Product

Life Cycle
2013-00402-MN-0 feb 3 97 xzd7uhmx

Introduction:
Gardenia Philippines started its operations in 1998 with
the state-of-the-art bread factory rated as one of the
most modern large scale bread manufacturing facility in
the country
Gardenia Philippines introductory stage lasted for 3 years
which started from 1998 and ends in 2000.
The total sale in 1998 is P 175 million, which exceeds the
companys initial expectation; the reason behind this high
sale is the introduction of the super Healthy High Fiber
Wheat Bread loaf that was widely accepted by bread
lovers and slowly became popular to all.
In 1999, the company has made further inroads to
Philippines
market
by
increasing
its
sales
to
supermarkets, Petrols stations and mini-marts. This
constitutes to the increase in the total sales, in 1999, by
10%, or by P17, 500,000, from its 1998 total sales of
P175 million.

In 2000, the Gardenia brand became the leading brand in

the Metro Manila market and has achieved the largest
market share. It had increased its sales by 23 %, or by P
44,275,000, from 1999 total sales. This is all because of
the companys aggressiveness in increasing product
awareness in the market through advertising, in-store
promotions, and product sampling and joint promotions.
Moreover, a new channel of distribution was introduced
with the inauguration of direct home delivery services in
the districts of Ayala, Alabang and Makati. New products
were also introduced such as specialty bread (California
raisin and Chocolate Chip), hotdog buns, hamburger buns
and Choco Filled Buns and their contributions to the
growth in sales were felt. Significant improvements were
also made in the production and distribution operations
which led to gains in efficiency and reduced distribution
cost. As a result, gross margins were markedly increased
despite increased in raw material cost resulting from
higher oil prices and the devaluation of peso that year.

Summary of Totals Sales

(1998-2000)
Year
Sales Growth by (%)
Sales
1998
1999
10
P192.5 M
2000
23
P 236.775 M

Actual

Amount

17,500,000
44,275,000

Increased
P175 M

Growth:
Gardenia Philippines is currently at the stage of growth. It
hasnt reached its peaked yet nor will it anytime soon.
The growth stage of Gardenia Philippines is from 2001
present and might continue to be at this stage until it
builds a factory in Mindanao so that Gardenia bread is
accessible to many people living there. Currently it has its
main factory in Laguna, which is responsible for the
production of breads and delivery of it throughout Luzon,
and another one in Cebu for the Visaya and Northern
Mindanao areas. For your information, Gardenia
Philippines forecast its sales based on population;
meaning, the larger the population, the higher the sales
is. As it is now, Gardenia Philippines breads can only
produce 6000 loaves per hour or 144,000 loaves per day
in its Laguna plant and 2000 loaves per hour or 48,000
loaves per day in its Cebu plant. What does this
suggests? It just tells us that Gardenia sales will continue
to increase as it increases the capacity of its factories or
more factories are established and more distribution
channel opens, and this further proves that Gardenia
sales havent matured yet.
For us to know more of the growth stage of the Gardenia
Bread, let us take a look at its yearly sales and the reason
for its increased sales.

In 2001, Gardenia Philippines maintained its rapid growth

in sales with an increase of 35% in sales from its year
2000 total sales of P 236.775 M. The growth in sales was
only limited by its production capacity. Because of this,
the Company commissioned a new production line in
December of that year which has effectively increased its
production capacity by 200% or from 2000 loaves per
hour to 4000 loaves per hour, which is almost 100,000
loaves a day.
New products were also launched during the year which
includes the successful Gardenia Pandesal, Gardenia
Double Delights and 2 additional variants of the filled
buns Strawberry and Ube. In addition, the company
launched its first television advertisement in December
2001 as well as new print advertisements and
merchandising
activities
were
also
implemented
throughout the year. Furthermore, distribution routes
were expanded and there was also an increased coverage
of Metro Manila retail market. All of these contributed to
the growth in sales in the year 2001.
The total sales in 2002 increased significantly by 65% or
by P207, 704,413 from its 2001 total sales of P
319,545,250. The sudden soar in sales is mainly due to
the installation of the new 4,000 loaves per hour plant
with the state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities on March
1, 2002 so as to satisfy the increasing demand of
Gardenia Bread. Add to that the introduction of new
products which contributed to the growth in sales. These
new products are Gardenia High Calcium Loaf 400g
Double Delights Ube and Cheese, High Fiber Wheat Bread
600g and Jumbo Pandesal. What's more is the

