Republic Technologies has relaunched its ranges of matches following a major overhaul of its Swan, Bryant & May, Cook’s and Ship brands.
The refresh is intended to appeal to a broader, younger audience, focusing on the attributes of heritage, quality and reliability, and explicitly reflecting trends in candles, outdoor living, wood burning fires and general in-home usage.
In addition, the move reflects the growing appeal of sustainability and increased demand for eco-friendly matches, following Republic’s removal of all Strike Anywhere match formats.
The relaunch includes:
- Modernisation of the Swan Vestas brand with a more contemporary image and a new, minimalist back of pack design, featuring sustainability messaging
- The introduction of a pocket-size Swan match, with a new colour scheme designed for additional shelf standout
- A celebrity chef partnership with Tom Kerridge for new-look Cook’s Matches, including a collection of back of pack recipes
- A new pack design for ‘Extra Long’ Bryant & May matches, reinforcing the product’s positioning as ideal for lighting candles, open fires, log burners and BBQs, with new back of pack imagery reflecting key usage occasions and vibrant outer trays for better standout on shelf
- Modernisation of Ship Matches, with a simplified design and more prominence given to ‘Ship’ branding
Republic’s General Sales Manager Gavin Anderson described the relaunch as “one of the biggest initiatives seen in the UK’s £23+ million matches market for decades, re-energising a category where sales have been declining and both innovation and creativity have been diminished”.
“We’re confident that such a comprehensive move involving some of Britain’s best-known match brands will reinvigorate the category, enabling retailers to boost profits by aligning specific match brands to different usage occasions,” added Anderson.
The relaunch will be backed by a major consumer PR and marketing programme throughout the summer.
