Dive Brief:
- Chobani is expanding its offerings beyond the Greek-style yogurt that made it famous.
- The company plans to debut several brand-new products -- an oatmeal and yogurt mix, a dessert called Chobani Indulgent, and a yogurt blended specifically for use in cooking.
- The Norwich, NY-based company, which is the largest seller of Greek yogurt in the United States, also plans to launch new flavors of yogurt and a line of yogurts just for kids.
Dive Insight:
No one who has had the chance to stop into Chobani's retail outlet in New York City will be surprised by the announcement. The yogurt company uses that store to test a wide variety of unusual concoctions -- and both oatmeal and yogurt-based pesto sauces have been featured recently.
What may be surprising, however, is that Chobani is in a position to expand. It wasn't all that long ago that the company was left reeling from the effects of a widespread recall and Whole Foods' decision to abandon the brand. Rivals such as General Mills' Yoplait apparently smelled blood in the water back then, and launched major offensives aimed at Chobani's market share.
Chobani says it's left those troubles behind, saying that it expects to top last year's 32% rise in revenue. The launch of new products would suggest that Chobani means what it says, and still has the means to deliver.