Arrowhead Mills cereal packaging

Packaging Has Strategic Role in Brand Refresh/Renovation

Harvey Chimoff Leave a comment

There’s an old marketing adage: when a new brand manager arrives, get ready for a package design change.

While there may be some historical truth to that expression, its use typically conveyed a sarcastic, shallow and derogatory view of marketing. Hopefully, such thinking has dissipated, because packaging is a critical success factor to maintain brand health and relevance. And, those marketers and business leaders who take a disciplined, strategic approach with packaging have a distinct advantage.

This brings me to Arrowhead Mills, a brand of Hain Celestial.

While brand management personnel may have changed over the years, the company’s view of packaging as a strategic, brand-management driver has not. This year, Arrowhead Mills has been phasing-in a complete redesign across categories, including cold cereal.

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Arrowhead Mills Gets it Right with Cereal Package Update

Harvey Chimoff 2 Comments

If you just read headlines, you’d think marketers flunk every time when it comes to package redesign.

Not true.

Logo from Arrowhead Mills.

Logo from Arrowhead Mills.

I’m happy to report that my favorite cereal brand, Arrowhead Mills, has done a nice job updating their healthy, grain-based line of cereals.

And by the way, not to get onto a related but different topic here, it’s not that hard to add healthy (fiber, whole grains, low added sugars) and good tasting cereals to your breakfast table.

There weren’t any grievous issues with the old cereal packaging, but the use of a white background provides a contemporary, fresh and up-to-date feel.

Arrowhead Mills has wisely continued with the prominent front-panel, content benefit statements (e.g., whole grain, fiber, low fat).  This is the right approach based on consumer learning from when I worked for global ingredient supplier Tate & Lyle. Continue reading →