Ian Mackey, marketing director of Groupe SEB, believes it will be third time lucky for the multiples selling electricals
One of the world’s largest manufacturers of small domestic equipment, Groupe SEB, has its sights set on expanding its UK sales through the supermarkets.
The company operates in 120 countries and two of the mass market brands it owns, Tefal and Moulinex, are the focus of its attention here. A limited range is already stocked in Asda, Tesco and Sainsbury.
Marketing director Ian Mackey says the supermarkets have attempted to conquer this particular category twice before, once in the late 1980s and again in the mid-1990s. Both times they pulled out because the profits they had expected to see did not materialise.
“The difference this time is there are more deals around and better instore displays. We are now getting gondola ends for instance,” he says.
The next goal for Groupe Seb is to convince the supermarkets to stock its products near the foods they are designed to be used with.
A new Tefal steamer is being advertised on TV and the company would like to see it displayed near the vegetables.
“The difficulty is the different buying areas that exist and how protective individual buyers are about their own categories,” he says.
He adds that small electricals are difficult products to retail well. “They are not a considered or an impulse buy, but sit somewhere in between.
“This means it is not enough just to offer a selection of products - it must be the right selection of items for different kitchen needs.” He says a lack of technical knowledge among supermarket staff is not such a concern in this area as most products are self-selection, whether they are bought in a grocer or a specialist store such as Comet.
One of the world’s largest manufacturers of small domestic equipment, Groupe SEB, has its sights set on expanding its UK sales through the supermarkets.
The company operates in 120 countries and two of the mass market brands it owns, Tefal and Moulinex, are the focus of its attention here. A limited range is already stocked in Asda, Tesco and Sainsbury.
Marketing director Ian Mackey says the supermarkets have attempted to conquer this particular category twice before, once in the late 1980s and again in the mid-1990s. Both times they pulled out because the profits they had expected to see did not materialise.
“The difference this time is there are more deals around and better instore displays. We are now getting gondola ends for instance,” he says.
The next goal for Groupe Seb is to convince the supermarkets to stock its products near the foods they are designed to be used with.
A new Tefal steamer is being advertised on TV and the company would like to see it displayed near the vegetables.
“The difficulty is the different buying areas that exist and how protective individual buyers are about their own categories,” he says.
He adds that small electricals are difficult products to retail well. “They are not a considered or an impulse buy, but sit somewhere in between.
“This means it is not enough just to offer a selection of products - it must be the right selection of items for different kitchen needs.” He says a lack of technical knowledge among supermarket staff is not such a concern in this area as most products are self-selection, whether they are bought in a grocer or a specialist store such as Comet.
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