3-2-1 Featuring Slate’s Bold Truck, and Shopper Trends on Mother’s Day, Affordability, and More
3 Insights Worth Your Attention
I. Real Shoppers Are Getting a Head Start.
Forget May flowers. Shoppers already bought the bouquet. Yep! Mother’s Day falls on May 11, but NielsenIQ estimates that 3 in 4 shoppers will have likely finished their Mother’s Day shopping by the end of April.
And this “pulling forward” behavior isn’t limited to one holiday. It’s showing up across other seasonal events too.
For CPG Leaders: According to the NIQ study, looks like the shoppers are deciding earlier. shoppers are deciding earlier. If you wait until the event is near, you may already be too late. As you plan for Father’s Day, Back-to-School, and other key moments, consider starting earlier, from messaging and media to in-store execution.
📖 Read more: NielsenIQ Report on Mother’s Day shopping trend.
II. Affordability used to be a tactic. Now it’s table stakes.
CPG brands can no longer treat affordability as a short-term fix. With prices up nearly 30% since 2020 and brand loyalty weakening, brands must build affordability into how they price, package, and show up at the shelf.
PepsiCo’s CEO during their earnings call said the company is leaning harder into “entry price points” to keep brands accessible. Kimberly-Clark’s CEO pointed to a growing “migration” toward smaller, more affordable packs, calling affordability “core to our strategy.”
For CPG Leaders: If affordable options aren’t easy to spot, shoppers will move on. Brands should make entry packs more visible, simplify price and pack choices, and use promotions to reinforce everyday value.
📖 Read more: Strategic levers to build affordability into your CPG strategy.
III. Hershey Didn’t Buy Popcorn. They Bought a Fanbase With a Mission.
Hershey recently announced its acquisition of LesserEvil, a fast-growing BFY brand known for its clean-label popcorn and puffs. Sure, it adds to their portfolio. But more likely, Hershey was looking for a brand with meaning baked in.
LesserEvil built trust by standing for something: clean ingredients, mindfulness, and a mission to make BFY snacking more accessible. Today, 58% of US consumers say brand purpose drives their purchase decisions. And in this case, Hershey bought cultural relevance, loyalty, and emotional connection.
For CPG Leaders: When launching new brands or platform innovations, start with purpose and clear differentiation. Me-too won’t cut it. And if you’re scouting M&A targets, brand mission and uniqueness should be a first filter, not an afterthought.
📖 Read more: Mintel’s CPG Advisor Aline Meloni breaks it down.
2 Quotes To Think About
I.
Barbara Connors, VP at 84.51°, on unlocking the why behind shopper behavior.
“The most powerful insights come not from knowing what shoppers buy, but understanding why their behavior changes over time.”
II.
Jill Blanchard, CEO at Advantage Solutions, on bringing empathy into category strategy.
“The most valuable capability in modern category management isn’t predictive analytics. It’s predictive empathy.”
1 Question We’re Sitting With This Week
We (all) spotted something wild this week: a new truck brand called Slate. It’s radically stripped down. It’s modular. One model, no extras, no fluff. Kind of like the Mr. Potato Head of cars. And because it goes completely against the everything-loaded, $100K Cybertruck energy of the market, people noticed.
Will it succeed? Too early to tell. But it’s a great reminder that the boldest ideas are often the ones that go against the grain.
In CPG, Trolli nailed this with Gummi Pops. Gummy-textured (it must be a first!) popsicles that are weird, fun, and totally unexpected. I tried them at the CMA conference and loved ‘em.
🤔 So here’s the question: What’s the unexpected move your brand could make, not to follow the trend, but to flip it?
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