Baking & Snack - September 2015 - 64

CHERYL'S

Cookies are individually wrapped
by horizontal wrappers before
being case-packed by operators
and trucked to the warehouse and
gifting operation in Obetz, OH.
George Anderson

team start new product development a year out from the
targeted season.
The team considers the season's latest flavor trends
stacked up against flavors Cheryl's consumers have enjoyed in the past. "We take all that in, and say, 'We really
know our customer and what she likes,' " Ms. Allwein
said. She also works closely with the merchandising and
marketing teams to draw inspiration from their themes
for the season.
The product development team chooses a target number of new items it wants to introduce and begins work
developing ideas, tasting and making small batches. The
field of ideas narrows until the team lands on the target
number of new products for launch, with each test making larger and larger batches.
These products will then go through in-house testing
and then ship testing. Because all of Cheryl's products
are shipped, each one has to be sent to various testers
throughout the country to ensure the quality holds up
through the time and handling it takes to deliver. When
that testing checks out, Ms. Allwein takes the new products to the production floor for commercial testing, and
the process starts again. At this point, however, enough
progress should have been made that the formulation
only needs to be tweaked to be successful.
However, just because a cookie is tasty doesn't mean it
is a done deal. Cheryl's delivers not only delicious cookies but also beautiful gifts. The products must be a feast
for the eyes as well. If a product doesn't look as good as it
tastes, it cannot pass the test. "People eat with their eyes
first," Ms. Allwein admitted. "We know that. There are

64 Baking & Snack September 2015 / www.bakingandsnack.com

certain constraints that we have to follow."
Some seasonal products do so well that once they're
removed from the product rotation, consumer outcry is
so loud the dessert gains a permanent spot in Cheryl's
catalog. The pumpkin cinnamon cookie is one such
cookie. "We used to take it out of the line, but people
clamored for it, so it's in the line all the time now. Even
though it's a pumpkin cookie with cinnamon buttercream, people did not want to see it go away," Ms.
Allwein said.

Continuously evolving
With the Internet shaking up catalog shopping, the company is poised to adapt to the changing marketplace.
While Ms. Howell anticipates the printed catalog will
always be a part of the business, the marketing department embraces the way the Internet has changed how
its consumers shop for gifts. With the shift to mobile,
Cheryl's is shifting its marketing dollars online.
"Within the digital realm, things are changing so
quickly that one of the fun things is you can very quickly
juice up a channel that's working and pull from another,"
she said.
As Cheryl's continues to grow with the support of
1-800-Flowers.com, the company has an eye out for
ways to adapt its operations to the growth.
"We are constantly looking for ways to improve our
processes," said Denny Hicks, CFO. "Quality will always
be our first consideration, and we feel confident we can
combine quality and efficient automation through future
investments in this area of the business."

http://www.1-800-Flowers.com http://www.bakingandsnack.com

Baking & Snack - September 2015

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