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Manufacturers and retailers must work together

By Matt Atherton

- Last updated on GMT

Retailers and manufacturers must work together to improve shopper experience
Retailers and manufacturers must work together to improve shopper experience

Related tags Retailing Online shopping

Food and drink manufacturers need to work with retailers to help customers have “an experience” when shopping, said grocery think-tank IGD chief executive Joanne Denney-Finch.

In this exclusive interview, Denney-Finch explained how manufacturers and retailers could shift consumer attitudes of shopping from a chore, to something that they looked forward to.

“Generally, shoppers think that if you go into a traditional retailer, it’s kind of a chore and the time drags,”​ said Denney-Finch. “So the more experiences you can build, the better it becomes.”

Ice cream stations in-store

Unilever worked with French-based retailer Carrefour to build ice cream stations within its stores, she explained. Shoppers that had an ice cream had an experience while buying their household goods, as opposed to just doing their errands.

Denney-Finch said: “Another example is in the US, with 7/11, what you see is a major manufacturing brand developing an actual brand specific for a particular retailer. So it’s a point of difference, it’s special.”

Price is just “a ticket”​ to do business, she said, and it’s the experience and differentiation of shops that would encourage customers back for more, she added.

Meanwhile, listen out for another interview from Denney-Finch as FoodManufacture.co.uk spoke to her about how shopper attitudes would change post-Brexit.

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