Mondelēz to ramp up Oreo distribution in Russia

Oreo has been imported and distributed in Russia for some years, but has enjoyed limited marketing support. Mondelēz will now produce the brand locally after completing a plant upgrade in Sobinka and will back Oreo with a marketing campaign.

Marketing dollars behind Russian-made Oreos​

Andrey Samodin, external communications coordinator at Mondelēz Rus told ConfectioneryNews: “Oreo is already known to many Russians consumers as a global biscuits brand. There were sporadic imports from Europe to Russia in the past with limited distribution.​

 “In addition to the Russia-based manufacturing for the local market, there will be significant efforts to build Oreo’s national distribution, affordable pricing, as well as full-scale marketing support to continue building Oreo as an iconic brand in the Russian market,”​ he said.

Mondelēz has adapted the Oreo for local Russian tastes. Samodin said the Russian Oreo had a slightly sweeter biscuit and filling compared to the US version.

Mondelēz will sell Oreo across Russian retail outlets in three formats: Large 95 g and 228 g share bags and a 38 g package for individual consumption.

Russia growing biscuits market​

The Russian biscuits market has grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.5% since 2010 to reach $2.6bn in value sales for 2015, according to Euromonitor International.

Mondelēz leads the highly fragmented Russian biscuits market with a 5.8% share, followed by Kellogg (5.1%) and United Confectioners (4.5%), the research organization’s figures show.

The top three brands in the market respectively are Kellogg’s Lyubiatovo, Mondelēz’s Yubileinoye and KDV Group’s Yashkino, according to Euromonitor.

Mondelēz spokesperson Samodin said Russian consumers preferred sweet biscuits. “Yet [the] savory market is big and growing, and we address this segment with [our] TUC brand,” ​he said.

In its 2014 annual report Mondelēz said “Russia continues to be a key market for us”. ​ Russia accounted for 3.3% of the company’s consolidated net revenues in 2014, contributing $1.1bn.

Oreo in emerging markets​

Oreo generated global revenues of $2.5bn in 2014. The brand’s four biggest markets in order are the US, China, Venezuela and Canada.

Mondelēz has been expanding the Oreo’s presence in emerging markets in recent years. For example, the brand was launched in India in 2011 and in Brazil and Pakistan in 2013.

The company says South Africa, Venezuela and the Netherlands were the fastest growing markets for Oreo in 2014.