Every year, in preparation for the Super Bowl, U.S. consumers spend about $14.3 billion on everything from game-day food to new TVs, according to the National Retail Federation. Of the 76% of TV viewers watching the big game on Super Bowl Sunday, 79% will purchase food for the occasion—which is second only to Thanksgiving in terms of the sheer volume of food sold and consumed.
With that much money exchanging hands, the Super Bowl has officially reached season status. And it’s time for retailers to start planning for that season.
“Since we know Super Bowl is the second biggest snacking occasion outside of Thanksgiving, retailers should treat it as a ‘fifth season’ since permissibility and relevancy of snacking increases,” says Larry A. Lupo, vice president of sales for grocery, convenience and drug for Mars Chocolate North America, Hackettstown, N.J.
The two weeks around the Super Bowl generated $1.5 billion in snack sales and $767 million in candy sales in 2015, according to IRI. That’s a 4.8% jump for snacks and 4.7% boost for candy. In light of this sales boost in an otherwise quiet time of year, many suppliers are creating or expanding their Super Bowl strategies to help c-store retailers take advantage of the growing opportunity.
Click here to discover the power of the nacho plate.
“It’s clear that there are ... specific entertainment occasions that drive incremental purchases of [our] snacks, such as the Super Bowl,” says Mark Baranczyk, director of trade marketing for Jack Link’s, Minong, Wis. “As the most-watched sporting event in the United States, the Super Bowl is the ultimate entertainment occasion where people gather together and eat.”
Score a Snackdown
Super Bowl viewers across the country stock up on nearly 166 million pounds of snacks before the game, according to Kristen Hamby, category manager of grocery and snacks for McLane, Temple, Texas. This increased foot traffic in convenience stores results mainly in salty-snacks purchases.
“They are looking for a variety of foods that are casual, easy to eat and often have the feeling of ‘bar food’ such as pizza, wings, chips, dips and chili,” Hamby says.
Keeping it real is ideal, she says: “Super Bowl food usually entails a good mix of both homemade, store-bought and ready-to-eat foods. Most rely on tried-and-true recipes, although they may try one to two new ideas if feeling adventurous. Popular store-bought items include take-and-bake and frozen pizzas, chips and salsa.”
Ellen Determan, who along with husband Pat co-owns Lyons Filling Station in Clinton, Iowa, takes a page from the fresh-pizza playbook every season, offering a take-and-bake special with their homemade pizzas. They also make sure shelves are fully stocked with chips, salsa and dip.
“Good Super Bowl business depends on a lot of things in Iowa,” she says. “Weather being the first, and who is playing the second. … If it’s the Bears or Packers, you are sure to have a successful Super Bowl Sunday. If you have a foot of new snow, probably not as much business.”
At Heath, Ohio-based Englefield Oil Co.’s Duchess Shoppes, Super Bowl sales are on par with other holidays. “It’s beer, chips, energy drinks and snacks,” says John Tomlinson, director of purchasing and merchandising. “The key is to be in stock of all of these items—and then some.”
Kris Kingsbury, marketing and merchandise manager for Robinson Oil Corp., Santa Clara, Calif., has a name for consumer brands that sell especially well during Super Bowl season at the company’s 34 Rotten Robbie stores: “At Super Bowl time, there is a power of three: Pepsi, Frito-Lay and Budweiser.”
Preparing for Kickoff
Super Bowl selling strategy starts with communicating with suppliers about special campaigns and getting orders in early.
“Ideally, planning would begin in the spring (Q2),” says Mark Larrabee, VP of c-stores, special markets and retail operations for Chicago-based Wrigley. “Obviously, the opportunity will vary between retailers, but most should take the excitement around the NFL playoffs into account, which could allow them to activate throughout the month of January.”
For Mars and Wrigley, it’s all about differentiation.