introduction of Gardenia High Calcium Loaf which is

formulated to meet the need for bone-health.
In 2002, Gardenia Philippine also launched an aggressive
TV advertising campaign which complemented its print
advertising efforts. Various merchandising activities like
samplings, a street marketing campaign using pedicabs
to sell Gardenia products, house-to-house selling drives,
transit billboard campaigns and tie-ups with other product
manufactures
and
non-profit
organizations
were
implemented during the year.
Furthermore, distribution coverage of Metro Manila was
intensified to reach previously uncovered market
segments while geographically coverage was extended to
Tarlac City in the north and Lucena City, Quezon in the
south. Due to its close association and relationship with
major
supermarket
chains,
Gardenia
Philippines
benefitted from the chains expansion in both Manila and
the surrounding areas within Luzon.
The year 2003 was one of the most difficult times for QAF
Limited because of the impending SARS disease.
However, the disease did not stop the Gardenia
Philippines to increase its sales. Gardenia Philippines
sales had increased, once again, in the year 2003 by 23
% or by P 121,267,423. The market share of Gardenia
Philippines has also increased to 43% from 35% in 2002.
One factor for the rise in sales is the introduction of new
gardenia products which catered the needs of health
conscious consumers such as High Calcium Loaf, Carrot
Raisin Loaf and the 5-Grain Loaf. The economically priced
Neubake bread loaf and a lower priced Pandesal called

Soft Delight Pandesal were also launched to service the

middle and lower income segments of the market. The
filled bun category was also expanded with a new
Blueberry flavor and 2 new Mini-filled buns were also
introduced- Ube Macapuno and Choco-choco flavours. In
addition, a new line of toast snacks was added with
Honey Wheat, Chocolate and raisin toasts. And, as part
of the companys effort to add value to its already
established distribution capability, Gardenia Philippines
took over the distribution of the Munchys range of wafer
and biscuit products, which were originally handled by
Gardenia Malaysia, in the second half of 2003.
Another one is the effective advertising and promotion
programs by Gardenia Philippines. Advertisements were
made in various media including television, radio and
even public buses while promotional programs involved
strategic tie-ups with leading sandwich spread, cheese,
noodle, sauce, milk and coffee companies were made to
reach out to consumers. Pre-packaged value-packs and
bundle-packs were also developed so as to improve
efficiency
of
promotional
programs
in
leading
supermarkets and chain stores.
The daily visit of 1000 students or normal folks in the
Gardenia Factory, located in Laguna, likewise helped
boosts the sales of Gardenia Bread.
During that year, Gardenia Philippines also strengthened
its distribution network by expanding its retail coverage
in key provincial areas in the north, reaching up to
Dagupan City in Pangasinan province, Baguio City in
Benguet province and San Fernando in La Union province.
It also launched its new territorial distributorship program

in Metro Manila to cover numerous small variety stores to,

again, reach the middle to lower income market
segments which actually comprise the major part of the
Philippines market.
As for the year 2004, Gardenia Philippines has made
progress in strengthening its number 1 position in the
Metro Manila market. Sales in 2004 grew very rapidly by
48 % and Gardenias market share is now more than 50%
of the said market. The company has not only increased
its market penetration rates in the established Metro
Manila market by intensifying the distribution of its
products to all the major supermarket chains as well as to
the smaller provision and variety retail stores, but has
also steadily expanded its sales to the neighboring
provinces in Luzon as well as to part of the Visayas. An
additional production line was also installed at the end of
2004 to cater to the rapidly increasing demand for
Gardenia product, bring the total number of production
lines to three
In the year 2005, Gardenia Philippines sales grew by 25 %
or by P 239,951,322, breaching the one billion peso net
sales at P 1.2 billion. Market share in the Metro-Manila
branded loaf bread segment also improved further
beyond the 60% mark. This was achieved despite a flat
consumer spending trend on bakery product during the
year.
During that year, a new facility in Laguna was completed.
This building features the biggest bread Distribution
Centre in the country which will further reinforce the
companys outbound distribution capabilities and this will
result in a more efficient daily delivery of fresh breads.

