Youngs NPD and new look

Source: Young’s Seafood

The supplier is describing the revamp as its biggest in two decades 

Young’s Seafood has unveiled a new, “best ever” fish finger range, as part of a major revamp it is describing as its “biggest brand refresh in over 20 years”.

The brand’s updated packaging design includes a new logo featuring the image of founder Elizabeth Young, accompanied by a “fresh and contemporary look” that retains Young’s “instantly recognisable blue and red brand colours”.

The first products to feature the brand’s “striking” new design is an updated fish finger range, which will launch in Asda on 17 August and was “bigger, tastes better and is entirely made in Britain”, Young’s claimed.

Developed following what Young’s described as “months of consumer research into creating the perfect fish finger”, the new range also bucked the shrinkflation trend by containing more fish and the optimum balance between 100% fillet and breadcrumb, “offering great value for the consumer”, Young’s added.

The new range consists of a 10-pack Cod 100% fillet fish fingers line, 10 Haddock 100% fillet fish fingers, 10 Omega 3 White fish 100% fillet fish fingers, 30 Cod 100% fillet fish fingers and 30 Omega 3 White fish 100% fillet fish fingers.

The packs of 10 fish fingers weigh 300g and the packs of 30 weigh 900g. Prices range from £2.20 for 10 Omega 3 fish fingers to £3.15 for 10 cod fish fingers and £7.00 for 30 cod fish fingers.

The NPD and revamped branding will be supported with “significant integrated marketing and promotional activity”, Young’s said, including shopper marketing and PoS and a paid and organic digital campaign.

This activity would be combined with price promotions “to drive product trial and raise awareness of the brand repositioning among new and existing shoppers”, the seafood giant added.

The new branding will also roll out across Young’s entire portfolio over the coming weeks.

Demonstrating the brand’s history over more than 200 years, the supplier’s new look brought to life “the true story of Elizabeth Young and her family, who first started selling whitebait on the banks of the River Thames in 1805”, Young’s said.

A short description of Young’s history is also included on the new-look packs, describing “how Elizabeth’s modern legacy lives on through [Young’s] commitment to British seafood production from its home in Grimsby” alongside its responsible sourcing credentials.

“The story of Elizabeth Young is powerful, inspiring and unique to the Young’s brand,” said Paul Craft, chief commercial officer for Youngs owner, Sofina Europe.

Young was “a female entrepreneur who started by selling whitebait and prawns from her hat, and who by the turn of the century had moved on to a whole fleet of Young’s family boats”, Craft added.

“We want to demonstrate that the values that drove the business then, passion, pride and progression, remain as our inspiration today and are a continuing legacy. Consumer research has shown us that Elizabeth’s story creates significant interest and intrigue, and our aim is to use this to attract incremental shoppers to the category. There’s no better product for us to do this with than the iconic British fish finger.” 

Research had also revealed shoppers wanted a bigger, better and made-in-Britain fish finger that was “affordable, accessible and absolutely delicious”, he said. “We believe this is the perfect way to celebrate Elizabeth’s story and her modern legacy.”