Episode 2: Warburtons Bread

In this episode, we do a deep dive into Warburtons’ bread. In order to grasp the staggering size of the family-owned brand in terms of its market share, let’s first consider a few facts around the Warburtons business.

In 1870, Thomas Warburton and his wife Ellen first opened their grocery shop in Bolton, Lancashire. Today, Warburtons is the largest family-owned bakery business in the country. In 2020, Warburtons’ sales were £656.2 million. That’s up 3.4% on the previous year.

More than a quarter of all bakery products consumed in the UK is produced by Warburtons. They are the number one brand in the non-bread category, which includes anything from rolls, crumpets, thins, tea cakes to lower-priced artisan breads such as sourdough loaves.

While stats are great, what I’m really interested in are the human stories behind the numbers. So, we found some Warburtons customers and called them up.

Listen in and find out what I heard and what lessons I gleaned around what motivates customers and what dissuades them from certain brands and attracts them towards others.

Key Highlights

• [02:36] Fast facts about the Warburtons business
• [04:12] Snippets from our conversations with customers on Warburtons’ bread
• [07:48] What Warburtons customers say online
• [09:42] Takeaways from our findings: grouping customers via their preferences
• [11:01] What research helps you to do

Powerful Quotes by George

• I totally understand that it’s not always easy or practical to track down customers or prospects and ask them questions, be it face-to-face or on the phone. So, the next best thing is even easier, and it’s free: Just get yourself onto Google and start searching the brand name, and try to find forums, feedback, Trustpilot reviews. That will also give you a sense of how customers are reacting to the brand; how they think and feel about it.
• Research can help you see how customers assign value—it’s not always about price.

Revue section

• Ogilvy Behavioural Economics Course With Rory Sutherland – Learn why people do what they do and how to influence them. Course link https://www.42courses.com/courses/behavioural-economics

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