Industry pub Frozen & Refrigerated has again featured insights from Concentric owner/founder, Bob Shaw. In their April 2017 issue, the magazine’s feature article covers the challenges and shopper behavior for the frozen category in an article titled, “Pulling Them In: What Does it Take to Attract Shoppers to the Frozen Aisle?” After some sobering stats—12 of 15 frozen categories’ sales fell within a recent 12 month period—F&RB dives into insights and ideas that marketers could use to appeal to new types of shoppers, such as Millennials. Amongst the many ideas, one point Bob made was that the frozen section is too sterile and cold (aesthetically). There is no “theater.” He recounted once adding an awning to call attention and provide some ambient drama to an Italian product and sales shot up 27%. Retailers have to own the frozen challenge, too, he adds.

Supermarkets really need to start merchandising around how consumers like to shop versus how retailers want them to shop. — Bob Shaw

For instance, demo frozen products in other higher-traffic areas to capture people who might not otherwise visit the frozen section. Also, consider grouping products by meal occasion or solution, not category. Garlic fries with turkey burgers instead of all the frozen potatoes together, as an example. Obviously a paradigm shift is necessary for aggressive tactical shifts, but the time might be upon retailers to try new things: a recent survey by Concentric revealed that only 46% of people given $100 to shop at a grocery store visited the frozen section. Check out the article by clicking on the thumbnail to the left to download or view a PDF of the article.