Overview.
Friendship Dairies, a regional dairy products producer owned by Dean Foods, wanted to maintain growth in the
declining cottage cheese market
Founded in the 1940s in upstate NY, Friendship Dairies is a cooperative producer and distributor of cottage cheese and sour cream to the metro New York/Tri-State and a few other markets. Dean Foods acquired the company in 2007, and was looking for accelerated growth. Unlike competitive products, Friendship Dairies cottage cheese (which accounts for the majority of sales) contains no preservatives.
Potential.
Identify niche growth targets and successfully differentiate Friendship Dairies cottage cheese from national competitors
The challenge facing Friendship Dairies was how to maintain and increase growth in the face of declining category usage, an aging consumer base, and deep-pocketed national competitors. Cottage cheese is a commodity product that is promoted as a healthy food choice, but is purchased largely on price. Younger consumers, with multiple “healthy” product choices, are consuming less cottage cheese. The opportunity was to make Friendship Dairies the preferred cottage cheese for young, active mothers and their families.
Realized.
An under-tapped market segment and a unique, motivating positioning
Research revealed that vs. competitors, Friendship Dairies cottage cheese was perceived as being truly “all natural” because of the absence of preservatives. In addition, we identified a new market segment that found “all natural” motivating, and on whom competitors were not focusing.
This differentiating positioning has been successfully deployed on packaging and targeted communications.
Work.
Market Intelligence; Marketing Strategy
We conducted extensive competitive analysis by market within the distributed region, and extensive qualitative research among cottage cheese users (focus groups and shop alongs), and also brokers, distributors and management (interviews). Quantitative research was conducted to identify the potential value of specific market segments, and to determine the relative appeal and persuasiveness of various positioning options among those segments. Finally, we worked closely with management to craft a market positioning, packaging and communications strategy that would differentiate the brand and gain share from national competitors.