For Tegel, New Zealand’s largest poultry company, a bold decision to shift its entire supermarket offering to free-range sparked not only a shift in operations but a comprehensive repositioning.
Partnering with Milk as its strategic and creative agency, Tegel set out to transform the brand and meet rapidly evolving consumer expectations head-on.
Over the past three years, Milk has worked closely with Tegel to redefine internal and external perceptions to reflect a modern Tegel that aligns with the brand’s purpose – delight customers and consumers by providing trusted products to New Zealand and the world.
The repositioning journey
As more consumers seek ethical, sustainable and healthy food options, the poultry industry faces mounting pressure to adapt.
For Tegel, transitioning all supermarket products to 100% free-range by the end of 2025 is a game-changer, signalling its commitment to animal welfare and consumer needs.
However, there was a disconnect: while Tegel’s internal culture was vibrant and forward-thinking, the external perception lagged behind. Many viewed Tegel as traditional and old-fashioned – a view that clashed with the innovative and diverse organisation it had become.
Tegel, in partnership with Milk, went on a journey to bridge the gap between internal realities and external perceptions.
The goal was to celebrate its diverse, multicultural and multigenerational business. Through strategic workshops, stakeholder interviews and in-depth research, the partners crafted a repositioning strategy that celebrated Tegel’s values – One Team One Direction, Hungry For Better, Do What’s Right and We Care.
Repackaging to reflect purpose
The most visible element of Tegel’s transformation was packaging redesign.
The refreshed packaging strikes a balance between modern simplicity and approachability. The family-friendly aesthetic feels both accessible and premium and highlights its SPCA-certified free-range commitment and proudly New Zealand-raised origins.
Milk crafted a custom font, Tegel Sans, that has become an iconic and flexible distinctive asset for the brand, used across the packaging architecture.
Milk also deepened the Tegel Blue, which helped the typography pop and developed characterful iconography that strengthened communication of key product claims.
The food photography focused on amplifying tasty flavour cues, making imagery feel epic and delicious on-shelf. Altogether, these elements formed a distinctive and dynamic visual identity that felt cohesive across the large range of Tegel SKUs, repositioning Tegel as a modern, forward-thinking consumer brand.
The updated packaging reflects Tegel’s understanding of its primary audience of mainstream young families – busy parents juggling tight schedules and budgets, looking for convenient, nutritious and tasty meals.
The on-pack messaging emphasises this balance and versatility, with slogans like “Ready when you are” and “Tasty favourites for the whole family,” reinforcing Tegel’s commitment to making free-range accessible for everyone.
Redesigning the employee experience
A brand’s transformation isn’t complete without ensuring its employees are aligned with its purpose and vision.
For Tegel, this meant redesigning the employee experience to reflect the same values driving its market repositioning. Milk collaborated with Tegel to develop an Employer Value Proposition (EVP) that champions growth, inclusivity and innovation.
The EVP is built on four key pillars
- Wellbeing and growth: Tegel is committed to helping employees thrive, offering pathways for career development and initiatives that champion wellbeing.
- Diversity and inclusion: Tegel celebrates individuality, fostering environments where everyone feels valued and free to be themself.
- Innovation and progress: Tegel’s culture encourages continuous improvement and innovation, with ideas welcomed from anywhere within the organisation.
- Corporate social responsibility: Tegel’s commitment to ethical practices goes beyond its products, extending to how it cares for its people, animals and communities. Sustainability is deeply embedded in the company strategy and its long-standing partnership with the Kindness Collective charity further reinforces its dedication to making a meaningful impact.
Tegel’s transformation offers valuable insights
- Purpose-driven change resonates: Tegel’s commitment to free-range products wasn’t just
a business decision, it was a purpose-driven initiative aligning to evolving consumer values. Aligning brand with a higher purpose can create a deeper emotional connection with your audience.
- Internal and external alignment is crucial: A brand’s external messaging must reflect its internal culture. By redesigning the employee experience alongside the market repositioning, Tegel ensured that its transformation was authentic and holistic.
- Inclusivity as a strength: Tegel’s focus on diversity and inclusion not only enhanced its internal culture but also made the company more relatable to a diverse consumer base. Inclusivity isn’t just good ethics – it’s good business.
- The power of design and storytelling: Tegel’s packaging redesign and brand narrative brought its transformation to life in a way that was visually compelling and emotionally resonant. Design and storytelling are powerful tools for communicating change.
The impact of repositioning
The results of Tegel’s repositioning are already evident in the market. The refreshed brand is resonating with consumers and families are embracing Tegel as a trusted provider of convenient and nutritious food.
Tegel’s journey over the past three years has been one of bold decisions and transformative change, setting new standards for the poultry industry and proving that commitments to purpose and people can drive meaningful impact.
Tegel’s story is a reminder of the power of alignment, authenticity and purpose.
When brands take the time to reflect on who they are and where they want to go, the results can be truly game-changing. Milk are proud to have played a role in helping Tegel change its course, redefining what
it means to be New Zealand’s poultry leader.
This story was published in NZ Marketing magazine issue 82, March-April 2025. Why not subscribe? Get four issues a year delivered for just $50 if you autorenew. Essential marketing intelligence. Don’t miss it.
