The document is a study on consumer perception of Nutella, exploring consumer behavior, preferences, and awareness regarding the chocolate spread. It highlights Nutella's market position, competitive landscape, and suggestions for improvements in flavors, distribution, and packaging based on survey data collected from 50 users in Chennai. Findings indicate widespread satisfaction among consumers, although there are concerns about pricing, availability, and product diversity.

1. A research on
Consumer perception of
Sadiq Hussain Khan D
dsadiqkhan@gmail.com
April, 2017

2. ABSTRACT
Nutella® was created in the 1940s by the Italian confectioner, Pietro Ferrero, also the inventor of
Ferrero Rocher, Tic Tac, Kinder Joy and other sweets. At the time, there was very little chocolate
because cocoa was in short supply due to World War II rationing. So Mr. Ferrero used hazelnuts,
which are plentiful in the Piedmont region of Italy, to extend the chocolate supply.
Today, Nutella is a global brand with sales in 75 countries.
A company needs to know the behavior of their consumers to know what they think about the
product or service which they are offering. The study has been done to understand the consumer
behavior on Nutella. The comparison has been done between various chocolate spreads and this
survey has been done on the basis of various parameters by comparing the frequency of usage,
price, market share and recommendations.
The consumer attitudes towards different products have a significant impact on the decision
whether to purchase the product or not. A detail analysis has been done in every respect. We
have found out few strategies which the company implements and have also come up with few
suggestions to overcome its challenges, maintain its market share and consumers. This also
includes the improvements which the consumers wants in this products, their expectations and
product packaging.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
The study is an empirical study based on the survey method and the data is collected with the
help of questionnaire. The study is Descriptive research where the data is collected by non-
random sampling method.
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
1) To identify the current market situation of Nutella.
2) To understand the consumer behavior towards Nutella.
3) To study awareness of consumer about various bread spreads.
4) To understand it’s time and frequency of usage among the different age groups and gender.
5) To understand the availability in the market, affordability and the packaging of Nutella.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY, TOOLS & TECHNIQUE:
The data was collected with the help of structured questionnaire. A sample of 50 Nutella users
from Chennai city was selected from different occupation and age groups.

3. OVERVIEW OF NUTELLA
Nutella was first developed in 1940. The product was invented by Mr. Pietro Ferrero, who was
employed by a patisserie. A patisserie is a type of French bakery that specializes in pastries and
sweets. Ferrero later went on to found his own company, named Ferrero Rocher. The company is
in the food business. Their mission statement is as follows: High quality, crafted precision,
product freshness, careful selection of the finest raw materials, respect and consideration for our
customers. When Ferrero invented Nutella, Italy was embattled in WWII. Cocoa was in short
supply. As a replacement for cocoa beans, Ferrero used toasted hazelnuts with skimmed milk,
smaller hints of cocoa & palm oils and created 'Pasta Gianduja' which was eventually renamed
Nutella. Six years later, Ferrero Rocher was officially recognized by the Italian Department of
Commerce. Ferrero Rocher went went on to launch the brands Tic Tac, Nutella, and Kinder
Chocolates. In the years that followed, Ferrero Rocher focused on high quality chocolates.
Nutella was brought to the United States in 1983. The U.S. was chosen because of its large
population, giving Nutella access to a bigger target market and an opportunity for a large
increase in sales. Production for the U.S. and entire North American market occurs at a plant in
Brantford, Ontario in Canada. It is because of this that the product was first distributed to the
Northeastern part of the U.S, before exporting to the rest of the country.
Right from the beginning Nutella spread had a good reception among the people. Because they
had something which tasted very good and was less expensive. A kilogram of chocolate did cost
6 times its cost. This eventually made people to include Nutella as their breakfast staple since it
encouraged kids to eat whole wheat breads, toasts and muffins quickly and easily. Since then, the
company has grown into an international brand with 12 plants and 18,000 workers across five
continents.
BRANDING
Nutella’s branding strategy has been spot on throughout its existence. They had positioned
themselves, since inception, as part of a balanced breakfast – by encouraging kids to eat whole
grains. The strategy highlighted the presence of hazelnut and milk in the spread. The largest
demographic served by Nutella are mothers and children, the amount of Nutella being sold and
consumed is staggering – all this even though it’s a sugary and fatty chocolate paste! This
example proves how important the image of a company is.
The Nutella brand has a strong and growing social following across channels like Twitter,
Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram. Not surprisingly, the majority of online conversations
revolve around sharing Nutella recipes and imaginative ways to enjoy the product.
The brand is behind some of this promotion but much of it occurs organically via word-of-
mouth. In fact, who knew that every February 5th is World Nutella Day?
This unofficial international holiday was organized not by the company but by Nutella loyalists.
The World Nutella Day website (www.nutelladay.com) primarily serves as a hub where fans

