Integrated Annual Report 2021

To protect and enhance our brand leadership, and to realise growth opportunities in a post-Covid-19 operating context, we are implementing measures to meet and beat the current and anticipated needs of our consumers. We are delivering market-leading consumer relevant solutions to meet the needs of the value conscious consumer, to realise commercial opportunities in health, nutrition and snackification, and to respond to changes in in-store shopping dynamics and heightened consumer sensitivity to sustainability issues.

MEETING THE GROWING NEEDS OF THE VALUE-CONSCIOUS CONSUMER

We recognised that to effectively meet the needs of the value-seeking consumer, we needed to take a combination of deliberate steps to be successful and deliver explicit value in price points as well as the total value equation. Last year, the board approved a clear value-trend strategy for the business, with three key focus areas: driving our relevance in the value segment by building the clear benefits of our current brands through marketing and communication best practice; driving innovation and renovation to meet value-specific consumer needs; and identifying and delivering commercially viable opportunities to manufacture private label products to our benefit.

Although we have made some progress this year in each of these focus areas, this has not yet had a material impact on business performance, with many of the initiatives only landing in the last quarter. In addition to a recent value-led marketing campaign, we have driven value-for-money innovations in certain categories to meet more affordable price points, including new value packs in bread, chutneys, KOO (canned food), and in Personal Care categories. Given the continued growth in the sale of private label products in South Africa, including in some of our priority product categories, this year we have defined clear guidelines around engagement with customers in this regard, clarified the private label manufacturing decision-tree, and identified some specific private label manufacturing opportunities in key categories with relevant customers.

Next year we should see the positive outcomes of this year’s projects, and we have plans for additional innovations and initiatives in the value space. Delivery of these initiatives will be aided by the accelerated rollout of revenue management aimed at optimising promotional activity, cost savings projects that help keep prices competitive, and our strategy for competing effectively in the deep discounter channel (see Financial review).

REALISING THE COMMERCIAL OPPORTUNITIES IN HEALTH AND NUTRITION

As Africa’s biggest food company our health and nutrition agenda is integral to our corporate purpose to nourish and nurture more lives every day.

We believe that there are valuable opportunities for business growth in leading the health and nutrition agenda in South Africa and across the continent. We are looking to realise these commercial opportunities through our health and nutrition strategy. The strategy has been in play for more than 18 months and remains particularly relevant given the state of nutrition in South Africa, as well as pending labelling and marketing regulations. We have recently revised the strategy to include a focus on commercialisation in a bid to drive stronger awareness and actions in favour of this portfolio of products.

For more detailed disclosure on our ESG performance, please see the Tiger Brands sustainability report 2021, available at
www.tigerbrands.com/sustainability/reporting.