Wyke Farms is rebranding its portfolio in a bid to give it critical mass - and boost sales more than 20% by the end of 2013.

Wyke will roll out a new pack design across its cheeses and butters, starting with mature Cheddar from the middle of this month.

Shoppers recognised the different Wyke Farms variants from their different design elements such as colour, but they did not necessarily recognise them as Wyke Farms products, said MD Richard Clothier.

“We feel at the moment, we’re trying to sell the variants at a distance and we’re losing that team effect.”

Wyke is targeting a 10% sales uplift as a result of the relaunch, to take the Wyke portfolio to around £80m by the end of this year, with a further increase of at least 10% next year.

The new design will feature a bigger and more modern Wyke Farms logo, incorporating a stylised cow’s head. The variants will still be differentiated by colour.

The rebrand was a marked departure from the old packaging which showed a traditional Wyke Farms logo in the shape of an arch, said Clothier.

“The old packaging was masculine and austere, but the new packaging has more of a feminine charm.”

The relaunch will be supported by an £8m marketing push, starting with a press and poster campaign this month. It will be followed by a new TV ad in the spring, sampling and a new website.

Wyke was also in the process of signing a deal to promote “with one of the UK’s biggest and oldest brands”, said Clothier, although he would not give further details.

The new design was voted for by 70% of around 3,000 consumers who ‘liked’ Wyke’s Facebook page when a poll was conducted in June and July, when two other designs were also previewed.

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