Wensleydale fires up with chilli cheese launch
Wensleydale Dairy is targeting young men with the launch of a new blended chilli cheese developed to plug a gap in the market.
Chantico, a cheddar blended with hot Jalapeno and sweet chilli peppers named after the Aztec Goddess of Fire, has been developed to tap into the consumer trend towards chilli flavoured snacks across all categories such as crisps and chocolate.
The food manufacturer says its strategy to target the younger consumer market from university students to young professionals “is a departure from what it has historically done”.
The dairy traditionally produces hand crafted speciality cheeses but aims to evolve the business and drive growth with more mainstream product launches.
Commercial director Peter Andrew describes the firm as “small and punching above its weight” and adds that it is taking a more consumer focused approach than it has in the past by using Kantar data to identify what the consumer wants and developing products that fits.
Wensleydale Dairy has reorganised its marketing teams and appointed a brand manager in a bid to boost its commercial and branded activity in the past two years.
Wensleydale is preparing a “significant” ATL and BTL investment to support the launch and says social media will play a big part in consumer campaigns because the target demographic is much more active online and via social channels.
Marketing support will also include sampling activity and it will push the cheese as an ingredient in recipes as well as a snack.
Chantico will be available in Waitrose and Morrisons from mid-March.
