KP to spend £3.5m on relaunch of McCoy’s snack brand

KP Snacks-owned crisp brand The Real McCoy’s is to receive £.3.5m overhaul as part an aggressive drive for growth. KP’s parent company, United Biscuits UK, plans to invest a total of £44m in marketing this year.

The overhaul of McCoy’s, which will begin in mid-February, includes a review of the flavours in the McCoy’s Spice range and the launch of a new flavour, McCoy’s Spice Thai Sweet Chicken. The Chilli and Sizzling Beef flavours have been renamed to associate the flavours with countries – the former now being called Mexican Chilli.

There will be a revamp of the Spice packaging to bring it into line with the core McCoy’s range. Packs will now have the traditional gold livery and a “Spice” logo. The core range is also having its packaging updated with bolder colours, although it retains the gold livery and the “Accept No Limitations” strapline.

The relaunch will be supported by a television and outdoor campaign, and there will be a promotion around the Euro 2004 football tournament, emphasising the brand’s positioning as a snack for men.

KP is also investing £6.5m in its flagship Hula Hoops brand. It will improve the flavour of the core range and launch a limited edition “Shake 2 Flava” pack. Publicis has also created a £4m advertising campaign for the brand, with the new strapline “You Coming in or What?”. The campaign shows consumers being drawn into the hoops.