The What
The Laughing Cow is an instantly recognisable brand, but sales for Bel Brands’ iconic cheese brand started to decline over an eight-year period. The Bel Brands team found themselves having to make a major decision – should they make significant changes to return the brand to business growth, or continue to make minor positioning and communication adjustments to soften the decline?
So What
We worked alongside Bel Brands to understand the root of the problem. Through immersive qualitative forums, we gained a foundational understanding of how consumers perceived The Laughing Cow. We included digital shop-alongs and two qual-quant exploratory sessions pre- and post- trial of the product. Our research involved diving deep into the consumer mindset around brand experience and use, considering all aspects from communications and positioning to packaging and merchandising. As a result of this new understanding, The Laughing Cow team relaunched in just a few months, deploying a series of marketing initiatives, all focused around being consumer-centric.
Now What
The Laughing Cow experienced massive and consistent growth for the first time in more than eight years, demonstrating the importance of being consumer-centric and understanding consumers’ needs. More than 350 million wedges are now produced annually in the US, representing a four percent share of the $2 billion US retail snack cheese market.
