Nestlé International Travel Retail (NITR) has revealed ‘Together We Grow’ (TWG) – a new platform designed to help its retail partners build sustainability in travel retail.

This new concept falls under the Regeneration pillar in NITR’s VERSE (Value, Engagement, Regeneration, Sense of Place and Execution) growth model.

Together We Grow is exclusive to travel retail, and made its debut last month during the TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes. NITR is introducing its B2B communication for the project this month. This will be followed by the in-store roll-out in 2024, when all the company’s sustainability-focused communications will be presented under the ‘Together We Grow’ umbrella.

NITR believes that TWG can support its retail partners’ sustainability objectives, in parallel to communicating the significant impact it has made in the last 15 years, through packaging initiatives, the Cocoa Plan and the Coffee Plan.

Nestlé leads sustainability agenda

NITR General Manager Stewart Dryburgh commented: “Together We Grow is an umbrella platform to communicate our sustainability efforts across our portfolio through one food category concept that will include both our confectionery and food brands.

“Its key objectives are to drive brand awareness and visibility and to lead the sustainability agenda with the retailers, at the same time as embedding key impacts we have made in our sustainability journey.”

Dryburgh highlighted the distinctive, agile and people-centred approach of NITR’s sustainability efforts. “Flexibility is built into TWG so it can be tailored to different brands and regions and elements of sustainability,” he explained.

“It is both B2B and B2C facing and there are digital and in-store assets, including logos and visuals, that can be deployed across the consumer journey from pre-trip to in-store and post-trip.”

NITR is refreshing its travel retail-specific website to provide information on TWG and sustainability. Furthermore, all TWG point-of-sale assets have QR codes that enable the consumer to learn more about the group’s Cocoa and Coffee Plans.

The TWG platform includes all key NITR brands: KitKat, Smarties, Quality Street, After Eight, Nescafé, and its latest addition, Nestlé Sustainably Sourced Cocoa. It has been created to drive incremental, permanent, and promotional visibility while providing communication assets across the entire customer journey.

NITR cited m1nd-set research which indicates that customers are cynical and not satisfied with brands’ sustainability efforts in travel retail. The group also highlighted queries relating to the lack of sustainable choices in airport shops and the possibility of ‘greenwashing’.

The TWG toolkit offers retailers both confectionery-centric and cross-category solutions, incorporating new displays and airport furniture which were revealed at this year’s TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes. The branding can be applied to wall bays and free-standing units.

The TWG platform embraces sustainable, natural materials, including FCS-certified plywood. All units are built for disassembly, can be flat-packed to save on carbon emissions, and are designed to minimise environmental impact.

All the TWG in-store furniture is made from recycled materials, and is designed for maximum flexibility and minimum waste. There are adjustable shelves to fit different product assortments, and changeable side panels that allow messaging to be adapted to highlight different brands and sustainability proof points.

Lastly, NITR has designed a cross-category solution for coffee and chocolate, enabling consumers to make sustainable cross-category choices. The company believes that its TWG concept could easily encompass multiple categories in the longer term.

“In fact, we have been discussing the possibility of joint initiatives and campaigns with our retail partners to support their sustainability objectives and strategy,” Dryburgh concluded.

“The concept was very well received in Cannes by our retail partners, as it provides a flexible space-efficient system that can support multiple brands and categories and showcase the retailers’ commitment to sustainability in an impactful way.”

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