Heinz forced to delay Soup Cups launch
Heinz has been forced to delay its debut in the convenience sector after its Heinz Microwaveable Soup Cups product experienced “unforeseen production” problems. It has also had to pull advertising and promotions scheduled to run from this month.
The delay is a blow for Heinz, which would have wanted to have the soup in shops by now, to capitalise on the winter weather.
Heinz planned to launch the product in September, but it will now not be available until 2003. The soup comes in a cup with a snap-on lid and insulated sleeve; it takes 90 seconds to heat in a microwave. It was intended to be the first of a range of products to launch from Heinz’s recently established convenience group.
A £2.5m marketing push, including television advertising created by Leo Burnett has had to be pulled as a consequence. Media is bought by Starcom Motive.