This new building will likewise accommodate the future

6000 loaves per hour plant which is planned to meet the
continuing demand for Gardenia Bread.
New products were introduced including Twiggies, which
comes in two flavors: chocolate and vanilla that are
perfect for kids and adults alike. This product was
produced thanks to the new snack cake production line
installed in the Laguna International Industrial Park
Facility, which was acquired in the year 2004. Twiggies
marks Gardenia Philippines entry to the rapidlyexpanding
snack
market.
Additionally,
Gardenia
Philippines also introduced the image enhancing Amazing
Loaf line series, whose flavors change every few months.
The first one was the Black forest loaf. Another new
product was the No Sugar added white sandwich loaf,
which is targeted mainly for the health conscious
segment of the market and the Whole-Wheat bun, which
is an all-natural high fiber cracked whole wheat, rich in
phytonutrients.
Gardenia once again has expanded its distribution and
now reaches the northern-most cities of Luzon.
Distribution now reaches the north-eastern provinces of
Cagayan Valley and Nueva Viscaya and has reached the
city of Tuguegarao in the northern-western side of Luzon;
distribution has now reached all the way to Laoag City in
the province of Ilocos Norte including Ilocos Sur and Abra.
In the Visayas group of island, Gardenia breads have now
reached Bacolod City in Negros Province.
Furthermore, the company now caters to small
neighborhood variety stores in a move that is designed to
provide convenience and accessibility of gardenia

products to households. The company also launched a

project with the Department of Health to promote healthy
eating among school children in both public and private
schools. The program features a workbook entitled The
Healthy Bread which was designed to teach grade 1
students the right food to eat and a lot more about
healthy eating.
In 2006, Gardenia Philippines increased by 17% or by
2,000,000,000 and now reached a record of P1.4 B pesos.
This was achieved despite the bread market in the Metro
Manila market remaining flat throughout the year.
Profitability also improved over that of the previous year
in spite of higher raw material, energy and fuel costs. The
increased profitability resulted from higher selling prices
and productivity improvements.
Gardenia's market share in the Metro Manila bread
market has now reached 62%. This dominance is clearly
seen in light of the fact that the company's next 2 largest
competitors only hold 7% and 5% market shares,
respectively. In the specific white sandwich loaf market,
Gardenia Philippines has captured an even larger 73%
market share.
During 2006, Gardenia Philippines launched a major
marketing and Advertising campaign and captured a 44%
share of the Pandesal bun, Gardenia then became the
dominant brand in both the loaf and pandesal markets in
Metro Manila.
Gardenia Philippines also introduced The Honey Oat Loa
which was well received by the market. This product is
made with the natural goodness that comes with oats

