Sodebo is a French food company founded in 1973 by Joseph and Simone Bougro. Based in Saint-Georges-de-Montaigu in the department of Vendee, the company employs 2,000 people. Sodebo is an actor on the fresh caterer market and it is present on the shelves of supermarkets and hypermarkets. Historic of the company: In 1961 Joseph and Simone Bougro create delicatessen retail in Saint-Georges-de-Montaigu. In 1973, they founded the Society of Bougro Institutions, so Sodebo was born. In 1978, the “tomato pie” becomes fresh pizza. As sometimes in the agro-food production errors lead to commercial success. Thus, in 1997, Pizzeriade is the first single oval pizza. The same year, Sodebo starts in sailing sponsorship. In 2005, the company launched a range of products specific to the Belgian market. In 2007, the company is launched in the Italian market a range of specific product: PastaBox. The PastaBox appears on the French market in 2009.
Fresh delicatessen products free service: National and international marketing strategy (experience) The survey institute Kantar Worldpanel confirms the growth of snaking in France: + 4. 8% in the first quarter of 2011. Become an essential mode of consumption, this concept is intended for young workers under 50 years: urban, middle class or wealthy, single or children in primary school. In 2010, the market of « food box » has contributed to 60% of the growth of fresh convenience food (37M €, 10% of the segment’s turnover).
Number of Boxes launched in the French market 70 varieties of lunch boxes have been introduced in the market during the 6 first months of the year (2011). Sodebo is the undisputed leader in this sector. The company has sold more than 10 million Boxes in 2010 (against 4,000,000 in 2009) and, according to management department, has exceeded one million per month in Box 2011. We can take an simple example with “Fusili Pasta with Italian Cheeses” and “Chinese Noodles Pasta”. Sodebo launches limited editions
The range includes 18 recipes (+7 under its brand WOK). Sodebo’s strategy is to keep the pasta as the basis for all its Box, unlike Fleury Michon. The company must vary its variety of pasta: Fusilli, Fagottini, Penne and Tortellini and its packaging (MAXIBOX 400g). The last launch – Fusilli Tuna, tomato sauce, olive – is a limited edition. It probably foreshadows the future strategy of the brand. In March 2011, the company had launched its PastaBox on the British and Italian market. Approach logical, because the British are particularly followers to snacking.
At the moment the range is available in 4 variants: Penne Bolognese Penne Carbonara, Fusilli with Italian cheese and spinach and Ricotta Tortellini. Strategic Marketing Plan Executive Summary In recent years, the consumption of convenience food, sandwiches, and other fast food’s products are booming. We can explain this phenomenon by the lack of time during lunch breaks, or the facility to buy these products and theirs low prices. Less restrictive than the traditional system catering, this new wave of culinary consumption is attracting more and more people.
The company Sodebo decided to launch a new concept based on the American model of catering at school: the lunch boxes. The innovative product launched by Sodebo is called “PastaBox. ” As its name suggests, it is a box containing pasta. This box is heated in the microwave and eaten directly. First, we will talk about the current environment, we will take a SWOT, and then we talk about marketing objectives and marketing strategy development. We will finish by discussing the evaluation and control.
Sodebo is a family business, and it is in direct competition with the great names of French and international food industry. Product launched in 2009 on the French territory, it was a real challenge and a risky bet on the future. With recent changes in legislation on VAT in this sector, the decline in restaurant visits, the concept of PastaBox represented an alternative compared to traditional catering. External and Consumer’s Environment In recent years, studies show that the French take less time to eat during their lunch break.
To save time, assets eat convenience food, sandwiches or even food on Tupperware at their workplace. Often cheaper, these products are increasingly available, as retailers that sell these products proliferate around us. Who is doing what? Head of Marketing Strategy The Marketing Strategy of the Pasta Box by Sodebo is under the behalf of the marketing head for Pasta box and new markets, her name is Christelle Buetas Mesnil, she’s managing all the marketing strategy for this product, and all the departments of Sodebo linked to that (R&D, sales, production…).
Also she is monitoring the press communication of this product, in the professional press and in the generalist one. She has a fifteen years experience in the marketing of food industry, by being product manager, saleswoman, export manager… Who’s putting it in practice? The salesperson of the company are setting up in practice the marketing strategy as prepared by Christelle Buetas, but also the marketing department, the R&D and the factory are putting it in practice.
For example, the sales department applies the recommendations of Christelle Buetas about the price of the product, or the factory may have to modify the recipe following what she’s saying. SWOT Analysis Strengths First of all Sodeb’o is a family company since 30 years, which is a very big advantage because it represents a real force for the company. It was a delicatessen in Vendee (France) at the beginning. This company was the first to launch a box with pastas in April 2009, what increased by 16% the growth of fresh catering in launching Pasta Box.
