MANILA – Universal Robina coffee brand Great Taste has rapidly risen through the ranks on the latest Kantar Worldpanel Brand Footprint study, becoming the fifth most chosen brand among Filipino consumers in 2014.
From 11th place, the Universal Robina coffee brand has leap frogged to pole position after attracting 293 million additional shoppers last year, together with consumer base shopping four times more on the average.
Based on Consumer Reach Points (CRP), a metric about a brand’s strength based on how many shoppers are buying it and how often, Great Taste has score 515 points, 40 points higher year-on-year.
Alexandre Duterrage, General Manager at Kantar Worldpanel Philippines, owes the growth to the brand’s shift from traditional “pure black coffee” to 3-in-1 coffee mixes, particularly Great Taste White and the introduction of multi-serve packaging formats.”
Nescafe and Monde Nissin instant noodle brand Luck Me are still the brands to beat with 890 billion CRP and 846 CRP respectively. Completing the top 5 are Surf (648 billion CRP), Milo (518 billion CRP) and Great Taste (515 billion CRP).
Kantar also listed the top 10 rising brands in the country, which recruited an average of 74 million more homes compared to 2013. Only three 3 local names found their way to the top 10: Great Taste, Datu Puti and Silver Swan.
As most brands struggled to grow in 2014, Datu Puti and Silver Swan managed to maintain their ranking in terms of consumer touchpoints (both with a -1% CRP % change). 
Kantar Worldpanel notes that stable ranking can be attributed to commercials about the product’s system usage (i.e. using vinegar and soy sauce of the same brand when cooking), and the introduction of new flavours especially for the vinegar category where both brands have product offerings.
Other highlights in the study are :
Importance of personal and home hygiene
Calla (a detergent brand manufactured by Peerless) lands into the top 20 Home Care items, surpassing 13 brands. It enticed more households with its budget-friendly offer and gentle-to-hands proposition.
Silka and Charmee’s positions in Health & Beauty inched up with a CRP increase of 7% and 5%, respectively. Filipino endorsers, product quality and affordable prices are amongst their success factors.
Products with social function grew well – seen in Health & Beauty and Beverages
Dove enhanced consumer touchpoints by 9%, moving up one notch in the health & beauty sector ranking. Thanks to its crusading campaign for real beauty which resonates with consumers emotionally and encourages purchase not only in PH but across the world.
Krem Top is now amongst the top 20 Beverages in PH, jumping by 8 points as it reached more shoppers with the help of its “Change for the Better” campaign which aims to challenge individuals to always strive to become better.
Speed and convenience
Ready-to-eat snacks and drinks such as Presto, Clover, Dutch Mill, Pepsi and Royal Tru Orange performed well (CRP growth rates in order: 3%, 4%, 9%, 10% and 18%) as consumers are increasingly turning to FMCG to satisfy hunger between meals.