and honey which provide benefits for health. Another

'Healthylicious' product introduced was the High Calcium
MilkBread. It offers multi-health benefits plus the rich,
delicious creamy taste of milk in every bite. It is rich in
calcium that helps build stronger bones and teeth but is
low in fat and has no cholesterol and these will help
improve one's overall cardiovascular health. It also has no
trans-fat and has health and good dietary benefits.
In addition, The Company had increased its distribution
system to serve markets outside Metro Manila from Ilocos
and Cagayan Valley in the north down to the Bicol Region,
Panay and western Negros in the south. Gardenia is now
available throughout the major regional markets in the
Philippines except for the Visayas and Mindanao .The
Company also intensified its coverage and market
servicing with the use of third party Territorial Distributors
to cover the small variety stores within Metro Manila and
its surrounding provinces.
Gardenia Philippines achieved another record with sales
of P 1.6 billion in 2007, an increase of 17 % over that of
2006. Profitability also increased despite escalations in
the cost of raw materials especially flour, energy and fuel
costs as the company achieved improvements in
productivity and efficiencies.
The company maintained its successful record of new
product launches. To serve the rapidly growing demand
from the health conscious market segment, Gardenia
launched the Sugar-Free 12-Grain Loaf, the latest addition
to its line of healthy bread products. This product is
cholesterol-free with zero trans-fat, has 12 pure and
natural whole grains and seeds and contains vitamins and
minerals that help reduce the risk of heart disease. It is

also sugar free and appeals to customers who may be

weight conscious.
To cater to an emerging trend of customers who prefer
smaller loaves and greater variety, Gardenia Philippines
launched its Mini Wonders line of bakery products in
2007. This line of products allows a customer to select a
variety of flavored bakery products which are smaller in
size. New unique products such as Carrot Raisin and
Mongo (red mungo bean) were successfully launched in
2007. Gardenia Philippines also expanded its snack cake
line with the addition of new flavors such as the Twiggies
Yellow Cake, a single-serve moist, soft and tasty snack
cake. A new banana muffin product and a chocolateflavored cream roll snack product were also launched.
Gardenia products were then widely distributed in the
entire Luzon peninsula, from Laoag and Tuguegarao in the
north to Sorsogon in the south as well as to the Western
Visayas. The company also utilises 30 territorial
distributors in Metro Manila and the surrounding
provinces to service the smaller variety and community
stores which have not been reached by the companys
sales personnel.
The bakery operations in the Philippines under Gardenia
Philippines achieved a record year with sales at Php.2
billion, a 25% growth over that of 2007. Profitability
remained good even though the company was affected
by significant cost increases in flour, other raw materials
and fuel in 2008.

In this year, Gardenia Philippines continued to dominate

the loaf bread market in Metro Manila with an estimated
market share of more than 60%. In particular, the
company has a dominant share of the total white bread
products that are sold in supermarkets.
Also, successful launches of new products were made
during the year. The Gardenia line of snack products was
expanded by the launch of the Gardenia Muffins which
are made with premium ingredients such as chocolate
chips from Belgium and frozen berries from Switzerland.
The Gardenia Muffins come in 2 flavors chocolate and
blueberry. The companys existing Cream Roll snack line
and its crispy Buttered Toast also saw very significant
growth in sales during the year.
Advertising campaigns were also launched to promote
the healthy attributes of the companys Gardenia Classic
White Bread and Pandesal which have high folate
contents. Folate assists in the healthy regeneration of
new cells and contributes to the promotion of the health
of consumers.
In addition to the already established market of the Metro
Manila area and its surrounding provinces, Gardenia
Philippines have expanded, again, its geographic reach to
the entire Luzon Island, stretching from Ilocos and
Cagayan in the north to Sorsogon in the south. The
company has also penetrated the markets in the Western
Visayas provinces and uses Roll-On-Roll-Off ferry vessels
to bring freshly baked Gardenia products to the provinces
of Panay and Negros.
Due to the rapidly increased demand from its customers,
Gardenia Philippines existing 3 bread and1 snack cake

