Walkers Popcorn Sensations: Sweet Chilli

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Who: Walkers

What: Sensations Popcorn: Sweet Chilli

Where: Snacks/confectionery

When: April 2014

How much: £1.59/90g

Why: Popcorn has been an area of major activity by suppliers, with a host of smaller operators launching increasingly exciting and inventive lines in recent years. Hardly surprising, then, to see PepsiCo’s Walkers brand jump on board with the roll out of three flavours into Tesco in January 2014 ahead of a wider launch later in the spring. Perceived as a healthier snack than crisps, popcorn is likely to have a growing role to play on retailers’ bagged snacks fixtures.

Consumer verdict: The change to popcorn from more traditional crisps - in combination with the relatively unusual Thai sweet chilli flavour - led to almost all respondents describing the product as “new and different”. Testers praised the taste, texture and perceived “healthiness” of the crisps. However, some said there was not enough chilli flavour, and others that they didn’t like the combination of salty and sweet. More than half the group said the product would be ideal when entertaining and two thirds said the crisps would be ideal when chilling out.

Pre-trial purchase: 62%

Post-trial purchase: 68%

Better than what’s out there: 66%

New and different: 94%

Overall score: 43/50

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