If you want to increase your ice cream sales this summer, you need to focus on snacking and getting your PoS right.

That was the advice from Noel Clarke, vice president of brand building for refreshments & out-of-home sales at Unilever, as the company unveiled new PoS units that can drive sales by 40% and a raft of new products.

Forty-thousand PoS kits are being made available to independent retailers, including secondary display cabinets that can increase sales by 40%.

“If you’re a retailer that’s already doing quite well on ice cream, I would implore you to ask for an impulse cabinet that you can put at the front of your store.

"It gives you more freezer space and allows you to put ice cream in an impulse area with different, innovative products in it,” said Clarke. 

The advice came as Unilever launched several lines into the ice cream market for summer 2017.

Three products have been designed specifically to tap into the snacking market. Max Duo, which is already a top-selling line in Turkey, will launch for children, while Feast Sandwich will capitalise on the popularity of Ben & Jerry’s 'Wich, which benefited from the highest rate of sale in Tesco Express when it launched last year. Solero Strawberry Smoothie, a 49-calorie product made with 35% fruit, will round off the snacking range.

Each has an RRP of 80p to make them more attractive to shoppers looking for a snack where the average price paid is 83p.

Clarke said snacking would be the biggest trend for 2017. “Tapping into that is key – the big high-frequency, high-footfall moments.

Elsewhere, Calippo Combo, a Strawberry & Vanilla flavour fruit ice and ice cream joins the range, and two new flavours – Raspberry and Coconut – extend the Magnum Double line-up.

Magnum is being backed by a £10m campaign this year and kids’ brand Twister will run its first TV ad for 10 years. Unilever plans to kick off the season with a £7m #HappyDay campaign from March 20.