production lines were operating at full capacities at that

time. The company then installed a new-fully automated
6,000 loaves per hour bread line which was expected to
be operational by the latter half of 2009.
Gardenia Philippines, the largest bread producer in the
Philippines, saw another record year of positive growth in
2009 with total sales of P2.1 billion. This was an
achievement given the general decline in the countrys
total bread demand. Profitability also increased due to
stringent cost containment measures.
Gardenia Philippines remained as the market leader in
the loaf bread industry with a market share exceeding
60% in Metro Manila. Its distribution network is the
largest in the baking industry, covering the entire Luzon
archipelago and the Western part of the Visayas
archipelago, including Mindoro, Panay and Negros islands.
In 2009,the company expanded its geographical reach to
the Eastern part of the Visayas, bringing freshly baked
Gardenia products to the major islands of Samar and
Leyte, using roll-on roll-off (RORO) vessels and its fleet of
company-owned feeder trucks.
In November of 2009, Gardenia Philippines inaugurated a
new fully automated state-of-the-art loaf plant with a
capacity for producing 6,000 loaves per hour. The plant
has not only provided the company with the additional
capacity to enable it to venture into untapped markets in
the Philippines, but has also become an educational plant
tour destination, playing host to some 3,000 - 8,000
visitors a day. Gardenia Philippiness 4 loaf production
lines, a pandesal bun plant and a snack cake plant have a

combined capacity for producing in excess of 200 million

loaves and buns a year.
Moreover, during that same year, Gardenia Philippines
launched the Slim & Fit Wheaten Bread aimed at healthconscious consumers. This new bread contains LCarnitine and is a good source of dietary fiber to aid in
weight management. The company also introduced a
Cookies and Cream flavor to its Cream Roll snack line. In
addition to collaborative promotions with major
supermarkets and chain stores, the company launched 2
major advertising campaigns to promote its Classic White
bread and High Fiber Wheat bread. Gardenia Philippines
holds a 90% market share in the high fiber whole wheat
bread segment; all of which helped in the growth of sales
during the year.
For the year 2010, despite the rising raw material and
fuel costs, the Philippines largest bread producer,
Gardenia Philippines continued to dominate the branded
bread market, with a growth in sales of 19%, with a total
sale of P2.5 B, and expanding its market share by 3%, to
command more than 65% of the Metro Manila market.
During that year, the company laid the foundation for
further growth in the Philippine bread market by
establishing a strategic bread manufacturing base in
Lapu-Lapu City in Cebu province. This was the companys
first foray into the southern archipelago of the Philippines,
and the untapped Visayas and Mindanao markets. The
Cebu bread plant commenced operations in December
2010, supplying supermarkets, chain retail stores and
groceries in the Central Visayas, including the entire
province of Cebu. Using the roll-on roll-off (RORO) ferry

system, Gardenia Philippines also expanded its

distribution into the surrounding provinces of Bohol and
Mindanao, and to the modern cities of Cagayan de Oro,
Butuan, Iligan, Malaybalay and Davao, which, as a result,
significantly increases the gardenia sales.
Furthermore, several new products were introduced to
delight the taste buds of loyal consumers. A new
Butterscotch Loaf was launched in the Amazing range.
This sweet and caramel-tasting bread packed with loads
of butterscotch chips gives sweet-toothed consumers a
novel way to enjoy bread. Another new product is the
High Fiber Wheat Raisin Loaf targeted at the healthconscious consumers who want the health benefits of
whole meal flour, and the natural goodness of raisins with
its high fiber content and anti-oxidants. The company
also expanded its snack product line in response to the
needs of consumers for single-serve, cheap and
convenient products. It introduced 2 additional variants of
cream roll buns in Choco Strawberry and Rocky
Road flavors, a 2-Slice snack pack of Black Forest Loaf,
and a 5-Slice pack of Cinnamon Toast all of which
contributed to the rise in sales.
And another reason for the companys success is its
effective marketing and brand management, by which an
advertising campaign was launched to showcase the
companys modern bread manufacturing plant and its use
of only the best ingredients in its bread production.
Moreover, to fully engage with consumers and ensure
that its message of delighting every Filipino consumer
reached all segments of the population, the company
developed an Integrated Marketing Communication
program covering multi-touchpoints. This included

