Sensory Experience: Wrigley Gum Stimulates Senses and Growth - Cover Story

Stimulate your senses. That's the tagline for marketing messages that accompany Wrigley's newest branded chewing gum called 5. The line launched in early 2007, and in its first year has managed to stimulate growth as much as the five human senses.

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Stimulate your senses.

That’s the tagline for marketing messages that accompany Wrigley’s newest branded chewing gum called 5. The line launched in early 2007, and in its first year has managed to stimulate growth as much as the five human senses. In early February 2008, the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co., Chicago, announced that full-year 2007 net sales climbed 15 percent from the prior year to a new annual sales record of $5.4 billion, which also produced record earnings results in 2007. President and Chief Executive Officer Bill Perez indicated that in a year of rising costs and competition, the company delivered against its long-term goal of 9 to 11 percent earnings per share growth for the eighth consecutive year. The company said that sales increases were primarily driven by a combination of worldwide shipment growth of 6 percent, along with pricing gains and the positive impact of currency translation of relatively stronger international currencies to U.S. dollars. In the United States, the company said that there was growing strength of the new 5 brand. Reuben Gamoran, senior vice president and chief financial officer, suggested in a statement that the company was pleased with the overall improvement in 2007 gross margins following recent declines. Although gains by innovations and extensions of other lines, namely Orbit, were instrumental to Wrigley’s growth in 2007, the 5 brand has been a primary source of new revenue based on insightful innovation and well-executed product development.

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INNOVATION EMPHASIS

Some companies talk about innovation and others put it into practice. Product development teams at the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. had a busy 2007. Not only did the company launch a new iconic gum brand called 5, it extended eight gum and mint lines with new flavors and packaging. Brands such as Orbit, Life Savers and Altoids each received attention in subtle and overt ways. The company views new products as lifeblood for continued business, and for a company such as Wrigley that has been around for more than 100 years, cultivating and maintaining consumer interest in an ever-fickle market is of chief importance. The company’s emphasis on new product development and launch in 2007 demonstrates a will to succeed through innovation. Here is a list of Wrigley launches from last year.

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Big-E Pak

The Big-E Pak is a 60-pellet durable container with two re-closable openings, one to pour and another for single servings. The bubble format package is designed to fit in a car cup-holder or on a table top. The Big-E Pak is offered in three varieties: Orbit White Bubblemint, Obrit White Melon Breeze and Eclipse Polar Ice.

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Hubba Bubba Max Island Punch

The newest addition to Hubba Bubba combines texture and lasting taste with sweet fruit and punch flavors. Island Punch is available in five- and 10-piece packs.

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Orbit

Mint Mojito and Raspberry Mint are the 10th and 11th varieties of Orbit. Raspberry Mint marks the brand’s first fruit flavor, while Mint Mojito offers a distinct flavor in the gum category.

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Hubba Bubba Sour Gummi Tape

Hubba Bubba Sour Gummi Tape is a gummi candy that comes in two flavors: Ragin’ Blue Raspberry and Shocking Strawberry. The chewy treat is infused with sour gummi crystals and is packaged in a Bubble Tape clam shell.

