Soup’s On

Enticing flavors, better-for-you profiles keep the category bubbling.

Soup is hotter than ever. Confirming higher consumer demand, Norwalk, Conn.-based Stew Leonard’s, which operates four stores in Connecticut and Yonkers, N.Y., rolled out a “Soup of the Month” program in tandem with National Soup Month in January.

Under the program, the grocer introduces each month an on-trend soup variety prepared fresh daily by its in-house culinary team, with selections including split pea (March), Manhattan clam chowder (May), chicken chili (July) and butternut bisque (October). There’s even a traditionally chilled item, gazpacho, to offset the warmth of June. Stew Leonard’s Executive Chef Michael Luboff vows, “Each soup is made with fresh, simple ingredients.”

But over in the grocery aisle, can shelf-stable soups compete with fresh gourmet offerings? Increasingly, thanks to new recipes and clever marketing, they can. “Looking for ways to bring restaurant-quality soups to the dinner table, customers search for uniquely flavored, restaurant-style shelf-stable soups,” affirms Daniel Donovan, spokesman at Pittsburgh-based Giant Eagle, which has more than 200 supermarkets in Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia and Maryland.

Adds Donovan, “The introduction of great new flavors such as pumpkin, butternut squash, roasted red pepper and Thai chicken by vendor partners has contributed to the popularity of shelf-stable soup.”

Acquired Tastes

At Progresso, a brand of Minneapolis-based General Mills, they’re keeping close tabs on what shoppers seek in soup varieties. “While traditional flavors like chicken noodle continue to be the most popular, ethnic- and culinary-inspired flavors have been introduced to satisfy consumers’ ever-changing palates,” notes Valerie Mastroianna, Progresso’s assistant marketing manager, pointing to such recently introduced flavors from the brand as Rich & Hearty Tomato Florentine with Italian Sausage.

Another manufacturer, Tualatin, Ore.-based Pacific Foods, has tapped into current flavor trends by offering unprecedented flavor profiles in center store. “One of the strategies that we saw success with in 2013 centered [on] consumer education and usage for our line of soup starters,” explains Brand Manager Ben Hummel. “Pacific Soup Starters are a unique offering in the soup section, which allow consumers to build their own soups from our globally inspired pre-seasoned bases like Beef Pho and Tortilla soup. We set out … to help educate consumers on how to use the product, to show them how easy it was to prepare dinner from scratch and to give them some usage suggestions.”

To achieve this goal, the company introduced a demo campaign while the product was on deal, during which it offered a coupon that made “the price point hard to beat,” notes Hummel, adding that staffs were trained to become “product experts,” and then armed with standout demo kits.

“Consumers were able to customize the samples they received in stores by adding in ingredients at the end like cilantro and tortilla chips, and saw a basket on the table with suggested ingredients to purchase to complete their meal,” recounts Hummel. “Some retailers went a step further, creating dinner kits with meat and vegetables, and merchandised the Soup Starters in a secondary refrigerated grab-and-go section alongside the kits.”

He characterizes the results of the well-executed campaign as “fantastic, yielding thousands of samples distributed and converting scores of shoppers into Soup Starter consumers.”

In-store Excitement, Simplicity

As well as such “tried and true” marketing tactics as TV, price promotions and sampling, Progresso strives to “place a strong emphasis on events such as ‘back to school’ with our ‘Box Tops for Education’ program, as well as other seasonally relevant programs that are a strong fit with our business,” explains Mastroianna. “These range from TV show integrations to added support during cold and flu season. Retailers love these events because they allow for large displays and excitement in-store. Similarly, shoppers appreciate the added context as to how our products can best meet their needs.”

The brand has also discovered, however, “that the most effective marketing and merchandising strategies are often account-specific,” she says. “We partner closely with our retail partners to identify and support programs that are important to them and their shoppers. These include digital activations and various proprietary in-store levers. Retailers have responded positively to our partnership, as it allows them to customize our campaigns for their accounts.”

Giant Eagle, for one, is big on keeping its soup aisles simple. Donovan says that the grocer’s “focus is to create a convenient shopping experience for all of our customers. Our soup aisles are defined with clear breaks between ready-to-serve, condensed, broth, dry and premium soups, giving customers a clear view of the vast variety in an easy-to-shop format.”

Health Matters

Beyond new and exciting flavors, consumers want shelf-stable soups to deliver on healthful attributes.

“In regards to health and wellness, calorie-controlled products, such as Progresso Light, are popular with consumers,” says Mastroianna. “They love that they are able to enjoy indulgent flavors such as Chicken & Cheese Enchilada and Creamy Potato with Bacon when they are managing their weight. The category has also seen the introduction of heart-healthy products that contain lower amounts of sodium and fat.”

Among the brand’s recent entries in this segment are Light Chicken Corn Chowder with Bacon and Heart Healthy Southwest Black Bean and Vegetable, introduced this past July, and Light Savory Beef Barley and Vegetable and Light Creamy Chicken Alfredo with Pasta, which debuted in January.

“Consumers are looking for soup that is a natural extension of their lifestyle, whether that means fitting in with their dietary expectations of gluten-free, low sodium or high fiber, or if it means having a product that can help them with portion control or with their busy, on-the-go lifestyle,” observes Pacific’s Hummel. “With so many food options, consumers are going to look for products that work for them, rather than trying to figure out how to work something into their diet.”

In response to consumer health needs, last summer the company introduced reduced-sodium versions of some of its popular soup varieties, including Organic Chicken Noodle and Organic Spicy Black Bean and Kale.

Comfort With a Twist

Shelf-stable soup in the near future will offer consumers the ability to explore from a safe base. “I think we’ll see soups emerge that provide consumers the opportunity to explore new flavors and ingredients without pushing too far outside their comfort zone,” predicts Hummel, who thinks the ethnic dining trend is far from over, given the growing Asian and Hispanic influence on mainstream foods. “We may start seeing classic soups with a twist, or the introduction of unexpected ingredients. Our spicy black bean and kale soup is a great example — where consumers can try kale and get the nutritional benefits, while the beans and spices provide the main flavor.”

The company will have the opportunity to affect the direction of the soup category quite soon: According to Hummel: “At Expo West [in March], we’ll be unveiling 2014 launches of soups in both new flavors and formats that we have not previously sold before.”

“Some retailers created dinner kits with meat and vegetables, and merchandised our Soup Starters in a secondary refrigerated grab-and-go section alongside the kits.”
—Brad Hummel, Pacific Foods