Food & drink consumers prefer "Britain" over "England" branding

It’s a good job that the “better together” campaign paid off… A study has found that food and drink consumers prefer ‘Made in Britain’ branding instead of from England, Scotland or Wales.

The report, which concluded the results was commissioned by Barclays, and polled 7,610 consumers online in the US, Germany, France, Ireland, Brazil, South Africa, China and Qatar. It revealed consumers in emerging markets are 64 per cent more likely to buy a product carrying the Union flag. This figure dropped to 25 per cent for products sporting the English flag and 21 per cent for those featuring either Scottish or Welsh labels.

Interestingly, a ‘Brand Britain’ label prompts a willingness to pay of up to 7 per cent more among shoppers in new and emerging markets than for those which promote their country of origin.The exception to the preference for British-branded products was Scottish alcohol, which commanded a premium over British.

Brand owners could generate an additional £2.1bn to their sales by labelling their products as ‘Made in Britain’, according to the report.

Rebecca McNeil, head of business Lending at Barclays Corporate Banking, said:

“The report shows that the biggest premiums for British branded goods will be paid in these markets, not the developed markets. These new and emerging markets are also growing at a faster rate than the established trading partners, meaning growth opportunities and premium pricing are aligned…We understand that these new markets can be more challenging to enter but for those that persevere, there are opportunities for a greater return. Rather than focusing on seemingly saturated developed markets, exporters should seriously consider looking further afield as there are bigger premiums to be had when products are marketed as Made in Britain.”