“Most retailers already are activating against the Super Bowl occasion, so we’ve been working collaboratively with our retail partners to ensure our programming will ‘Make Super Bowl 50 Even Sweeter’ to allow us to stand out in this competitive environment,” Mars’ Lupo says. Mars intends to unveil its official program closer to game day.
For Jack Link’s, it’s all about the bundle—and a partnership with one of Kingsbury’s “power of three” seems like a no-brainer.
“The Bud family is partnering with [us] to provide consumers with savings on their favorite snacks and beer,” says Jack Link’s Baranczyk. “We have found consumers tend to have a higher sense of brand loyalty when entertaining around the holidays and special events.”
While the Super Bowl reigns over all other U.S. sporting events, football in general—college as well as the NFL—is a selling opportunity all to itself, especially playoffs.
“Reese’s has been an official partner of the NCAA since 2009 and has steadily grown its footprint in college athletics,” says Anna Lingeris, senior manager, brand public relations and consumer engagement for The Hershey Co., Hershey, Pa., whose Reese’s brand became one of the partners of the inaugural College Football Playoff in 2015.
CONTINUED: The Right Assortment
Game Face On
Most consumers typically create their Super Bowl menu, gather coupons and even “raid their stockpiles before heading out to shop for Super Bowl party supplies two to seven days before the event,” McLane’s Hamby says. “It is also important to note that some increased sales for Super Bowl preparation can start as early as a week and a half out.”
As with any other time of year, the Super Bowl season is about having the right product assortment merchandised appropriately.
“Displays are key,” says Wrigley’s Larrabee. “Obviously, we’re working together to try and package all of our snacking options together to make it easier for consumers to find their favorite Mars or Wrigley snacks for Super Bowl, so retailers could take a similar tack with other products that consumers would be looking for during this occasion.”
In the partnership between Jack Link’s and Budweiser, the companies employ multi-merchandising displays with header and case card. The offer is $1 off a 2.85-ounce bag of Jack Link’s jerky with no beer purchase, and $2 off a 2.85-ounce bag with the purchase of a case of Bud Light or Budweiser. The promotion begins in January 2016.
For other suppliers, Super Bowl promotion has less to do with a proper display—it’s more about the deal. A recent study conducted by Mondelez found that digital banner ads and coupon inserts were the most memorable among its consumers who remembered seeing a cross-promotion centered around the Super Bowl, McLane’s Hamby says.
That’s a Lot of Chicken Wings
1.23 billion: Number of chicken wings consumed on Super Bowl weekend. That’s 27 times laid end to end across the United States, from San Francisco’s Candlestick Park to the Baltimore Ravens’ M&T Bank Stadium.
14,500: Tons of potato chips eaten that weekend
2.5 million: Pounds of nuts eaten that weekend. If all those nuts were peanuts, it would be enough to fıll 1.8 million 12-ounce jars of peanut butter.
No. 1: Super Bowl Sunday is the busiest day of the year for pizza restaurants.
Sources: National Chicken Council, National Restaurant Association, Hass Avocado Board, National Peanut Board
L.A. Gas Station Tacos
Super Bowl opportunities exist in your foodservice program, too. Consider fun customization ideas on Super Bowl Sunday, including this over-the-top option from celebrity chef Roy Choi of the famous food truck Kogi BBQ.
Ingredients:
- 4 flour tortillas, 5-inch diameter
- ¼ c. prepared bean dip
- 4 slices American cheese
- 4 slices ham
- ¼ c. jalapeño cheese dip
- ¼ c. crumbled pork rinds
- 2 T. shredded beef jerky
- ¼ c. pickled jalapeños, sliced
- ½ Red Delicious apple, matchstick cut
- hot sauce
Instructions:
- On a microwave-safe plate, arrange the tortillas in a single layer.
- Top with the bean dip, American cheese, ham and cheese dip and microwave until melted, about 1 minute.
- Top with the pork rinds, jerky, jalapeños, apple and a dash of hot sauce.
- Fold and eat.
Source: Chef Roy Choi via Bon Appetit
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