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As consumers look to boost their back yard entertaining this summer, they'll flock to grocery stores for grilling and entertainment needs. Ensure your store has everything shoppers need and don't forget to merchandise an important, but sometimes overlooked category: pest control offerings.
That's right. With more outdoor gatherings and doors and windows open, bugs are a common but unwelcome guest in the summer. Consumers are looking to keep bugs away — the body-worn insect repellent market value is expected to nearly double between 2020 and 2027 and the pest control category as a whole is growing, with naturals at the top of the trend.
Red Oval Partner SC Johnson leads the category with OFF! insect repellent and Raid, and launched the STEM line of bug repellents made with plant-derived active ingredients in 2022. Below they share key assortment and merchandising tips, as well as the latest innovations in the category to help independents thrive in pest control this season.
Assortment
Don't worry about offering a large assortment in the pest control category. Look at your best sellers and keep those in stock, says SC Johnson Sales Account Manager Anna Wahlin.
"The smaller the set, the more important it is to stock only the top-selling brands and SKUs," she says. "There's no need to trade consumers down with lower priced brands. This is a need-based category, and OFF and Raid are No. 1 brands."
Raid & OFF! Products
The above list of Raid® and OFF!® UPCs top sellers are in order, so Wahlin recommends prioritizing your assortment from the top item down for each brand.
Visual Merchandising
Pest control is a high-impulse business, Wahlin says, so product location is key.
"Any successful independent retailer will tell you the Number 1 way to win in pest is to 'display-display-display' the product in prominent seasonal locations. Drive that impulse of, 'Oh yeah! I need bug spray!'"
- Add a pest control shipper or POP display to your grilling aisle or meat department.
- Consider a shipper or POP display in the soda and/or beer aisle.
- Stock bug spray near the check-out counter.
Innovations
While OFF! and Raid are the top sellers with strong brand recognition, 59 million households are seeking natural solutions in the pest control segment, according to SC Johnson. To further innovate this segment and cater to those consumers, SC Johnson enlisted a team of entomologists to create a line of bug-fighting formulas using nature's most ingenious defenses.
The STEM line has already taken off, recognized as Consumer Survey's 2022 and 2024 ‘Product of the Year’ — the world’s largest consumer-voted award for product innovation.
STEM flying insects light trap
STEM offers a holistic portfolio across insecticides and repellants to deliver natural products that work. Made from botanical extracts, shoppers will love that they are safe for use around kids and pets, while insecticides quickly kill insects.
STEM Products
The above STEM® UPC list of top sellers is in order, meaning the STEM® Wasp and Hornet Aerosol is the top seller in the STEM® line.
To complement the STEM line, SC Johnson launched the Raid Essentials Light Trap Starter and Refill. This is a kid- and pet-friendly chemical-free product that offers continuous 14-day protection as it traps mosquitos, fruit flies, moths, and gnats.
Raid Essentials Light Trap
With these top-sellers and newly released innovations that cater to consumer preferences, SC Johnson is leading the pest control category and ready to help independent grocers capture summer impulse purchase dollars.
As for supply chain issues that plagued all categories in recent years, Wahlin notes they do not apply to products in SC Johnson's pest control lines. "We are fully back with stronger supply chain networks and manufacturing redundancy in place," Wahlin says. "The key is ordering in advance and not waiting until the last minute."
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