A new face for discounter Lidl. TOP or FLOP?

Wellmann kontra Pascal & Okrasa

Already for a couple of weeks the big billboards in front of Lidl stores are titling “Zapraszamy na pozegnalny obiad”/("You are invited for a goodbye dinner") starring the “faces” of Lidl in Poland, Pascal Brodnicki (French cuisine) and Karol Okrasa (Polish cuisine) hinting at changes in brand communication planned by the German discounter.

When seeing the latest boulevard headlines, announcing that Dorota Wellmann might take over the role of Pascal & Okrasa for Lidl, the question arises: How will this affect brand perception...?

Polish consumers prefer Polish homemade cuisine:

• Polish consumers have a national cuisine to be proud of and close family ties, which means, that cooking traditions are still handed from generation to generation and eating together is an important part of social family life.
• With a population consisting of more than 97% of ethnic Poles and low immigration rates, culinary influences from other countries until lately have been negligible.
• Eating out (other than for family celebrations) is still not popular in Poland with most of the Polish preferring homemade meals. Until recently consumer foodservice was sinking for full-service restaurants and mainly increasing in the segments fast food, pizza consumer foodservice and 100% home delivery/takeaway.
  
  

How are cooking preferences changing? 

• On average 1.3-1.7 mln Polish are working for 6 to 12 months abroad. When returning, often with increased purchasing power and, naturally, with changed eating habits.
• TV cooking duels, celebrity shows and magazine articles empower and encourage to face new culinary challenges ... 
• Retail chains like TESCO, Lidl and Biedronka use popular celebrities to boost consumer engagement and create brand loyalty. This is complemented by international cuisine actions, recipe leaflets and social media cooking videos. 
• Lidl has 25 non-Polish cheese specialties on their shelves, some of them even with PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) label. 
• Lidl also has introduced to their assortment - additionally to the “Polish Trojka” szczypiorek (chive), pietruszka (parsley) and koperek (dill) - fresh herbs like thyme, rosemary, bazyl, oregano, and marjoram, which shows new trends in cooking.

In comparison to main competitor Biedronka, who so far has a "We are Polish"  and lowest price consumer perception, Lidl is making its mark with quality, modernity and internationality.

Discounters are balancing international and local assortment

Due to their business model, discounters mainly focus on internationally single-sourced assortment to increase buying volume advantages and supply chain and operations efficiency. However, differences in local consumers' preferences (food culture, ethnocentricity) and product particularities (transport costs, perishability) require a mix of local and international articles. Best example for this is the assortment of ALDI in Poland, probably the only retailer remaining closest to the original discount concept, offering a narrower assortment than competitors, which is mainly produced in Germany. 

Lidl, globally the main competitor for ALDI,  has a stronger focus on internationally sourced assortment. It has built a consistent brand communication with Pascal and Okrasa enriching traditions with new international culinary impulses, adding a positive, modern and sometimes humorous and light touch.

Can Dorota Wellmann without substantial culinary background and international flair continue along these lines? 

What do you think? TOP or FLOP?

I would be interested to hear your comments and expectations.

If you are interested in other posts regarding CEE Retail & FMCG, CEE Leadership & Management, as well as CEE Culture & Consumer, you are warmly welcome to connect with me.

Recent posts in this series:
CEE Retail & FMCG:
Grocery Retail in CEE: Poland - Quo Vadis? 
Discounter store concepts: Efficiency vs. Emotion?

CEE Leadership & Management: 
Leadership experiences from Russia 
Which Company to Work for? Retail Anthropology 

CEE Culture & Consumer:
A new face for discounter LIDL. TOP or FLOP?