Category Analysis Seafood Soups

Nothing quite hits the spot on a cold, blustery winter’s day than a piping hot cup of chowder. According to some category leaders, the seasonal appeal of seafood soups this year is further compounded by the fact that as household budgets tighten due to continued economic uncertainty, consumers are foregoing pricier luxuries like meats in favor of meal solutions featuring hearty and nutritionally balanced soups. Factor in the perceived extravagance of ocean-fresh seafood—at least from the perspective of most landlocked consumers—and seafood soup suppliers have a win-win situation on their hands to grow the category, assuming Mother Nature plays along.

“In difficult economic times, soup has a halo effect,” said Bob Sewall, Blount Fine Foods’ evp of Sales and Marketing. “It’s healthy, it’s comforting, and it also fills you up, so in these tough economic times you’ll find that people will skip the more expensive proteins and buy soup and salad, soup and sandwich, those kinds of things to feed their families, so it really grows during these tough economic times.”

Blount Fine Foods’ history stretches back more than 100 years and presently, its wholesale operations are diverse. The company also carries two of its own lines for retail: Clam Shack and Blount Family Kitchen. In assessing the category of seafood soups, Sewall said Blount helms the direction of the category. By virtue of its history, “we created that demand, so obviously because of our other brands like our Panera Bread soups, our private label business we do, as well as our own Clam Shack and Blount Family Kitchen brands, we’re typically the category manager, so that’s really been very helpful, and we’re helping our customers sell more soup.”

Presently, a lot of that help comes as bundling to help consumers find more value in their purchases.

“Buy this, get this,” explained Sewall. “We’re bundling our products together to create a family meal, so we’re trying to help our customers put two or three items in the basket versus just selling more on sale. I believe that’s what consumers are looking for. We typically work with our customers to sell soup and salad, or soup and sandwiches. Consumers are looking for great quality and great value.”

This is a strategy that is also embraced by Boston Chowda, a brand under Plenus Group, Inc. Though Plenus has expanded its repertoire of value-added specialty frozen foods since its founding in the late 80s, it traces its origin to its New England clam chowder first served at Boston’s famous Faneuil Hall Marketplace. In its protocols and procedures distributed to customers of its hot soup program, the company advocates this method of upselling: “Have your counter people inquire if the customer is interested in trying the soups. Once they’ve tried it, you can be sure that they will tell their friends. Cross merchandise with other items. What goes better with a soup than a nice sandwich, and vice versa?”

Meanwhile on the retail end, Blount continues to offer options for value-hunting shoppers.

“We have two seafood lines, both under the Clam Shack brand, and one is a frozen item which is a bag and a cup that is primarily sold in seafood departments—seafood markets, and so forth—and that’s new this year for us,” Sewall said. “And also, we have a fresh 30-oz. bag and a cup which has been out for two plus years. Our Clam Shack brand is the third largest soup brand in the country—not just seafood but any soup. That’s a pretty good achievement.”

Consumer appetite for good quality seafood soups has never wavered, but they are typically hard to create at home, which is another advantage that these manufacturers have in ensuring a returning consumer base.

“In today’s landscape, it’s hard to find food you can trust,” said Liam McClennon, CEO of Kettle Cuisine. “Rare to find impeccably sourced ingredients, slow-simmered bone broths, delicately sautéed meats and vegetables and a commitment to finding that just-right taste. Kettle Cuisine’s business has been built upon a belief in honest, quality products and an unwavering commitment to the artful process of making real food that our customers can feel proud to serve to consumers. Our kitchens have gotten bigger, our teams have grown, and our product offerings have expanded. What hasn’t changed is the privilege we feel in delivering truly artisan products at scale, providing wholesome, honest food to tables across the country.”

More practically, “[Home cooks] typically don’t have the ingredients to make them at home,” Sewall said. “Not a lot of people have lobster bodies laying around to make their base, and it’s pretty hard to get fresh sea clam meat, things like that, so we take all the guess work out of it for them. That, and quality. Most of our customers will tell us, even in food service, they can’t make their seafood soup as good as we do.”

It’s an enviable position to be in to have that built-in demand, but manufacturers like Blount remain vulnerable to supply side interruptions, even with a company mission to source only from North American waters.

“Our seafood suppliers are the last of the hunter-gatherers,” said Sewall. “So diesel costs, labor shortages, so forth and so on, have made it very difficult for them but we’ve been working closely with them to make sure we have the supply. We’re pretty proud of our association with these vendors because they’ve not had it easy.”

Everyone also has one force to contend with, beyond any economic indicator’s control: Mother Nature.

“Weather is something you always struggle with,” Sewall said. “These guys are fishing so you hope for nice, mild winters and not-too-windy springs and summers, but it’s been good. It’s something you don’t take for granted anymore. You work closer and harder and make sure you have the ingredients.”

In the end, Blount Fine Foods keeps its eye on a fundamental truth about seafood soups, said Sewall.

“The basis of a successful soup program for our customers is just quality, providing their customers with great quality and a fair market price.”