Penetration power: the path to brand growth
We explore the categories and shine a light on the brands that are gaining ground this year
The brands that have successfully built their presence in Latam reached new markets and found new shoppers in a number of ways. These include extending into fresh categories, and making products relevant to additional consumption occasions.
Innovation was a key strategy for expanding penetration. Brands launched products that targeted new audiences and met new consumer needs, with flavours, formats and functionality that made them stand out from the crowd. Among the most successful launches in 2022 were Oreo’s Thins variant and Elseve/ Elvive’s hydra-hyuralonic haircare range.
Brands must also be able to scale effectively, in order to increase their presence and their CRPs. Through skilfully adapting their global strategy to a local execution and narrative, the global brands in our Top 25 are exceptionally successful in every market they are present in.
Although there are many global brands in the Brand Footprint ranking, the ones who are winning are tailoring their products and campaign to local markets. Three regional/ local champions made it into the top 10 – Mexican bakery brand Bimbo, Mexican dairy brand Lala, and Brazilian food producer Sadia. Of the top 10 FMCG brands, three are also in the global spotlight, while four have performed strongly in the Latam ranking.
Each of the brands highlighted in this section stood out because it was successful in the hard task of winning over new buyers to become one of 2022’s success stories.
The global beauty brand tops the list of Latam FMCG brands with the highest penetration gains of those ranked 51 or above, and the fifth largest penetration gains overall in the region. Elvive boosted its buyers by 7.4 million and notched up 5.6 penetration points. It did well in Brazil, rising 26 positions in the most chosen brands country ranking thanks in part to its ‘Elseve Cachos Longos’ campaign and the launch of its Hydra-Hyaluronic range, which introduced hyaluronic acid – a common ingredient in L’Oréal’s skin care products – to the hair care category.
Downy was the big winner in Latam growing 24% in CRPs and gaining 12 million new shoppers and more than 9 penetration points. The homecare brand climbed an impressive 13 places in the Latam ranking, and had the highest penetration gains of any FMCG brand in the region. Downy has been expanding its presence in the region since 2017, but in 2022 the brand expanded its buyer base by 30% – growing from 31% to 40% penetration. Downy had a stellar year in Brazil – rising 39 positions in the country ranking.
Once again, reaching more targets and building presence were the key levers behind these results. Its new Brisa Intenso fabric conditioner range attracted 3.3 million incremental buyers to the brand alone. Downy gained double digit penetration in all socioeconomic levels (SELs), and across multiple channels, from traditional to cash & carry. On top of all that, it also increased its prices less than other products in the same category.
In other countries Downy achieved a similarly strong performance through activations that included introducing smaller pack sizes, and launching ranges that attracted new families, with younger profiles, especially in Ecuador and Argentina.
Pepsi gained 9.6 million shoppers and 7.1 penetration points, moving up one place to become the fourth most chosen FMCG brand in Latam. This was mainly down to its performance in Mexico and Brazil, which are the world’s second and seventh biggest markets, respectively. But it has conquered more than just these major markets: its growth has extended into Ecuador and Argentina, for example, with launches and formats that were key to gaining new consumers, and campaigns focused on enhancing consumption and engaging new targets. Pepsi leveraged its football partnerships with its ‘Play to Inspire’ campaign. This celebrated the changemakers driving the future of football to coincide with the UEFA Champions League, with a focus on Gen Z and the creation of digital experiences. It also encouraged the consumption of Pepsi alongside meals, with its #SICONPEPSI campaign.
Penetration just shy of 36% and a net gain of 6.4 million shoppers landed Oreo the number eight spot in the ranking of FMCG brands that increased their penetration the most in Latam. Oreo combined consistent communication with successful brand activation, such as smaller packs that make products more accessible to first-time users. This was particularly effective in Ecuador, where the brand reached almost 80% of the population, and added two million more households, mostly from mid and low SELs. Another key-activation to gain consumers is to be where consumers are, and, in Colombia, Oreo increased their presence in Discounters, such as D1, which also contributed to the good results.
Brand Footprint is the most complete and comprehensive study of purchasing decisions made by customers in the Latin America region.
Using Consumer Reach Points (CRPs) we capture the moment at which the shopper makes their brand choice, to measure the total number of times each brand in the market is chosen.
This gives us the Brand Footprint ranking, which reveals the most chosen FMCG brands, and those that are growing most strongly, for each country and the region as a whole.
We categorise local brands as those that are present in one country, while regional brands are present in at least two countries within a continent.