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Look and feel

The package is where the sight and texture sensory elements play a role. During packaging development stages, both the visual identity of the brand and the tactile nature of the package were of great importance since they represented two of the five senses — the core identity of 5. “Once the decision was made that the new brand would be about connecting with the five senses, it put a lot of healthy pressure on our team to make sure that every dimension of the brand and the product did indeed push the edge,” says Jackson-Luth. The product offers a palpable example of packaging, marketing and launch stages existing on equal ground with ingredient, flavor and formula development. This balance across all aspects of product development suggests that the first-year success of 5 is no fluke. In fact, Wrigley sees the product as a future cornerstone of the business, one that stands out against other products in the category and against its own gum brands. And in fact, standing out on the shelf against other gum brands was a strategy Wrigley employed when designing the package for 5. “The predominantly black package with both matte and gloss finishes, and embossed and debossed textures makes the slim packaging difficult to overlook,” says Jackson-Luth. As Wrigley engaged with consumers in the marketplace, it learned that the visual identity of confections is a veritable kaleidoscope. The average confections rack features a wide variety of vibrant colors to communicate the “fun” of the category. “When the confection brands are together on a rack the net effect is that it’s really tough for a new brand to jump out,” says Jackson-Luth. “This why Wrigley engaged heavily with consumers on the idea of gum with a visual identity dominated by black.” Regarding the name, 5, Wrigley tested the idea of not naming the product at all. The company’s idea was to instead assign a symbol to the new gum line, i.e “The Artist Formerly Known As Prince.” But though the idea was progressive it ultimately did not resonate with consumer research. “The reality was that traditional wisdom was actually correct and using a symbol instead of a name would not work well in the commercial experience,” says Jackson-Luth. “Consumers were interested by the idea, but also a little confused by it.” At the end of product development, Wrigley had its new 5 brand in the form of what it calls a “groundbreaking” sugar-free stick gum with mouth-freshening, long-lasting flavors combined with invigorating sensations "you can feel as you chew." The work resulted in three varieties: Cobalt with a cooling peppermint, Flare with a heating cinnamon, and Rain with a refreshing, tingling spearmint. Additional flavors have not been identified at this time. 5 was supported by evocative television advertisements that portrayed the sensory experience 5 offers gum chewers. The commercials set the tone for the playful and mysterious concept behind 5. Since its launch, consumers have come to describe 5 as a “designer gum” because of its sleek and image-conscious package. In essence, consumers have acknowledged the meticulous design that went into the package appearance and texture. Another indication of success thus far is the series of sincere and jocular odes to 5 created by consumers on YouTube. Most short videos are takes on the 5 sensory experience television commercials in which consumers have some wild sensory responses upon chewing a piece of 5 gum. With 5, Wrigley diverts from its core Wrigley gum brands like Wrigley Spearmint, Big Red and Juicy Fruit as well as its newer successes such as Orbit and Eclipse. 5 stands out. And it does so because it embodies a new product that entered the market with a fully-realized concept from ingredient development to packaging and distinct marketing messages. In year one, 5 has been a model launch, and an example of how well-executed new product innovation and development sustains business and growth in the marketplace.

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Altoids Dark Chocolate Dipped Mints

These premium mints are a response to consumer desire for small, daily luxuries. Altoids Dark Chocolate Dipped Mints combine a strong mint flavor with dark chocolate and come in three varieties: Altoids Dark Chocolate Dipped Mints Peppermint, Cinnamon and Ginger.

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Extra Supermint

The crisp flavor of Supermint builds on the success of the Extra brand, and offers long-lasting sugar-free chewing. The product comes in a 15-stick Plen-T-Pak.

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Eclipse Fusion

Eclipse Fusion blends fruit and mint flavors. The sugar-free pellet gum comes in three new varieties: Spearmint Melon, Peppermint Berry and Freshmint Tropical.

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A sense of the market

So what is it about this new Wrigley gum brand that has made it a success in its first year? The short answer is: Wrigley got it right. A longer explanation necessitates a look at the company’s attention to detail throughout the new product development process. The essential hook for 5 is that it appeals to the five human senses: taste, smell, hear, see, feel. Yes, feel. We’ll get to that. In creating a gum that provides an encompassing sensory experience Wrigley carved a niche in the crowded gum (and mint) category. No other products were making such sensory claims, at least not in the overt manner that Wrigley set in motion with its marketing campaigns. Wrigley developed the idea for a sensory experience gum through basic market research and consumer focus groups, which not unlike other food and beverage processors, is a primary part of its ideation at the outset of product development. “As Wrigley engaged with consumers in the realities of their day-to-day lifestyle, consumers made it clear that gum is not just about ‘taste’ and ‘chewing,’ but also about personal interactions that involve all five of the human senses,” says Jennifer Jackson-Luth, manager of marketing communications. The company delved deeper into market research by targeting a specific demographic, which it identified as teenagers and young adults ages 13-24. “We see great growth potential within this target, as it shows passion for both stick gum and the envelope package,” says Jackson-Luth. “In fact, the stick form is the most preferred form among teens and young adults.” According to Wrigley, teens and young adults account for one-third of all gum chewed in the United States and are the most frequent gum chewers of any age group. “In talking with this group, we know they tend to be variety- and thrill-seekers looking for unexpected sensory experiences,” says Jackson-Luth. “That insight became the essence of the brand.” Wrigley took this consumer assessment seriously, and essentially developed the entire 5 brand on the notion of appealing to the five human senses. Ingredient and flavor formulas were developed with sensory in mind, which is not necessarily novel when it comes to product development, but the company extended its essential concept from ideation through research and development stages and into marketing and launch. In a nutshell, that is why consumers respond to 5. It’s based on a simple, implicit concept of sensory that composes the actual ingredient structure as well as the finished retail package.

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Life Savers Fruit Tarts

These sweet, tart treats come in a portable tin that users press in the center of the lid to open. Each container of Life Savers Fruit Tarts contains approximately 50 tarts, and comes in three varieties in the twin-tin collection. In the orange tin, consumers get to try Watermelon, Cherry Lemonade and Mandarin Orange, and in the purple tin Grape Berry, Strawberry Watermelon and Green Apple tarts are included.

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