Now Sodeb’o is the 3rd national brand in cooked dish and it is also the leader of the fresh caterers in France. Thus customers trust Sodeb’o and 40% of them eat Pasta Box once a week which enables Sodeb’o and its Pasta Box to get 50% of the market shares in the box segment. These customers buy their Pasta Box in Hypermarkets and Supermarkets. Indeed Pasta Box is distributed in Hypermarkets and Supermarkets (80%), in out of home catering (15%) and is exported (5%). Another force of Pasta Box, different from all the numbers I gave before, is the diversity of the product offer.
We can count more than 20 recipes just for the Pasta Box (for example tortellini Bolognese and beef, Fusilli carbonara sauce, penne and carbonara sauce, Chinese noodles with shrimp and black mushrooms…). To finish with general strengths, Sodeb’o won the LSA trophy (a website of consumer goods) in 2010 for the “Entrepreneur of the year”. Now we can talk about the strengths of the product. The Pasta Box offers simple recipes and the box is easy to use: 2 minutes in the microwaves and it is ready to eat thanks to the included “spork” (a spoon at one side and a fork on the other).
Moreover this is not really expensive: around 3 euros per box. Weaknesses Pasta box I think it’s a medium choice as food, it means that it’s better than food such as bread and sandwiches, but not as good as the hot and fresh food in the restaurant, and it’s not very convenient, because you have to heat it before you eat, so it seems like only can sell in the supermarket, or somewhere can provide a microwave service, it largely restricts the distribution channels of pasta box.
Consider it’s a fast food, people will first come up with an opinion is lack of nutrition, and in most supermarket, you can only find 3 or 4 tastes on the shelf, people don’t have many choices of it, what’s worse, you can never feel full after finishing one box. The package of pasta box is well designed, and the plastic box is good, so, among the similar products, pasta box is the most expensive one, because it’s high costs, it may not only turn down the demand, but also may limit the profits of it. * Not convenient, Need to be heated by microwave Not very tasty * Limited Distribution channel * Few tastes and lack of nutrition * Higher price, compare to the similar products * Serving size is too small * Higher costs(raw material) * Limited profits Opportunities The Pasta Box has already a lot of different recipes and it would be complicated to get more recipes again. That’s why Sodeb’o could make evaluate its product in being inspired by the current tendency for women to slim. Create healthy products rather turned to women who don’t have a lot of time to eat would be a good idea.
For example Sodeb’o could add more vegetables in its recipes. Sodeb’o could also create Pasta Box products which could be cold eaten because everybody does not have a microwave to heat to box. Threats As we mentioned, consider as food, there are too many substitutes against pasta box, such as salad, bread, restaurant and so on. What’s more, there are also many similar products, which also provide fast pasta. Therefore, in this industry and market, there is a fierce competition.
And nowadays, people prefer a health life, that will affect the choice they make, for instance, they may choose salad instead of the fast food as their first choice, or they may go to the restaurant to have their meal, also, they may face other kind of fast food competition, like Chinese fast food. In a word, the tastes of people can change very fast, and it’s hard to track them.
At first it was to attract potential consumers with a totally innovative concept. Then they had to fidelize these customers by adjusting product lines based on consumption of customers, their tastes, but also their ability to buy this type of product. Concerning the brand image of Sodebo, we believe it is essential for the company to stand out the world famous fast food as McDonalds. One of the objectives of their marketing strategy is to promote the accessibility of their products. In fact, they are found only in fresh shelf in supermarkets.
Obviously the company slogan illustrates this desire to differentiate the quality of their product; they attach a lot of importance to taste. Marketing Strategy Customers and Target Marketing The goal of marketing strategy is to identify specific customer needs, then design a marketing program that can satisfy those needs. Segmentation allows marketers to more precisely define and understand customer needs, and given them the ability to tailor products to better suits those needs. So, it’s very important to respect who they are. The company focuses its marketing strategy on a specific part of the French population (15-45 years).
In fact, this age group is the main target marketing. Sodebo also trying to attract consumers such as single people, or families, with children. Profile targets: people for whom cooking is not a passion, a pleasure, but a necessity. The practical and functional use of Pasta Box is determining elements in the consumer process. Market Segmentation We consider that the traditional market segmentation of Sodebo is “Differentiated marketing approach. With the launch of the PastaBox, Sodebo wants to position itself as a leader on the French market “Away From Home”.
The price of one PastaBox depends on the type of pasta, sauce, and the concept of the range (Asian, Italian etc. ). Pasta with Bolognese or Carbonara sauces cost cheaper than PastaBox limited edition with Italian cheese for example. The price fluctuates between 2. 50 and 5. 00 euros. Promotions are negotiated in advance with the purchasing central. The segment of PastaBox is very dynamic, so we think that this product is on its “growth step” on its life cycle. Distribution and Supply Chain Management The Pastabox are sold exclusively in supermarkets and in grocery stores.
Sometimes, consumers can also find it on motorway service areas or in slot machine. Therefore, it is an indirect distribution via a long distribution channel. In fact, the stores do not pass directly command with Sodebo, but with their respective central purchasing. It is imperative not to break the cold chain for these products. The PastaBox are transported by refrigerated trucks. We can conclude that there is a lot of logistic in the carriage on distribution of this product because it’s a very constraining product.
