Wyke Farms is revamping its Cheddar range and embarking on its biggest-ever campaign this autumn in a bid to become the number two Cheddar in the UK.

The company is also ditching its Leskol low-fat cheese brand and replacing it with new, stronger-tasting Super Light.

Wyke, currently fourth-largest Cheddar brand by volume [Kantar Worldpanel 52w/e 13 June 2010], hopes the packaging revamp and Leskol rebrand will lead to a 20% uplift in Cheddar volume sales between now and Christmas.

Over the next two years, Wyke wants to become "a credible number-two brand" to Dairy Crest's Cathedral City, said MD Richard Clothier, overtaking Pilgrims Choice (two) and Seriously Strong (three).

Wyke has revamped its packaging by giving greater prominence to farming the cow and tree images on its packs will be printed in gloss. It has also changed the logo, from 'Somerset farming since 1902', to 'Somerset farming since 1861' as a result of recent family history research.

Wyke had rebranded Leskol launched in 2006 because consumers had failed to grasp its USP, said Clothier. "It was seen as a little bit medical. Some consumers thought it sounded like it was from Norway, some thought it was French."

The new Super Light ­variant was inspired by the success of Dairy Crest's Cathedral City Lighter Cheddar, launched in 2007. "The guys [at Dairy Crest] did a fantastic job. They've shown what can be done getting consumers to understand the product by getting the branding right." Retail sales of Leskol currently stand at £2m [Kantar 52w/e 13 June].

The new-look products will be supported by an ­autumn ad campaign, which will debut on Daybreak on 27 September and focus on the heritage of the business. Entitled 'Stan remembers', it will feature the real-life story of Stan, who worked at Wyke Farms during the Second World War. The TV spots will be followed by ads in the Daily Mail and women's magazines.

Read more
First Milk plans to seize no3 Cheddar brand slot (28 August 2010)
Cathedral City to be offered in trial packs (7 August 2010)

Topics