Working with gum giant Mars Wrigley Confectionery over the last year has helped Woodlands Local grow gum sales consistently since the start of 2018 – an encouraging result in an already popular category.
by Antony Begley
Achieving sustained growth in any category is satisfying but achieving growth in a category that has historically performed solidly anyway is particularly pleasing – which is why we are permitting ourselves a small pat on the back for having growing sales of our gum category consistently since the turn of the year.
As the chart shows, our monthly gum sales by unit have continued to grow from January right up until the most recent full month available via our Epos system. Sales in the first couple of months of the year were 582 units, growing to 604 in March and April before rising once more to 628 in May and June. Without wishing to count our chickens, the July sales totalled 332 units which bodes well for another solid couple of months’ sales.
- Wrigley Extra Original Blue (316)
- Wrigley Extra Spearmint Green (305)
- Wrigley Extra White Bubblemint (253)
- Wrigley Extra Cool Breeze (251)
- Wrigley Airwaves Menthol & Eucalyptus (186)
Much as we’d like to take all the credit for this performance, we must share it with our partners Mars Wrigley. The company has been extremely active in supporting us with a range of in-store activity that has brought the category to the forefront of our shoppers’ minds, created some excitement around it and found innovative new ways to sell more gum in the store.
The project is still in progress and while continuing to grow the category will undoubtedly become an increasingly tall order we’re up for the challenge, as are Mars Wrigley, and we have some more exciting activity coming down the line.
What is already clear however is that by dedicating a little more time and energy to categories that already seem to be performing well can help create fresh new growth.
