AWG Refreshes Best Choice Packaging, Product Mix
Best Choice, the flagship own brand of Associated Wholesale Grocers, is enhancing its presence in fresh perimeter departments such as bakery, produce, meat, and seafood with a new packaging design and product innovations aimed at helping AWG member retailers stand out from the competition.
Starting with the bakery department, Best Choice is launching new and existing items in redesigned packaging with the tagline: from the Bakery. The first items to launch with the updated branding are mini angel food cakes, along with soft-baked cookies in clamshell packaging.
Available in six varieties, both mini and regular size, the new cookies build upon the current bakery portfolio that includes frosted sugar cookies, cupcakes, and mini brownies and cinnamon rolls. All existing bakery items will shift to the Best Choice from the Bakery look later in 2024. In total, close to 20 items will make up the initial Best Choice from the Bakery portfolio.
Best Choice’s produce, meat, and seafood items will receive similar branding updates. Produce and meat products will be developed under Best Choice from the Farm, while seafood items will be named Best Choice from the Sea. Each department’s name calls back to the roots of the food.
“Our decision to update and expand the Best Choice brand is on point with trends and consumer requests, especially in the mini-size subcategory,” said Tye Anthony, AWG's chief merchandising and marketing officer. “Mini-size bakery items continue to grow in popularity as our research shows that snacks are the second most popular eating occasion for consumers to choose sweet baked goods. We want AWG member retailers to be on the cutting edge of these trends.”
Dan Koch, AWG’s group vice president of Fresh Sales and Merchandising, said the company’s goal was to develop products consumers are proud to put in their cars that also allow its member retailers to differentiate themselves from the competition.
“Consumers’ appetites for private brand products in the fresh departments continue to grow, so we’re making sure to meet this desire by offering great fresh products at a value in attractive packaging,” he said.
According to AWG officials, brand alignment was a priority when developing the expansion of the fresh departments. The new look is a visual promise to consumers that they can connect the same quality and value of Best Choice center store products, including the 100% guarantee, to fresh products, they said.