Kiwis have a sweet tooth, and the clearest proof of this are the 2016 Brands I Love rankings, recently released by Colmar Brunton. There are now three confectionery brands in the top six, namely Whittaker’s (first), Cadbury (fifth) and Cadbury-owned Pascall Pineapple Lumps (sixth). While Whittaker’s remains New Zealanders’ favourite brand, leading the way alongside perennial top four like All Blacks (second), Air New Zealand (third) and Tip Top (fourth), Cadbury has managed to come from outside the top 10 last year into the top five.
According to Sarah Bolger, chief client officer of Colmar Brunton, it’s a sign that the brand has been moving in the right direction, being active in the market, introducing new products and investing in brand advertising campaigns and activations. “Being top of mind and forging a meaningful connection with consumers helps build financially strong brands,” Bolger said.
This is, of course, particularly satisfying for James Kane, who was appointed as Mondelez International’s NZ country head exactly one year ago.
“The confectionery category continues to have a number of much-loved brands in it, which is great news,” Kane told us. “We know that the category is one of the biggest and fastest-growing in supermarkets, so brand love like this is really important.”
As for some of the brands who made the top 20 this year, Lotto climbed from 47th position to 19th, while Anchor and Lewis Road Creamery are both up 14 spots to 16th and 19th respectively.
