TUF shows ways of optimising an iconic foreign brand

Almost everyone growing up in the United States has heard the jingle: “Ask any mermaid, you happen to see, what’s the best tuna?”
“Chicken in the Sea!”
For more than five decades, parents and children have been singing this jingle, and as they sing, they think about the beautiful blonde who appears in countless commercials recounting the nutritious qualities of Chicken of the Sea.
Here in Thailand, most us have heard similarly popular jingles for products such as Tiffy and Coffeemate, which have developed into classics that everyone seems to hum.
Although Chicken of the Sea’s mermaid is a classic product icon in the US, few people realise that it is owned by a global growth-oriented Thai company.
Thiraphong Chansiri, chief executive officer of Thai Union Frozen Products (TUF), told The Nation that his firm had been continuously developing the Chicken of the Sea brand since purchasing the company in its entirety in 2000.
“Our sales in the US are now more than US$800 million,” or Bt24 billion, he said.
TUF has used its core strength as one of the world’s largest seafood companies, with 2011 sales of more than $3 billion, to help optimise the brand over the past decade.
“Our core strength is our ability to prepare and supply seafood efficiently and economically from our plants in 11 countries,” he said.
At the same time, the company also understands the importance of optimising its Chicken of the Sea brand, which has for decades forged an emotional bond and captured many American families’ hearts and minds.
“We were confident that Chicken of the Sea customers would be willing to purchase premium seafood products if we could get them to market,” he said.
In a Harvard Business Review article titled “The corporate brand: help or hindrance”, Jill Granoff said: “Top brands impart intangible values that make customers feel good.” She was marketing head of Liz Claiborne Inc at the time.
These feel-good values, she said, created a strong set of enticement, and luxurious intangibles that resonate with their customers.
Chicken of the Sea, with its mermaid icon, has been embedded in the minds of most Americans as a brand that provides a healthy and nutritious regular alternative to red meat.
TUF extended the brand in 2006 by incorporating its 2003 acquisition of frozen shrimp and shellfish importer Empress International into a new premium Chicken of the Sea seafood-products brand. The combined sales of more than $800 million exceeded all expectations in 2011.
Thiraphong said TUF relied heavily on Chicken of the Sea and the mermaid icon’s ability to tell a story.
Many American children, he said, equated the Chicken of the Sea brand and the mermaid icon with their aspirations to grow big, healthy and strong by eating healthy food.
“We have long recognised that we must maintain Chicken of the Sea’s distinct DNA that has been embedded in our customers’ psyche for decades,” Thiraphong said.
TUF’s brand-optimisation strategy, he said, was ensuring that the brand’s long-standing customer connections, buzz and lifestyle positioning benefited from the resources that the parent organisation can provide.
“We helped Chicken of the Sea grow by supporting it through our back-end efficiency in sourcing, distribution and shared-administrative services,” he said.
Riding on the back of its Chicken of the Sea success, in October 2010, TUF paid almost $1 billion for major European seafood brands including John West, Petite Navier, Hyacinthe Parementiere and Mareblu.
“In 2011 under TUF, our MW Brands in Europe had sales of