A small amount of creativity can go a long way

Waitrose, the UK's upmarket supermarket chain, has recently announced as part of its continued roll out of its convenience store format that will adopt the 'little Waitrose' sub-brand name, which it has piloted at some of its initial sites. As well as Waitrose's increasingly ambitious growth plans being eye-catching, we think that in its way the sub-brand name they have chosen is pretty noteworthy.

When we develop sub-brands at Corporate Edge we ask do you just need a 'signpost' name that helps your customers understand and choose? Or do you want a sub-brand that tells its own story as well?

Of course it's easy to say yes to the latter, but the further you move towards a storyteller sub-brand, the more investment will be needed to build that meaning into the sub-brand, so that its story is properly told. And the trick is to find that sweet spot between signpost and storyteller that's right for the case in hand.

What we like about "little Waitrose" is that it seems to have found that sweet spot for Waitrose:

•  It is distinctive compared to the competitions' more functional Local and Metro sub-brands, but is still straightforward and does the signposting job.

• It has some personality (down-to-earth, with a bit of self-effacing charm).

• And, very importantly, it manages expectations because a convenience store format can't deliver the depth of service or offering (of course) that a mainstream Waitrose does (and on which it has built its brand reputation).

So this "little" bit of creative thinking deserves some congratulations – a great solution that makes you raise a "little" smile as you go in to the shop, and remember it's not going to be exactly your usual Waitrose experience.

About Marcus

Corporate Edge's Director of Strategy