How Hershey Stays Agile Through Change
Originally published in Hershey's 2021 ESG Report
The pandemic has completely transformed the marketplace. To sustain our business today and thrive in the future, we’re using innovation to adapt to a new reality.
Using Technology to Rapidly Respond to Evolving Consumer Tastes
In October 2021, we opened our newly renovated Global Customer Insights Center (GCIC) at Hershey’s Pennsylvania headquarters. The GCIC is a part of Hershey Insights Centers and now offers virtual and in-person services to bring Hershey’s thought leadership on initiatives driven by shopper insights to life. We have always seen customer collaboration as critical to helping our retail partners unlock growth through our own unique shopper insights, knowledge of industry trends and access to the latest technology shaping today’s retail environment.
The following centers offer distinct capabilities to build on:
- Global Customer Insights Center (GCIC): Lab stations inside the GCIC offer interactive content for retail partners to see collaborative strategies brought to life. These environments include pay points, seasonal solutions and in-aisle merchandising strategies with special areas dedicated to food service and global licensing capabilities.
- Mobile Customer Insights Center (MCIC): First launched in 2018, the 53-foot expandable tractor-trailer includes a collaborative workspace that seats up to 15 people. It offers customers who cannot travel to Hershey a similar experience to the GCIC at their locations. After nearly two years of inactivity due to pandemic restrictions, the MCIC kicked off a national schedule of customer visits to all channels starting in February 2022.
- The Hershey Insights Network (HIN): HIN is a virtual platform for Hershey to remotely engage with its partners. Operating like a live television newsroom, it is equipped with a multi-camera studio and green-screen capabilities to deliver solutions to retail partners who may be unable to travel. The HIN was developed in response to the pandemic but has become a way to further enhance customer collaboration sessions happening inside the GCIC.
