How Birds Eye is using pop culture, gaming and chicken to win over a new generation of frozen food fans

“Birds Eye were known for being the leaders in frozen food, but we saw there was a real untapped opportunity among pre-family 18 to 35-year-olds,” explains Charlotte Vause Cross, brand manager of Chicken Shop at Birds Eye. “That younger group is into fast, flavourful food, but frozen just wasn’t part of their consideration set."

The solution was to meet them where they are: online, in gaming worlds, and crucially, in real life.

The chicken shop pop-up: serving culture with a side of chips

In a bid to make frozen food relevant again, Birds Eye launched a pop-up chicken shop in the heart of Shoreditch – a location chosen not just for footfall but for cultural cachet. The activation offered free food, an appearance from Love Island’s Wes Nelson DJing on night one, and was promoted through a laser-focused blend of PR, influencer marketing, and targeted digital media.

“We wanted to recreate that fakeaway experience at home,” says Vause Cross. “QSR is massive, but there was no real frozen food solution for people wanting that chicken shop vibe. So we built our own and brought the experience to life.”

The pop-up wasn’t just a flash in the pan. It also acted as a pilot for broader brand storytelling, testing how Birds Eye could speak to a younger, style-conscious demographic who view food not just as sustenance, but as social currency.

Gaming: from TV ads to in-game moments

While traditional above-the-line still plays a role, Birds Eye has evolved its media mix to reflect changing habits. One of the standout moves: becoming the first FMCG brand to partner with EA FC, formerly known as FIFA.

“That was massive for us,” says Vause Cross. “Gaming gave us huge impressions and in-game experiences that let us reach our audience in a completely new way. It wasn’t just advertising, it was embedding ourselves in their world.”

With screen time increasingly dominated by immersive platforms rather than passive viewing, such moves are less a gamble and more a necessity.

Redefining frozen: health, affordability and relevance

Birds Eye’s younger audience strategy is not just about being present in cool places, it’s also about rewriting perceptions of frozen food itself.

“Let’s face it,” says Vause Cross, “frozen isn’t always seen as sexy. People do the rest of their food shop and end with frozen as an afterthought. For us, it’s about inspiring them to see frozen as the hero of the meal.”

That matters even more in an economic downturn. With the cost of living forcing many consumers to cut back on eating out, the ‘fakeaway’ trend has emerged as a growth category. Birds Eye’s Chicken Shop range offers indulgent flavour profiles, yet all products in the range are non-HFSS, tapping into both health concerns and budget realities.

“We’re actually really well positioned for the HFSS regulations,” says Vause Cross. “All of our Chicken Shop range fits within those guidelines, which is a great advantage.”

Agile innovation inside a legacy brand

For a brand that predates television, adapting to TikTok and esports requires not just new tactics but new ways of working.

“We developed the Chicken Shop concept through what we called our chicken shop safari,” says Vause Cross. “We visited 12 chicken shops in one day around London – places like Wingstop, Popeyes, not just the big players like KFC. That immersion helped us tap into what’s driving the category and bring those trends home.”

Such nimble behaviour isn’t typical for a traditional FMCG, but it’s a sign of how Birds Eye is building internal permission to experiment.

“Chicken Shop was a chance to test the waters. We got great results and now we can use those learnings across the business,” she adds.

AI and the art of packaging

The team has also brought AI into the marketing toolkit, but in a very practical way.

“We’ve partnered with Dragonfly AI to analyse our packaging and marketing materials,” Vause Cross explains. “We use heatmaps to see where the eye is drawn first. In a supermarket shelf environment, that few seconds of attention is everything.”

It’s a glimpse into how Birds Eye is combining legacy know-how with new-school analytics.

Brand longevity and cultural currency

So what does all this mean for a brand that has defined generations of British childhoods?

“We want people to grow up with Birds Eye and stay with us through every stage of life,” says Vause Cross. “From fish fingers and waffles as a kid, to fakeaway chicken dippers in your 20s, to feeding your own family one day.”

And as for Captain Birds Eye?

“He’s still going strong,” she laughs. “He’s got his lighthouse, he’s doing his thing. But we’re also building out new stories, like Captain’s Discoveries, which explores global cuisines.”

The brand isn’t ditching its past. It’s reinterpreting it for a new audience.

Looking ahead: disruption with a smile

Winning gold at a recent awards show for the Chicken Shop campaign was, by Vause Cross’s own admission, a surprise.

“There were some amazing campaigns in there with really big budgets,” she says. “To win gold was just incredible. It wasn’t just me, it was a huge team effort and we’re taking that home with pride.”

The message is clear: legacy brands can thrive in a Gen Z world – but only if they’re willing to turn up in unexpected places, speak with authenticity, and serve up more than just nostalgia. Frozen, it seems, is very much back on the boil.