Given his form as one of the kings of advertising and brand management from the Gruen franchise including Russel Howcroft in the judging team for Recipe to Riches is a pretty smart move. Also doesn’t hurt that he’s the Executive GM for Ten Melbourne so he’s got an in. Seriously though there are few that would be able to offer as much to the prospective marketers in guidance to help them sell their product. From the press release:
Network Ten today announced Russel Howcroft will join the second season of TEN’s innovative series Recipe To Riches.
Russel – an acclaimed marketing expert, Executive General Manager of Network Ten and panellist on ABC TV’s The Gruen Transfer, Gruen Nation and Gruen Planet – will become the third expert on the show, alongside Carman’s Fine Foods owner Carolyn Creswell and talented chef Darren Robertson.
Production has started on the new season of Recipe To Riches, which gives viewers a fascinating insight into a recipe’s journey from its creator’s kitchen to supermarket shelves around Australia.
Russel said: “Recipe To Riches is a great format. It celebrates ideas, entrepreneurship, passion and the power of marketing. I am looking forward to meeting this year’s contestants and seeing if I can give them a hand with their success.”
Airing later this year on TEN, Recipe To Riches takes everyday Australians’ much-loved home recipes and turns them into the next top sellers in Woolworths supermarkets. This innovative, engaging series gives Australians from all walks of life the chance to turn their treasured recipes – often passed down from one generation to the next – into riches.
Viewers will follow contestants as they “batch up” their dishes to see if their recipe can be produced on a mass-market scale, create a brand for their product and devise strategies to launch it to the public.
Last year, Garth Midgely wowed Australia with his innovative idea, bringing chocolate and popcorn together to create Chocorn.
A Woolworths spokesperson said: “Our customers love Chocorn. They couldn’t wait to get their hands on it after the success of Recipes To Riches last year and sales have been fantastic.” Recipe To Riches’ budding food entrepreneurs will be guided and mentored by Russel, Carolyn and Darren.
The trio will present their recommendations to a representative of Woolworths supermarkets. The Woolworths representative will make the final decision about which products have the best chance of succeeding on the supermarket giant’s shelves.
Viewers will be able to vote in the most authentic way possible – at the checkout. The day after each episode goes to air, the winning product will be available on shelf in Woolworths’ 890 stores across Australia. Viewers can walk into any Woolworths supermarket, buy the product and taste it for themselves.
Recipe To Riches is a FremantleMedia Australia production for Network Ten.