Dairy is not one category. Its packaging is not either
A global food packaging manufacturer was assessing growth opportunities in the APAC dairy segment, to guide portfolio and commercial investment decisions.
Packaging design for dairy is decided by the sub category it serves. Ambient and chilled are different problems, and a product aimed at children is a different problem again.
The client needed those needs mapped, the white spaces found, and a country level view built across APAC. White space analysis only works if the categories underneath it have been drawn correctly.
We asked the people who make it and the people who open it
In depth interviews ran with dairy and packaging stakeholders across operations, research and development, and marketing.
Consumer research ran alongside them on convenience, sustainability and usability, so the people specifying the pack and the people opening it were both heard.
Store check field audits then covered APAC markets, so the formats actually on shelf were recorded rather than assumed.
Three views of the same pack, which is what it takes before an investment decision gets made against it.
Formats split by segment. Sustainability splits by country
Format differences were clear by segment: ambient against chilled, and products for children against products for adults.
Cold chain and recyclability presented challenges specific to the category rather than general to packaging.
The white spaces sat in single serve and multi pack formats.
Sustainable packaging expectations varied strongly from country to country.
The client used it to target investment at the high potential formats, and to sharpen an APAC dairy packaging growth strategy with country level nuance.
