Category Captain: Frozen Baked Goods: General Mills

Pillsbury brings a national brand coupled with category management expertise to a category that’s a vital component to growth of the $31.6 billion frozen department. Pillsbury’s continued efforts through innovative approaches to frozen meal solutions and best-in-class category management practices and tools are leading both the brand and the category to greater growth.

As at-home meal consumption continues to increase, frozen items are the fastest-growing component of meals and are increasingly becoming critical to retailer success. While frozen baked goods (FBG) is a relatively small category within the overall frozen department, it provides an important meal solution occasion while delivering high dollar ring per basket to retailers.

General Mills focuses on leveraging research capabilities that enable its category management to provide valuable solution-based insights to its customers and thus drive FBG growth. The company works with customers to create a frozen aisle that maximizes category dollar sales by grouping items that promote cross-purchasing, and separating high-penetration categories to create a push-pull effect throughout the aisle.

Using Demand Transfer, General Mills can work with retailers to ensure that current and proposed distribution will maximize incrementality and sales, in turn providing its retail partners with a competitive advantage to grow the FBG category. Further, using DemandTec to run several pricing scenarios, General Mills is able to help customers create value for their consumers while maximizing category dollar sales.