Baking & Snack - October 2018 - 48

PIES

While the holidays do well to create a robust industry,
bakers still search for areas of growth during the other
months and make moves to entice consumers to purchase.

Stop that shopping cart
Unless certain holiday seasons are around the corner, most
consumers don't usually walk into a grocery store with pie
on their shopping lists. Pie is an impulse purchase.
So, a creative approach is key when it comes to stopping
shopping carts. For example, St. Louis-based Schnucks
stores recently developed a marketing display for Rocky
Mountain Pies that incorporated bright colors, easy visual
access and a tagline that read, "We only have pies for you."
Bakeries can come alongside retailers in this process, too.
"Our biggest opportunity to grow sales from a retail level is
January through September," Mr. Grandinetti said. "Pies are
not easy for stores to retail, so our challenge is to make it
easier for them so we all win."
Instead of expecting retailers to build a display, Rocky
Mountain Pies does the work by adding creativity to the
packaging, increasing the visual appeal of its products. The
bakery's Red, White and Blue Pie has different sections of
cherry, apples and berry and is packed in an American flag
box to drive home the theme.
Rocky Mountain Pies also has hand-laid lattice fruit pies
and uses that design as a point of differentiation. "Handlaid lattice pies like Grandma used to make are pretty hard
to do in a manufacturing arena, but we slow our lines down
and take the extra time," Mr. Grandinetti said. "A hand-laid
lattice fruit pie is where you get to see this creativity and this
great fruit coming through the lattice strips."
"Feedback from in-store bakery buyers is that a key to
catching a consumer's eye is less label and more pie," according to Greg Menke, CEO of the bakery Something
Sweet, New Haven, CT. Many retailers are doing this by
shifting from a traditional cardboard box display to a plastic base-and-dome or a clear plastic clamshell container.
Although boxes can be stacked and grabbed more easily, the
clear plastic displays give consumers better visual access.
"Buyers like packaging that showcases the product by highlighting the attractive visual attributes of the pie. Capturing
the consumer's attention is critical in a category dominated
by impulse buys," he noted.
Mr. Richard emphasized the importance of where pies
are merchandized in retail, particularly during off-season
months. "Merchandising extends beyond the in-store bakery. Pies can be merchandized in the deli or prepared food
departments as a dessert option for someone looking to put
together a meal for the evening," he explained.
Social media also makes a difference and lets consumers see products before they get to the store. "With people
taking pictures of their food and posting it on everything,
I think that expands minds a little bit and allows them to

48 Baking & Snack October 2018 / www.bakingandsnack.com

What's in a slice?
A pie's smell, taste and presentation
matter to consumers, but just as
with most bakery and snack items
today, knowing the ingredients can
be just as important.
"You have this need, and in some
instances, this demand for clean
labeling and transparency," said
Eric Richard, education coordinator, International Dairy-Deli-Bakery
Association. "Consumers want to
know where the food they're eating
is coming from, and this is something that in-store bakeries can take
advantage of by using local ingredients and really focusing on the
freshness and the real ingredients
of their pies."
Although there's no clear definition of clean label, a big part of this
trend focuses on natural ingredients.
Something Sweet, New Haven, CT,
reformulated its pie line to include
natural components and exclude
preservatives, according to Greg
Menke, CEO, Something Sweet.
Denver-based Legendary Baking's
entire lineup can be done in a clean
label format because retailers
practically demand it, said Mark Van
Iwaarden, director of marketing,
Legendary Baking. "The fruit pies
are a little bit easier than the cream
pies in terms of going clean label,
especially if you're going to include
stuff like candy bars. There are a lot
of ingredients used in those that are
not clean, so it gets a little more difficult," he added.
Par Grandinetti, president of
Rocky Mountain Pies, Salt Lake
City, embraced clean label and has
experienced a lot of enthusiasm
from customers. "I see that as a big
category for growth going forward,"
Mr. Grandinetti said. "You have to
slow your lines down, and it does
cost a little more money. But there's
a lot of those clean label stores
popping up, and they appreciate the
extra effort that it takes to get them
into the pie business."

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Baking & Snack - October 2018

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