Stage 1:
Groundwork
The Bord Bia Consumer Insights Team helped Carton
Bros with the development of their fresh chicken brand,
Manor Farm. Although a long established brand, the
company felt it needed a full review before relaunching.
This case study describes how consumer insight was core
to the process of rebuilding the Manor Farm brand.
Stage 2:
Building Brands
Stage 3:
Expression
Stage 4:
Launch
BRANDING WORKBOOK
Manor Farm
Growing the success of Irish food & horticulture
BRANDING WORKBOOK
Manor Farm
PROJECT BACKGROUND
Manor Farm, a long standing brand of fresh chicken, is owned by
Carton Bros and based in Co. Cavan where they employ over 850
people. It is a fully integrated business from feed to final product which
ensures traceability right to plate. Carton Bros are the largest supplier
of fresh chicken, mainly sold under retailers brands, in the Republic of
Ireland. In addition to this business they also market and sell their own
brand, Manor Farm. The origins of this brand are rooted in the family
history of the business from its humble beginnings around the markets of
Manor St, Dublin. A family business since 1775, with the current eight
generation of the family continuing the success of the business today.
THE RECIPE IS GRAN’S
www.manorfarm.ie
BUSINESS CHALLENGE
CONSUMER ISSUE
In 2014 Carton Bros decided to re-focus
their efforts on the brand they owned:
Manor Farm. At one time, this had
accounted for the total business but now
had declined to account for less than 10%
of their turnover. Although most of their
business is private label they felt it was
important to protect and grow the brand
they owned themselves. As a team, Carton
Bros looked at the whole company and
reviewed how the brand was presented.
They audited all livery and recognised it
had become disjointed over the years with
all the facilities doing their own thing.
The challenge was to establish a brand
in what was effectively a commodity
category. Extensive price promotions by
retailers had resulted in fresh chicken
being the only meal protein category
suffering real price deflation. The objective
was to develop a brand with a story
and point of difference that consumers
would engage with, pay more for and be
more brand loyal to in the longer term.
Stage 1:
Groundwork
Stage 2:
Building Brands
Stage 3:
Expression
Stage 4:
Launch
THE PROCESS
The Consumer Insights Team recommended a relaunch of the brand both with consumers and the
trade and use the relaunch as a platform for cultural change within the company.
There was a high level of consumer engagement at all stages, identifying which aspects of the brand
were highly differentiated and most motivating in the eyes of consumers. The task then was to identify
a point of difference that could be translated into the visual look of the brand.
HOW DID WE HELP?
Through a series of brand workshops, store
visits, qualitative consumer research and
engagement with a creative agency the joint
teams defined the core proposition for the
brand – what made it different. We tested
this with consumers and developed a new
visual identity for the brand. By continuously
engaging with consumers along the journey
the teams were able to learn and refine their
approach using consumers’ feedback.
Stage 1: Groundwork:
The team reviewed the market and existing
brands to develop a market map. Through
desk research and in store visits we were
able to understand various players and their
relative brand positionings.
We reviewed all previous work on the
brands and other reports available within the
company to learn about the market metrics
and previous work on the brand.
Stage 2: Building brands:
For this stage we ran a workshop involving
a multi-functional team from Carton Bros
where we brainstormed the important facets
of the brand from a consumer point of view.
Using tools such as the brand wheel we
explored the rational (e.g. taste, texture) and
emotional (family, nurturing etc.) aspects
of the brand. These were continuously
interrogated to arrive at the core values of
the brand which were defined as family,
heritage and Irish. These particular
aspects of the brand were seen as those
that differentiated them significantly from
their branded competition. In particular,
the interesting history of the brand dating
back to 1775 was seen as particularly
underexploited.
Stage 3: Expression:
This stage was about taking the core values
of the brand and translating them into a
creative expression.
Once the core of the Manor Farm brand was
agreed, a creative agency was employed to
bring the brand proposition to life visually.
They developed a series of routes which
were designed to give a contemporary
expression to the brand whilst retaining
some of the brands existing visual equities
such as the colours blue and yellow. As
the heritage of the brand (established in
1775) had been underexploited, the agency
found a way to incorporate this message in
the new look. Appetite appeal was added
through photography of a roast chicken.
They also developed a consumer slogan that
encapsulated what Manor Farm chickens
meant to consumers: “Welcome Home”,
which was about the emotional payback
consumers got from using the product in
particular Sunday roast chicken dinner.
In summary the new look for the brand
encapsulated all the rational and emotional
values of the brand in a compelling way.
Quantitative research was undertaken to
test the design routes agreed. This research
validated that the brand’s core values were
relevant and motivating to consumers and
shortlisted those design elements which best
delivered on the brief. Further, some new
product development concepts were tested
with consumers. All learnings from the
research were used to feed into next stage
brand designs.
Stage 4: Launch:
The new look packaging was rolled out on
shelf from late 2014 across the full range
of fresh chicken products from Manor Farm
in retail accounts and butcher trade. To
support the relaunch of the brand, radio and
bus shelter advertising will be rolled in the
second quarter of 2015.
Further, to ensure visual consistency of the
brand across all touch-points, the company
is investing in rebranding their site signage,
delivery trucks, clothing, merchandising
materials and website.
WHAT WERE THE
INSIGHTS?
Even in a category that has become largely
commoditised there is a role for brands.
Consumers were highly interested and
engaged to hear the story behind the
brand and in particular valued its longevity.
Manor Farm had a rich story to tell – eight
generations of the same family since 1775
in the business – which none of their
competitors could tell.
The notion of “family” at the heart of this
brand particularly resonated with consumers
– the Carton family, the family of farmer
growers and their own family enjoying
time together around a roast chicken. This
powerful emotional connection of families
ran through the DNA of the Manor Farm
brand.
WHAT WAS THE IMPACT
ON THE BUSINESS?
The entire exercise of revisiting a wellestablished brand in the portfolio ignited a
culture change in the business. The decision
was taken to change the company name
to Manor Farm and all letterhead, business
cards and signage was changed to reflect
that. All design is now centralised through
Marketing. The look and feel is more
professional and modern.
For consumers it awoke a brand many had
forgotten or were seeing for the first time.
They were interested to hear about the
provenance of the brand and its rich history
and to give it a place in the heart of their
family life.
Bord Bia’s Branding Workbook
This process was developed using best practice techniques detailed in Bord Bia’s
Branding Workbook.
For more information contact:
E-mail: info@bordbia.ie
Telephone: (01) 6885155
Growing the success of Irish food & horticulture