television and radio broadcasts, print, transit ads,

merchandising, publicity, plant tours and promotional
events, and new technology low-cost social networking
and digital promotion media. The company also started
utilizing social networking tools such as Facebook, Twitter
and YouTube to promote the Gardenia brand to
consumers. It intends to expand its marketing efforts into
other newer technologies and social media platforms to
bring the Gardenia brand closer to a younger generation
of consumers.
In the year 2011, Gardenia Philippines registered a record
sales growth of 25% with revenue surpassing P3 billion.
This was a remarkable achievement in a market that grew
by 10% and affirms Gardenias leadership of the
Philippine bakery market. This above-market growth was
supported by successful marketing initiatives, addition of
tasty new products, expansion into new markets and
contribution from the companys Cebu plant.
The companys expansion into the southern Philippines
was a success with the Cebu plant completing its first fullyear of operations. The company made further inroads
into the Visayas and Mindanao markets and the provincial
Luzon countryside, establishing a strong brand presence
in supermarkets, convenience stores and drug store
chains.
To meet consumer needs and wants for affordable and
convenient products, the company introduced a 2-slice
snack pack of its popular flavored breads. The 2-slice
snack packs of California Raisin Loaf, Double Delights Ube
Cheese and Butterscotch Loaf were very well received
and opened up a new market segment for these products.

Since Gardenia Philippines have always been committed

to making products that consumers love, the company
continued this goal by adding 2 new variants to its
popular Cream Roll snack line the Coffee Cream Roll
Dulce de Leche and Coffee Cream Roll Coffee Crumble.
These new flavors combine the full-bodied richness of
coffee with irresistible creamy fillings in a bun for a
delectable snacking experience.
As for the companys marketing and promotion initiatives
in 2011, it involved all touch points of its Integrated
Marketing Communication program. Digital tools utilized
included its corporate website, Facebook, Twitter and
YouTube, complemented by TV, print, transit and point-ofpurchase advertising, publicity, merchandising, events
and promotions. The companys effective use of multichannel marketing ensured maximum impact on its
target audience. The marketing and branding efforts
during the year included the Oh I Love Gardenia
campaign to encourage consumers from different age
groups, backgrounds and psychographics to eat more
bread, and the Tagged Healthy campaign that aimed to
raise consumers health-consciousness by encouraging
them to attend a nutrition counseling session or a talk on
nutrition; these are all done to increase peoples
awareness in the gardenia products which ultimately
result in an increase in sales.

Gardenia continued dominating the packaged bread

market in the Philippines, commanding a market share in
excess of 60% in Metro Manila in 2012. Despite the

aggressive price cutting and Buy-1-Take-1 promotional

offers of its competitors, Gardenia Philippines proved
resilient, achieving growth in sales, by 8% with the total
sale of P3.375 B, and profitability.
The companys strong performance is attributable to its
range of popular bakery products that cater to every
taste and pocket, the development of innovative new
products and its aggressive marketing efforts.
During the year, the company introduced several new
product variants to expand its product line. Following
upon the huge success of its High Fiber Wheat Raisin loaf,
the company launched the Wheat Cranberry loaf,
uniquely flavored sweet and tangy tasting bread
containing the health benefits of fiber and cranberries.
The Wheat Cranberry Loaf met consumer demand for an
indulgent and tasty bakery product that also provided a
health benefit. The bread was a big hit and has secured
Gardenias foothold in the health bread category.
In order to satisfy consumers looking for a single-serve,
lower priced indulgent product, the company expanded
its range of best-selling cream rolls with 2 new exciting
flavors Mangoes n Cream and Choco Peanut Butter. It
also introduced 2 new variants to its tasty muffins
Mango and Banana-Choco. The Mango Muffins are packed
with flavor from real mango bits, and the Banana-Choco
Muffins contain real chocolate chips and banana bits. On
the other hand, to strengthen its range of Amazing
Flavored Bread, the company added the Amazing Dates
and Walnuts Loaf which contains the perfect mix of dates
and walnuts baked into a premium loaf.

