Aunt Bessie’s is planning a children’s range under a new Little Bessie’s brand, The Grocer can reveal.
The frozen specialist has registered trademarks and imagery with the Intellectual Property Office for an Aunt Bessie’s Little Bessie’s brand.
The brand’s communications marketing manager Nicola Jackson confirmed Aunt Bessie’s was in the process of speaking to retailers and developing a kids’ range, but remained tight-lipped on the contents and launch date.
Its trademark classifications cover a wide range of meat, fish and veg in addition to ready meals, Yorkshire puddings and other bakery products.
The move comes weeks after frozen giant Nomad Foods acquired the brand from William Jackson Food Group in a deal worth €240m (£210m). Nomad owns Birds Eye, Findus and this year acquired frozen pizza brand Goodfella’s from 2 Sisters Food Group.
It followed three consecutive years of costly sales decline for Aunt Bessie’s, slipping from £186.7m in 2015 to £141.2m in 2018 [The Grocer Britain’s Biggest Brands/Nielsen]. In a bid to reverse its fortunes, the brand launched a health-focused NPD push in January with the introduction of its carrot, swede and mixed vegetable chips.
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