In the food manufacturing industry, data plays a critical role in leading businesses toward success. Assistant Category Manager for Foodservice at McCain, Alex Howard, knows this too well. Working closely with McCain’s Sales and Marketing teams, his focus is to provide intentional data for strategic initiatives. In this case study, we look into how has become a transformative tool for Alex in his role at McCain.

1. Navigating the Casual Dining Landscape

‘FoodByUs is a game-changer when it comes to live market insights for our foodservice strategy.’

As a Category Manager, data is the compass guiding strategic decisions. is unique in its ability to attain live POS (Point of Sale) and transactional level data within the foodservice sector. For Alex and his team, this means having “real-time visibility into market trends and product performance in the casual dining space, where data is often scarce.”

‘FoodByUs is very strong in the casual dining space and offers unique insights where there is otherwise little to no data from distributors.’

The casual dining market lacks comprehensive data, which becomes an area of focus with . Alex finds the most value in gaining access to insights into the casual diner buyer base, enabling McCain to tailor their products for specific environments like cafes or restaurants.

2. Customised Insights for Strategic Clarity

‘ gives us the resources to map the market for comprehensive long-term plans or ‘5-year strategies’ 

One of the standout features of FoodByUs is its ability to offer customised insights. Alex is able to tailor data views for specific needs and initiatives. “The granularity of insights, particularly in the breakdown of product lines, market trends and product performance empowers me and my team to make informed decisions about marketing, sales plans, and overall category growth,” he explains.

‘We can see a spread of anonymised prices which gives us a better idea of trends and how we should price our product ranges.’

For a Category Manager, understanding pricing trends is critical. not only provides visibility of pricing trends from anonymous distributors but also competitors. This allows Alex and his team at McCain to strategically position their product ranges based on validated pricing data. He says “FoodByUs is particularly useful for investigating & validating existing hypotheses, and secures our thinking when we are taking certain price initiatives.” 

For McCain, is a staple in the realm of data-driven decision-making. As Alex has experienced, the benefits of FoodByUs are evident – customised insights, real-time transactional level data, competitor intelligence and pricing visibility. For those seeking to optimise their strategies, FoodByUs provides not just data but a strategic edge in a competitive market. 

FoodByUs interviewed Alexander Howard, Assistant Category Manager at McCain Foods. HIs role involves uding research and industry knowledge to help inform strategies to improve marketing or sales plans, grow the category and serve McCain’s consumers better.

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