Mintel in the media – this week's highlights

The Chicago Blackhawks might have been knocked out of the playoffs in the first round for the second consecutive year, but there were certainly some big winners in the Chicago press office this week.

First up, our insight into consumer purchases of green products was featured in a Times-Journal story while MediaPost Marketing Daily used data from our GNPD to point out that a few years ago the “no additive/preservatives” claim was the second most common on product packs with 2,243 new products touting such a claim. Additionally, The New York Times used our mustard usage figures (90% of Americans consume the condiment) for a story about French’s mustard.

Next in line, a quote from Susan Wolfe, vice president of Mintel Comperemedia appeared in a story about a federal inquiry into bank overdraft fees that was picked up by both Bloomberg and The Financial Advisor. Meanwhile, Fast Casual highlighted information from Mintel Menu Insights for a story about healthy beverages and chocolate expert Marcia Mogelonsky discussed the future of the chocolate industry in Indonesia for a piece in The Global Post.

In other big news, according to Forbes, financial insecurity is driving more Millennials to rent instead of own, and they used data from Mintel’s Marketing to College Students report to back up their story, since 61% of the college students we surveyed reported that their financial situation is a concern.

Also of note, Eric Giandelone was quoted in a press release discussing the findings of Mintel’s first-ever University Foodservice report that was widely discussed on Twitter and picked up by several publications, including Food Product Design.

Yet another Mintel expert, Billy Hulkower, was solicited for a radio interview with Marketplace where he was asked to comment on the use of social media in Cottonelle’s new ad campaign for their moist wipes, while the second MediaPost Marketing Daily story of the week that mentioned Mintel included our sales figures for the juice drinks market. Rounding out the coverage, Daily Finance referenced our data on the destination wedding market and Progressive Grocer used our ice cream insight for a piece about the frozen novelties industry.

Mid week, The Guardian used our technology media research in an article titled “Apple: why doesn’t it employ more US workers?” which shows that the iPhone 4 is the most popular handset in Britain today. And the Financial Times used Mintel’s jewellery report in an article titled “Family silver goes into melting pot.” The article explained how there is plenty of household jewellery still to be scrapped, as a Mintel report found that found just 9 per cent of women and 3 per cent of men had sold gold for cash, while 14m UK adults have jewellery they never wear.

One year on from the Royal Wedding, the demand for our very own “Kate expert” consumer analyst Alexandra Richmond continues. This week, the “Kate effect” – which claims that the Duchess of Cambridge has sparked an estimated £1 billion sales boom – was quoted by the Daily Star and the Irish Sun. Alexandra said: “Kate’s look has something to appeal to everyone.” The same story appeared on News Track India.

On to our pasta story and the shocking truth about young people’s cooking skills which featured in the Metro and Deadline news. Meanwhile, Mintel’s graphics were used on the BBC News in a programme discussing how the government is to announce plans to tackle dog attacks.

Beauty was also in the spotlight midweek and in particular nail polish which featured in the Financial Times in an article titled “Why Britain’s got talons.” According to Mintel, nail polish sales rose 14 per cent to £179m in 2010 as women, inspired by celebrities such as Lady Gaga and Rhianna, focus on their fingertips. The same story also appeared on Asia News Network . While in Italy, the Agelessness trend by Mintel Inspire was discussed in Vogue Italia.

On to a more frivolous note, our research on the footwear market in Europe received some massive coverage in France, where it appeared in: La Parisienne, Grazia, Cosmopolitan, Metro France, La Depeche, La Montagne, La Provence, Le Populaire, Femme Actuelle and RTL in Belgium.

Last but not least, the announcement of our new social media series was highlighted in the Scotsman and Bizcommunity in South Africa.