Walkers Shortbread's Scottie Dog Cookies and ASPCA Alliance Spikes U.S. Retail Sales

Walkers Shortbread Scottie Dog cookies are resonating with American consumers and expanding the U.K. company's market base here in the United States.

While Walkers Shortbread cookies have been solidly popular in the United States, the introduction of the Scottie Dog cookie shape and gift box tins - as well as its alliance with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) - have boosted retail sales and captured the imagination of new and younger customers. 

Throughout 2012, Walkers Shortbread is donating 10 cents from the sale of every package of its Scottie Dog products sold in the United States - including its Scottie Dog cookies and tins - to the ASPCA, with a minimum guaranteed donation of $25,000. The ASPCA initiative is the first of its kind for Walkers Shortbread.  

"The adorable Scottie Dog cookies convey our affinity for this beloved breed, and working with the ASPCA is a great way for us, as well as our customers, to show our appreciation for animals," said Jim Walker, managing director of Walkers Shortbread. "Walkers is dedicated to helping the ASPCA raise awareness of the issues of animal cruelty and homelessness, and will support the valuable work they do for animals across the U.S."

In an interview with Gourmet Business at the recent Fancy Food Show, Walker noted that the Scottie Dog cookies captured the imagination of the American consumer, even before the ASPCA alliance.

"It's been very successful. People seem to love it. It's striking much more of a chord than we'd have imagined, particularly in America," he said, noting that the new product was developed "for a bit of fun" and has, in fact, expanded the brand's customer base. "People are buying them for their kids," who have not been traditional Walkers Shortbread customers.

And parents can be proud to feed their children Walker's Shortbread cookies, which are all-natural, made with only four ingredients - butter, flour, sugar and salt, Walker said. The company has only recently touted its clean label and natural ingredients, "but it's been that way for more than 114 years," Walker said. "Cookies don't come more simple than ours." 

Walkers Shortbread is baked with no genetically modified ingredients, artificial colors, flavors, preservatives or hydrogenated fats. The milk used for Walkers butter is high in rich and creamy butter fat, and is produced without any bovine growth hormones or antibiotics. Walkers products are also 100 percent vegetarian.

The 3.9-ounce Scottie Dog shortbread package is currently available in specialty retail stores nationwide. The 7.8-ounce special edition Scottie Dog Tin is filled with 18 Scottie Dog-shaped pure butter shortbread cookies. The tin features black and white embossed Scottish terriers, set against a background of Walkers traditional tartan.

Introducing Duchy Originals

The company also introduced Duchy Originals from Waitrose at the Fancy Food Show, including Highland All Butter Shortbread, Lemon All Butter Shortbread, Stem Ginger All Butter Shortbread and Original Oaten Biscuits. The Highland cookies are also available in single-serve packages with on-counter display merchandisers.

HRH Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales, founded the Duchy Originals brand in the United Kingdom in 1992. The brand is now produced in partnership with Waitrose, and manufactured and marketed by Walkers Shortbread. Characteristically different in texture and flavor from Walkers' products, the Duchy cookies are thinner and crisper, and bear the impression of the prince's royal crest. The wheat used in the product is also grown on Prince Charles' farm, and a donation from the sale of the cookies is given to The Prince of Wales Charitable Foundation.