4. from around the world can share recipes with one-another. There are literally thousands of recipe
submissions to choose from.
While the Nutella brand team targets “mom with kids” as its primary target audience for
television media and creative strategy, our analysis also reveals the immense popularity of
Nutella on college campuses.
MARKET ANALYSIS
The target market of Nutella is children ages 6-14 and their parents, demographically speaking.
Nutella targets larger families with young children. The main distribution channel is through
airways because Ferrero Rocher’s headquarters is located in Italy.
Chocolate spreads is one of the fastest growing segment in the market. The chocolate spread has
grown by 13% in 2012, is now estimated to grow at over $300 million. Nutella still rules the
pantry when it comes to spreads. They are currently dominating in US market, it boast an even
higher market share in other counties, including India. While this category is still niche in Indian
market, estimated at less than 100 crores, other players have tried to dabble in this market with
limited success. Chocolate spreads are growing faster than jams at about 20 percent. Nutella
from Ferrero India continues to dominate with 90 percent share.
Ferrero is expanding their production facilities at Baramati, Maharashtra and strengthening its
warehousing and distribution in India. Indian operations are considered to be third largest after
Italy and Germany in terms of workforce. In India, Nutella is warehoused and exported to nearby
countries like Maldives, Sri Lanka, China and Singapore. The Baramati plant is dealing with
exports of Ferrero products to China, Middle East and South East Asia. It has been rapidly
increasing its portfolio and distribution and has been present much longer (since 2004) than
Hershey’s which entered India through a JV with the Godrej Group in 2010, and subsequently,
split to start its own subsidiary. Hershey’s has been locally manufacturing its cocoa and almond-
based chocolate spreads, unlike Nutella’s hazelnut spread which continues to be imported.

5. DATA ANALYSIS & INTERPRETATION
Objective: To know how familiar Nutella is, to the consumers
Interpretation: It is clear that the TV advertisement and word of mouth played a vital role
creating awareness about the product among the consumers.
Objective: To identify the consumers’ taste and preference
Interpretation: The majority finds consumers Nutella to be a delicious products, whereas a very
small proportion of 5.4% users of this product are willing to choose other alternatives.

6. Objective: To find out the demand of the product and the consumers’ behaviour
Interpretation: The frequency of the usage of the product is not high. Most of the people tend to
use the product only once or twice a year. The price and monotonous taste are the factors that
affects its consumption.
Objective: To find out the prime time of the usage of the product
Interpretation: Although Nutella had positioned itself as a part of balanced breakfast, the
consumers prefer consuming Nutella mostly along with their evening snack.

7. Objective: To find out the attainability of the consumer
Interpretation: Almost 50% of the sample population in our survey feel that the price of Nutella
is slightly too high. This is one of the reason why consumers shift to other alternatives.
Objective: To find the preference of the packaging quantity
Interpretation: The above data illustrates that different consumers have different preferences
with regard to the packaging of the product. There is a very minimal difference between these 3
components, however it is found that consumers preferring a higher capacity container seems to
be on a higher side comparatively to the rest.

8. Objective: To understand the convenience it creates to customers
Interpretation: This data gives a clear picture of consumers’ preference on the packaging of the
product. It is interpreted that consumers prefer having Nutella on-the-go which is more
convenient compared to a jar.
Objective: To find out the effectiveness of the distribution channel
Interpretation: The distribution and the availability of the product is strategized correctly.
However it is found that it is not easily available to almost quarter of the total consumers. This
could be due to lack of information on the availability of Nutella in the market or could also be
due to the product’s unavailability, in which case the distribution channel will be found to be
ineffective.

9. Objective: To analyse the market competition and how likely the consumers are willing to shift
their preference to other alternatives.
Interpretation: Hershey’s and peanut butter are found to be the main competitors of Nutella,
since they are different in terms of taste and are much cheaper than Nutella.
Objective: To find out the effectiveness of the customer relationship and brand loyalty
Interpretation: The word of mouth by the consumers of Nutella to the non-users seems to be
high and majority of consumers are more likely to recommend this product to others.

