Kraft Mac & Cheese, a brand with a rich history spanning 87 years, is embracing a novel marketing strategy inspired by the trendy streetwear industry. In a departure from its traditional approach of launching products in grocery stores across the nation, Kraft is now mimicking the "drop" culture prevalent in the sneaker market. This involves releasing a limited quantity of its innovative everything bagel-flavored mac and cheese to generate excitement and potentially gain viral attention on platforms like TikTok. On Friday, exclusively through Walmart's online platform, Kraft will offer a mere 15,000 boxes of this special edition flavor, a figure that constitutes less than 2% of the daily sales of its classic version, as per the company's data. Kraft's rendition of everything bagel seasoning includes garlic and onion powder along with poppy seeds, but notably omits sesame seeds, which are a common ingredient in other variations of this flavor profile.

This unconventional marketing ploy is Kraft's attempt to reignite interest in its pasta products, which, despite remaining the top-selling boxed mac and cheese brand in the United States, have experienced a decline in market dominance as new competitors have emerged. Currently, consumers are either opting for more expensive, health-oriented brands such as protein-rich Goodles and the organic staple Annie's Homegrown, or they are choosing cheaper private label options that cost approximately half the price of a Kraft box. This shift has placed mid-tier brands in a vulnerable position.

The challenges faced by Kraft are reflective of broader issues within the "center store" category, which encompasses consumer packaged goods that account for the majority of grocery store sales, according to Connor Rattigan, a senior research analyst at Consumer Edge. "There are several obstacles," he explained. "Consumers are either seeking value or healthier options. As the category leader, sales trends will generally mirror the overall category's performance."

Kraft commands an impressive 41% of the total shelf-stable macaroni and cheese market share, yet this is a decrease of nearly 2% since 2021, as reported by Numerator, a consumer insights firm. Velveeta, also under the Kraft Heinz umbrella, holds the second position with 21%, but its market share has also eroded, dropping nearly 3%. Both brands are losing ground to private label alternatives, including those from Walmart and Aldi, which have each grown by 3% since 2021 and now hold a 14% share. Meanwhile, Goodles and Mac-A-Roni, a newly introduced offshoot of PepsiCo's Rice-A-Roni, have seen the most significant share growth in the past year, according to Numerator's data, further complicating Kraft's position at the top.

To secure its leading position, Kraft is introducing new flavors, one of which was determined through a "Fan Favorites" contest on social media where consumers suggested potential new flavors, with jalapeno and ranch being the recent winners. These new flavors often come with a higher price tag than the traditional offerings. Kraft is in the process of testing over 60 potential new flavors and will experiment with their release strategies, possibly including another "small batch" drop available exclusively online. This approach could potentially attract a younger demographic, according to Andrea Hernández, founder of Snaxshot, a food and beverage insights platform. "Millennials and Gen-Z are more likely to deviate from 'conventional' flavors—a strategy that Oreo is well-known for—by introducing absurd flavors to attract viral attention and also evoke nostalgia for the original," she said.

Beyond flavor, Kraft is also reevaluating its pasta shape strategy. For the past three decades, Kraft Mac & Cheese has been available in over 40 licensed designs, from "Rugrats" to "Spongebob Squarepants," targeting families with younger children. As these children have grown up with the brand, Kraft is now gradually introducing new designs to appeal to young adults. "We've discovered a unique intersection occurring through properties that are becoming popular with families and children, as well as this hunger and need for nostalgia that we're seeing with young adults," said Ashleigh Gibson, head of marketing for Kraft Mac & Cheese.

The first concept to roll out this year was the "Super Mario Power-Up" shapes, featuring pasta designed after elements from the video games, including the Fire Flower, Super Star, and Super Mushroom. Rattigan views these innovations as Kraft acknowledging the need to "invest more and really work on the brand, as well as drive increased consumer interest," but he cautions that it's "not going to be an overnight fix."