Auntie Anne’s UK leans on bold branding to grow in tough times
The brand is embracing innovation, franchise agility, and a playful image to expand across the UK and Ireland.
Auntie Anne’s UK is set to lean on personality, product innovation, and people to stay competitive as economic pressures weigh on consumers and digital engagement reshapes how brands connect with audiences.
In a quick Q&A with Siobhan Randles, head of marketing at Auntie Anne’s UK, she shared her insights into the challenges and opportunities shaping the sector and how the brand is leveraging innovation, personality, and operational agility to build connections with customers whilst positioning for long-term success.
QSR Media: As the leader of a QSR brand, what do you see as the biggest challenges and opportunities facing the industry today?
Randles: It’s an exciting time for food brands—customers are more engaged than ever with brand personalities, especially online. Look at Aldi or M&S, and in QSR, brands like Popeyes, Wingstop, Krispy Kreme, and Cinnabon have really delivered on this. It’s such a fun way to build brand love and loyalty. On the flip side, the industry is facing some big challenges—cost of living pressures, increased competition, and rising costs across the board. It’s more important than ever to look at ways to tap into customer desires and needs—looking at trends, product innovation, and even how people are consuming—there is an increased ‘on the go’ consumption—people are living busier lives than ever and often replace meals with snacks. ‘Little treat’ culture is also thriving, and studies show that when money is tighter, people will look at small ways they can still reward themselves and feel good—so it’s important that we tap into that need—this is how our tagline ‘Twist Up Your Day’ was born!
How do you approach balancing short-term growth goals with long-term sustainability, especially in such a fast-paced sector?
We balance our calendar with fun, seasonal campaigns, but also give our franchisees the practical support they need—toolkits they can use to respond to local trends or needs. Right now, our brand is still in a growth phase in the UK & Ireland, and our identity is still evolving here, so building awareness and consistency is key for long-term success. But we know franchisees want to stay agile in their markets, so it’s about having flexible tools that help them do that without losing sight of the bigger picture.
In an environment where customer expectations are continuously shifting, how do you ensure your brand remains agile and responsive?
Auntie Anne’s went through an international brand refresh in late 2023, shaped by loads of market research, which helped us build something that’s really aligned with today’s consumer. We’re also really lucky to be part of GoTo Foods, who support us with amazing insight, research, and best practices from around the world. We share ideas and innovation across markets, which helps us stay ahead of trends. And honestly, we’ve got a small, curious, and passionate team here in the UK and great relationships with our franchisees. We listen, we share, and we all want the brand to grow, which makes staying agile a lot more natural.
What are some of the key strategic decisions you’re making to foster innovation while maintaining consistency and quality across your operations?
Our pretzels are handmade fresh on-site every day—dough mixed, risen, rolled, twisted, and baked. It’s real craftsmanship, which is pretty rare in QSR. But it does mean we have to be really mindful of how we innovate to ensure product consistency and avoid introducing anything complex or unrealistic—operational feasibility must meet innovation! Our international team recently developed the concept of ‘topped nuggets’—Auntie Anne’s famous buttery pretzel nuggets with sauces and toppings—lending itself well to experimenting with different flavour combinations. We just had our first major LTO partnership campaign with Biscoff using this concept, which was exciting for us! We sold almost 10,000 servings, and there’s plenty of scope to develop this concept further.
Looking into the future, what do you believe will be the defining characteristics of successful QSR brands, and how is your company positioning itself for that future?
I think the brands that will do best are the ones that really get their customers—and build community, personality, and connection into everything they do. People want to feel like there’s something real behind the brand. Studies show that customers are more likely to engage with brands that feel human and relatable—especially when that personality comes through consistently across every touchpoint. That’s what we’re focused on. Showing up with a strong brand identity that people connect with. We’re building our online community and staying close to what makes us different—we’re bold, we’re playful, and we’re in the people business… we just happen to serve pretzels!
Hear more from Siobhan Randles, head of marketing at Auntie Anne’s UK at the upcoming QSR Media UK Redcat Conference & Awards 2025.