Furthermore, Gardenia Philippines stepped up its health

and wellness activities by increasing the number of visits
to offices and supermarkets where it provided free
nutrition counseling services on good health and proper
diet. The company also participated in many marathon
competitions, fun runs and other sporting events to
spread the message of good nutrition and promote its
healthy bread products. The companys popular bread
plant tour, which incorporates a brief lecture on hygiene,
healthy eating and nutrition, also saw increased visitors
of more than 350,000 in 2012.
Also, as part of their marketing strategy, Gardenia
Philippines, in conjunction with World Bread Day, held the
countrys first-ever Happy Bread Day Fair at Eastwood
City Mall Open Park, Quezon City in October 2012. The
Fair was held in partnership with many well-known food
and beverage brands and widely promoted through a
fully-integrated multi-channel marketing program. The
event brought together thousands of bread lovers,
including families, students and working adults for a day
of enjoyment with fun activities that included booth
samplings, games, interactive cooking demos and a
variety show. Besides being a fun-filled promotional
event, the Happy Bread Day Fair was also a CSR initiative
as it helped to raise funds for less-privileged children in 2
childrens foundations through its I Shared Bread
promotion. For every loaf of Gardenia bread bought at the
Fair, the company donated 2 loaves of bread, 1 loaf to the
Bahay Bata in Luzon and another loaf to the Lingap
Center in Visayas.
Another major marketing initiative that also created
micro-entrepreneurial opportunities for the unemployed
was the companys Sari-cycle program. The program

used motorcycles with mounted product displays to sell

Gardenia products near schools, parks, churches, offices
and factories, further extending the companys
distribution network in the Metro Manila market.
Even more, the company launched a major campaign to
promote Gardenias brand identity and product quality.
The campaign was widely advertised on TV and on
Gardenias delivery trucks, which were repainted to
feature photos of the companys mouthwatering
sandwiches under the slogan, A good sandwich starts
with a good bread. And to promote higher bread
consumption, Gardenia launched an online sandwich
campaign that featured videos and photos of creative
Gardenia bread recipes on its corporate website, YouTube
and Facebook.
The companys advertising initiatives also included online
advertising to capitalize on the increasing popularity of
social media. The company increased its online presence
on social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter,
YouTube, various blog sites, as well as its corporate
website. To develop brand affinity with the younger
generation, the company also participated in bloggers
events and advertised its products through online ad
placements and sponsored posts on blogs.
In addition, Gardenia Philippines was among the first in
the local bakery who took advantage of the widespread
use of smartphones industry to advertise its products. QR
Codes were put on Gardenias delivery trucks and
advertising material to update consumers on the
companys latest promotions. Other advertising initiatives
included the use of media personnel to cover the

companys high-tech bread production plant and

automated bread-making processes, and interviews and
talks over TV and radio.

In 2013, Gardenia Philippines capped 15 successful years

of operations in the Philippines with control of over 60%
of the Metro Manila packaged bread market. The
companys consistent and steady growth in sales, 3.7%
this year with a total sale of P3.5B, and market share over
the years is a remarkable. This is all because of the
companys effective marketing strategy, fun contests and
the production of new products that the customers love.
For the year 2013, the company re-launched a revitalized
NeuBake white loaf in a 450g pack at a competitive price;
this is to compete with the proliferation of low-priced
white loaf breads and the Buy-1-Take-1 promotional
offers of aggressive competitors. Also, Gardenias Cream
Roll was re-launched, with the purpose of capturing the
lucrative student market, in a smaller 50g pack at an
affordable, kid-friendly price that garnered positive
response from thousands of students in Metro Manila and
nearby cities and provinces.
Throughout the year, the company under took several
marketing and promotional activities. These included an
integrated multi-media advertising and communications
blitz in celebration of its 15th anniversary, a new TV
advertising campaign for its Classic White bread and a
multi-media healthy indulgence advertising campaign for
its Fruitylicious range of High Fiber Wheat Raisin Loaf and
Wheat Cranberry Loaf.

