Circana Unpacked

This podcast is all about women! Specifically SeeHer, a movement launched by the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) at the White House in 2016 to increase the accurate and authentic portrayals of women and girls in marketing, advertising, media and entertainment. SeeHer has also developed the “gold standard” for uncovering unconscious gender bias in advertising and programming, called the Gender Equality Measure™ (GEM™). Listen in on an inspiring and soothing conversation with IRI’s Jennifer Pelino, Executive Vice President, Omnichannel Media at IRI, and Nadine Karp McHugh, President of SeeHer at the ANA, who are championing the movement and the expansion of GEM across the industry. This particular podcast will be an ongoing series, as there’s more to explore on this very important issue for our times and the opportunities for brands. To learn more, read IRI/ANA “Gender Equality in Advertising“ whitepaper.

Throughout it’s 55-year history, a top priority for PepsiCo has been operational excellence, viewed through the lenses of precision and closed-loop measurement. This value proposition held up to the strength test of COVID-19 while giving the global food and beverage company an opportunity to pressure test new tools and capabilities. Ram Krishnan, PepsiCo’s global chief commercial officer, talks with KK Davey, IRI’s president of strategic analytics, about new ways of connecting with consumers, improved go-to-market strategies, and the value of agility in making quick, smart decisions. 

CPG brands have been gaining new buyers as most of the food dollar has remained in the home during the COVID-19 pandemic. An unintended consequence has been a total focus on keeping the shelves stocked with the most popular SKUs and suspended promotions. IRI’s Jennifer Pelino, EVP Omni Channel Media and Nishat Mehta, president of IRI Media, explain why advertising and innovating during the current crisis is critical to the future success of brands.

The current recession is fallout from an unprecedented health crisis rather than subprime mortgages, but we’re still able to take lessons from the Great Recession and apply them to support today’s natural products shopper. Join Kathryn Peters, executive vice president of strategic initiatives at SPINS, IRI’s partner for tracking the natural channel, and Steve Ramsey, senior executive and practice leader at IRI, to learn about new opportunities and tools that can support the natural products market and its valuable shoppers.

Did COVID-19 pantry stockpiling undo the good of doing good? Research conducted by NYU’s Stern Center for Sustainable Business and IRI finds that sustainably marketed products have grown share during the pandemic. Join this conversation with Randi Kronthal-Sacco, Senior Scholar, Marketing and Corporate Outreach at New York University’s Stern Center for Sustainable Business and Larry Levin, EVP, Market and Shopper Intelligence at IRI, to learn more about findings. You can also find their webinar, The State of Sustainability in CPG: Is It Sustainable? at IRIworldwide.com

For special guest Target Chairman and CEO Brian Cornell, listening, learning and committing to an agile approach to business amid COVID-19 helped the retail chain not only adapt to new business models and protocols, but gain new buyers and grow sales. In a conversation with KK Davey, IRI’s president of Strategic Analytics, Cornell promotes the benefits of transparent relationships with CPG vendor partners, describes the right assortment of both national brands and owned brands available every day, explains why a combination of physical and digital stores is a winning combination, and much more. 

With the outset of COVID-19 we saw nearly all the food dollar transition to the home. That impact on CPG retail has been tremendous as retailers initially scrambled to get product to the shelves. But as we move into our next normal, we see other shifts occurring in retail, including where we shop, how we purchase and what we’re buying. Join Sally Lyons Wyatt, IRI’s Executive Vice President and Practice Leader, and Kurian Thomas, IRI’s Retail COO, North America to learn how retailers and manufacturers are addressing this growth and strategies for moving forward.

Center Store has seen unprecedented growth during the COVID-19 pandemic, but there’s another story unfolding that demonstrates consumers are committed to health and wellness. Join IRI’s Sally Lyons Wyatt, Executive Vice President and Practice Leader, and Label Insight’s Thea Bourianne, Senior Solutions Consultant and Registered Dietitian as the discuss the trends and opportunities for center store and beyond.

What is it about energy drinks and snacks that draw so much consumer attention – and consumer dollars? Join IRI’s Larry Levin, EVP, Market and Shopper Intelligence, for innovation insights, including elements of successful products, the value of Early Avid Adopters, and how social platforms level the marketing playing field.

Joan Driggs, IRI’s VP of Content and Thought Leadership and host of IRI Growth Insights Podcast, is a guest on The Food Institute’s Podcast where she joins Food Institute’s Chris Campbell and Brian Choi to discuss IRI’s 2019 New Product Pacesetters. Hot topics include the rise of blockbuster brands, the value of consumer segmentations, “better-for-you” products, and what innovation in a post-pandemic world might look like.