positively engage to work towards finding a solution to the current branding problems. “This is the basis of Ireland’s top quality beef systems and our marketing drive around Origin Green and Quality Assurance,” he said. “Forcing a specification based on intensively fed younger and lighter animals would be the wrong direction for Ireland.”
Love Irish Food and Exterion Media have teamed up to create the Love Irish Food Brand Development Award, with the winner receiving €70,000 worth of advertising space. The out-of-home campaign from Exterion will appear across the nation for two weeks, including digital animation for broadcasting on Exterion’s digital network. Kieran Rumley, Executive Director, Love Irish Food, said, “Through this Brand Development Award, we are providing one of our member brands with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get their message to their target audience and help bring their brand to the next stage in development. […] The judging panel will be looking for the brand for whom the prize will deliver the greatest return. As the success of most brands is dependent on passion, we would also like entrants to demonstrate the drive and passion they have for their brand in their entries and to show this with the addition of a 60 second video.” The competition runs until 10 October.
PayPoint has welcomed the Energy Regulator’s call to retailers to stop charging extra fees to pay-as-you-go customers for in-store gas and electricity payments. At the same time, PayPoint is calling on banks in Ireland to reverse the recent increases in cash banking charges, which it says threaten small businesses and the most financially disadvantaged people in Ireland. Seamus Smith, Managing Director of PayPoint UK & Ireland, said: “Charging extra to cash payers for these basic human necessities cannot be justified. When retailers sign to provide payment services, they agree that they will not make extra charges to customers to use the service, so they should honour their contracts.” PayPoint argues that the situation has been caused by banks that have increased charges to small businesses for banking cash. “Nearly two-thirds of all consumer payments in Ireland are made in cash,” said Smith, “including virtually all transactions for transactions less than €10 – the typical amount that consumers spend on meter top ups. Retailers have to bank this cash and the banks’ unjustifiably high charges are a major cause of these problems for small businesses and the financially disadvantaged.”
The Irish Craft Beer and Cider Festival is set to return to the RDS in Dublin from September 4-7, for the fourth year running. The craft beer and cider industry in Ireland has grown over the past 12 months and so has the festival, with more brewers and attendees set to take part than ever before. This year’s line-up consists of over 40 breweries and cider makers, providing over 200 Irish produced beverages in total. Seamus O’Hara, event co-founder and owner of the Carlow Brewing Company, commented, “Having been through previous ‘renaissances’ of Irish Craft Beer, this feels different. This is market segment establishment. Working within the sector of Irish craft brewing is exciting. We are working in tandem with so many local organic markets, from the entrepreneurs and small businesses of the country, to collaborating with vintners, independent off-licences, retail outlets and some of the most creative marketing and distribution agencies around - every day is different in brewing in Ireland at the moment.” For more information, visit www.irishcraftbeerfestival.ie
High labour costs must be tackled, according to the Small Firms Association (SFA). The lobbying group met last week with the Minister of State in the Department of Jobs, Ged Nash, to discuss its concerns about possible wage increases across the board. Speaking on RTE One Radio, Minister Nash asked businesses to increase wages wherever possible, in order to boost spending and revive the economy. However, SFA chairman AJ Noonan disagrees with across-the-board wage increases, warning that the Government should act with more caution. “Whilst much talk has been made about a Low Pay Commission, the fact is that even with the 3% increase in the UK national minimum wage from October 2014, it will still only be the equivalent of €8.17 per hour, compared to our existing high rate of €8.65 per hour.”
© 2014 - Checkout Magazine by Genna Patterson and Nathan Evans.
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