The companys biggest campaign of the year was The

Next Big Sandwich Hit contest, which encouraged
consumers active participation in the creation of new
sandwich innovations. The contest was a sandwichmaking and business idea generation competition to
harness and develop the entrepreneurial and business
management skills of students from 10 universities in the
Philippines.
The contest created widespread interest and the
company received more than a hundred sandwich recipe
entries as participants competed to create the most tasty
and innovative sandwiches. The campaign was supported
by school activations, online promotions and press
releases in print and broadcast media.
The company also extended its reach to the northwest
part of Mindanao, to the province of Misamis Occidental,
and in the northeast, to the province of Surigao. In Cebu,
the companys production plant was expanded to include
a second line to produce flavored loaves and
pandesal for the Visayas and Mindanao markets. The
expanded production capability and wider product range
will enable the company to substantially increase sales
volumes and optimize its distribution network in the
southern Philippines.
Gardenia dominates the packaged bread market in the
Philippines with a market share exceeding 60% in Metro
Manila. Despite a market slowdown in 2014, Gardenia
Philippines posted a 7% increase in sales on the back of
aggressive brand-building and marketing activities and
expansion into new markets.

Gardenias strong sales growth came from several bread

segments led by the companys Healthy-licious Wheat
bread category, where Gardenia controls over 90% of the
market. Sales of its Toast products grew by more than
25% as a result of increased production capability, and
the Pandesal bun line posted a 16% increase driven by
successful
demand-generating
promotions
that
encouraged consumption.
In 2014, the company expanded its distribution network
by 10%, making inroads into new geographic markets.
Gardenia also capitalised on the expansion of retail
chains and convenience stores that ventured into smaller
store formats located close to, or within their target
markets. With the entry of new chain stores, the trend of
retail trade expansion across the Philippines is expected
to continue in the coming years and the company is
optimistic that this will potentially lead to an increase in
bread sales. With its expanded network of outlets,
Gardenia products can now be found as far as the southwest part of Mindanao, to the province of Zamboanga Del
Sur, and farther east, towards Surigao Del Sur.
The company added a new Cheese Cream Roll variant to
its range of popular cream rolls during this year to
strengthen its position in the packaged fresh bread
single-serve market.
Gardenia Philippines implemented several marketing and
promotional activities in 2014. The company launched
several brand awareness campaigns that emphasized
Gardenias point of difference and brand identity as a
world-class bread in order to heighten awareness of the

Gardenia brand in the provinces. Truck ads were also

used to widely communicate Gardenias promise of fresh
bread, delivered daily. And in September 2014, Gardenia
marked the second year of The Next Big Sandwich Hit, a
major brand awareness and marketing campaign that
created widespread interest and was avidly followed in
the media. The Next Big Sandwich Hit is an inter-varsity
sandwich-making
and
business
idea
generation
competition. Students from 10 premiere universities in
the Philippines competed to create the most delicious
sandwich, transforming a simple loaf of Gardenia bread
into mouthwatering creations. After several grueling
qualifying rounds, the second part of the competition
tested contestants on their entrepreneurial, business
management and marketing skills as they competed to
sell their sandwich creations over a two-week period.
The competition was supported by widespread publicity,
including school activations that featured an interactive
sandwich-making game, press releases in print and
broadcast media, online and digital promotions that
generated 14.5 million hits, and online media
engagements. The Grand Prize Winners were featured in
a food magazine and in a highly-rated TV and radio show.
Another highly visible advertising campaign was the
Happy Bread Day celebration in October 2014. For the
third year running, Gardenia celebrated World Bread Day
with a fair attended by thousands of bread lovers at the
SM Mall of Asia. Gardenia created a Bread City concept
for the occasion, and visitors were treated to a day of fun
activities and plenty of Gardenia bread samples. The
Happy Bread Day celebration was covered on social
media and on-ground promotions, as well as through
advertising on TV, radio, and billboards.

Now that that is done, let us show you a summary of

Gardenia Philippines yearly sales during its growth stage
so that we would be to clearly see how the company
progresses in terms of sales
Summary of Totals Sales
(2001-2014)
Year
Sales
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014

Sales Growth by (%)

Actual

Amount

Increased