Top 100 contenders: Ones to watch

The Bounty kitchen roll brand grew by 10.4% to £65.9m in 2007 and is tipped to enter the Top 100 league in 2008.

Procter & Gamble sold its European tissue operations to the Swedish company SCA last year and with it the licence in Europe for its Bounty and Charmin brands.

Both the Bounty kitchen roll brand and Charmin toilet tissue have performed well under new owners and are knocking at the door of the top 100 table.

Philadelphia grew by 7.1% to £65.8m and is chasing a Top 100 ranking.

Rowntree Sugar Confectionery grew strongly in 2007 to achieve a brand value of £65.6m.

If it maintains its current growth rate, it will be a Top 100 brand next year.

Its success hinges on one key word, permissibility.

Having already removed artificial colours and flavours from products such as Rowntree Pastels, Gums, Jelly Tots and Tooty Frooties, Nestlé has increased the amount of real fruit juice in its lines by 25%.

“Making the products more permissible for mum is absolutely top of the agenda,” says Graham Walker, who heads up Nestlé's UK trade communications and events.

Brand support including clear on-pack communication played a pivotal role too. The brand was also boosted by the launch of Juicy Jellies, which won the Product of the Year award in sugar confectionery.

Charmin, also in the SCA stable, grew by 9.9% to £64.7m last year. It is the third largest toilet roll brand in the UK, after Andrex (8) and Velvet (58).

Kellogg's brand, Coco Pops, grew by 11.9% last year to £62.8m in 2007.

Tipped as One to Watch last year Kettle Chips clocked up further impressive growth in 2007 with a 25% sales rise.

Still outside the Top 100, Kettle is the star performer within bagged snacks, capitalising on the premium and indulgent trend.

It's no-nonsense recipes and all-natural policy is a winning tactic too as consumers increasingly look for unadulterated products with no artificials or nasties.

The brand launched four new seasonings last year including its first meat product, Chicken with Rosemary & Thyme, plus new seasonal varieties.

Distribution levels also rose sufficiently for Kettle to take the plunge and launch its first TV advertising campaign last year.

If Kettle continues to grow at the same rate in 2008 it will break into the Top 100 league next year.

Surf Laundry grew by an impressive 13% in 2007 to reach a brand value of £58.9m. It was boosted by the launch of Surf Small & Mighty, a doubly-concentrated format.

Utterly Butterly enjoyed 22.4% growth in 2007 to achieve a brand value of £54.2m.

Launched in September 2006, Walkers Baked has had a phenomenal year in 2007 and is already a £38.1m brand.

It has benefited from the trend to healthier snacking with its baked rather than fried proposition.

Then trend looks set to continue in 2008 with two new flavours added to the six-pack range and a £3m support package announced for the brand.

Finally, Trident, Cadbury Trebor Basset's (CTB) chewing gum brand, made a big splash with its launch in January 2007.

It has already achieved a sales value of £29.3m since launch.

Trident reinvigorated a previously declining category with product and pack innovation from Trident and rival Wrigley.

It was all given added momentum with advertising and support with CTB spending £10m on Trident's launch campaign.

Source: Checkout Nielsen Top 100 Grocery Brands 2008