Marks & Spencer Laksa Noodle Pot
Who: Marks & Spencer
What: Laksa Noodle Pot
Where: Ambient ready meals/meal centres
How much: £1.75/99g
Why: Rice and noodle sales shot up 5.3% last year to £504.9m [Kantar Worldpanel 52 w/e 26 April 2015], with volume growing by 6.5%. The ready meal category is also booming, increasing in value by £151.1m last year [Kantar 52 w/e 8 November 2015]. This Laksa Noodle Pot from M&S combines these two growing categories in a Malaysian-style soup with rice, noodles and sweetcorn, which is part of an ambient ready meal range.
Consumer verdict: The meal was judged by consumers as quick and convenient to prepare, but they felt the packaging resembled a takeaway coffee cup or cereal pot and disliked the pink colour. Many were disappointed by the flavour, saying it was “too hot and peppery and overpowering with too much garlic”. The poor level of interest pre-trial fell further post-trial, with 51% of our testers claiming they would never buy the product. Just under 30% called the noodle pot a “good standby”, though 61% said it was “not for me”.
Pre-trial purchase: 16%
Post-trial purchase: 10%
Better than what’s out there: 18%
New and different: 61%
Overall score: 25/50
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