10. Objective: To identify the reach of the marketing promotions
Interpretation: This interprets the fact that Nutella has to come up with new advertising
strategies and increase its frequency in order to create a brand recognition and educate the
consumers about its availability.
Objective: To identify the satisfaction level of the consumer
Interpretation: This proves that the majority of the consumers are fairly satisfied with Nutella.
Please note, that this satisfaction index is a result of multiple factors like availability, visibility,
price, packaging, and not just taste.

11. Objective: To identify the target age group
Interpretation: The target market of Nutella is children ages 6-14 and their parents. However, it
is found that majority of Nutella consumers are youngsters and working population i.e. 19-29
Objective: To identify the composition of the consumer and improve the promotion strategy
Interpretation: The data represents that Female are more likely to consume this product. Since
Nutella targets both the compositions of gender, improvements in their strategy is recommended,
to attract more male consumers.

12. Objective: To collect our consumers’ requirement for customization/personalisation and need
for improvement.
Interpretation: Consumers’ suggestions are more towards its pricing and packaging needs.
They suggest the price to more reasonable in the market and also to improvise in providing
quantity variations.
FINDINGS
 Through our research, we found that many people are quite satisfied with the current status of
Nutella. However, there are few amount of people who do not like Nutella. The main reason
these people do not like Nutella is because of the monotonous flavor, price and less
availability. We learned that Nutella has never changed up the flavors or the packaging.
 People have different needs and wants, so one should be able to understand their needs and
wants in order to sell the product.
 Nutella is the most preferred bread spread in the areas surveyed with Hershey and Peanut
butter being their strong competitors.
 Indian players have been experimenting with chocolate spreads since the category is growing
with Nutella being the leader. Nutella is still a small brand in Ferrero India’s portfolio with
sales at around ₹80 crore since it is not locally manufactured, unlike some of the other brands
in its portfolio.
 Nutella Became The World’s Favorite ‘Breakfast Spread’ by:
o Finding a niche market, by competing with a unique offering in the breakfast foods
industry
o Entering into pop-culture as The Food to eat via public interest and recipe sharing
o Marketing itself as a family-friendly product
o Sponsorship of the Italian national football team
o Engagement with customers on social media
o World Nutella day gave fans a day to celebrate about the delicious spread and further
spread word about Nutella

13. RECOMMENDATIONS
From the study carried out and the analysis of the result obtain from the survey, the following
suggestion and recommendation can help the firm to improve upon the product.
 We felt that new flavors would be a great addition to the already well-received original flavor
of Nutella. Vanilla, peanut butter, and caramel flavors would resonate well with people who
do not like Nutella. It is a very rare occurrence when somebody does not like at least one of
these flavors.
 Advertising these new changes by implementing social media promotions and producing a
commercial will solidify the idea of new flavors in the consumers’ minds. The changes are
not necessary to keep the Nutella brand successful, but they are necessary if Nutella wants to
majorly increase its market share.
 The distribution network needs to be improvised and the product should be made available in
every locality.
 The product can also be rebranded with a better packaging jar and labelling. This will create
more visibility among the target consumers.
LIMITATIONS
 The main shortcoming of the study is that the generalizations have been made based on a
restricted sample of 50 respondents.
 Because of a small sample size consisting of Chennai city consumers only, it might turn out
that introducing new strategy for Nutella cannot be completely applicable throughout the
country.
 The survey was taken only from those who are familiar or have heard about the product.
REFERENCES
http://www.afaqs.com/interviews/index.html?id=456_We-have-faced-more-difficult-marketing-
challenges-for-Nutella-elsewhere-than-in-India-Emanuele-Fiordalisi-marketing-head-Ferrero-
India
https://yourstory.com/2014/05/nutella/
www.wikipedia.com
https://www.referralcandy.com/blog/nutella-word-of-mouth-marketing/
https://startupnation.com/start-your-business/get-inspired/three-branding-strategies-made-
nutella-business-success/

14. APPENDIX
1. How did you first hear about Nutella?
2. What did you think when you first tried it?
3. How frequently do you use Nutella?
4. When are you most likely to eat Nutella?
5. What is your say on the price of Nutella?
6. Would you prefer a higher capacity container?
7. Do you think, Nutella should be made available in smaller sachet?
8. Is it easily available at your location?
9. What are the other alternatives you would choose over Nutella?
10. Would you recommend Nutella to others?
11. How often you come across the promotions of Nutella?
12. How do you rate this item on a scale of 1 to 5?
13. What age group best describes you?
14. Please indicate your gender
15. Suggestions for improvement (if any)