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Article: DISAPPEARING CEREAL TRICK: General Mills performs some marketing sleight of hand, shrinking cereal boxes to camouflage price increases.
- Article from:
- Saint Paul Pioneer Press (St. Paul, MN)
- Article date:
- June 29, 2007
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 Saint Paul Pioneer Press. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Tom Webb
Jun. 29--As grain costs climbed, General Mills faced a challenge: How could it raise cereal prices without irritating shoppers and losing market share?
For the maker of Cheerios, Trix and Lucky Charms, much depended on the answer. Two years ago, a clumsy price increase hurt the Golden Valley-based company's financial performance for months. On Thursday, executives described to analysts their new strategy, which involves a mix of packaging illusion, pricing psychology, competitive comparison and grocer hand-holding.
This time around, the company looked hard at how shoppers gauge value. General Mills' cereal boxes were larger ...