• by Sarah Mahoney , Staff Writer, Yesterday

Chomps, one of the main players in the busy better-for-you snack universe, is introducing a new national campaign aimed squarely at the people most in charge of changing food preferences: hardworking, multitasking young women.

Themed "All Sides of Her Nature," the company says the new work fits neatly under its ongoing "Take Bigger Bites" marketing platform, clarifying the brand's personality in a snacking category that has become protein-palooza.

Meat sticks may have started as a male-oriented snack — and there is still plenty of evidence supporting women's overall preferences for plants over meat — but women are driving the category's growth, fueled by growing demand for cleaner ingredients and GLP-1-driven obsession with protein.

Women now account for 60% of the brand's sales, and competitors like Archer and PepsiCo's Good Warrior are also chasing women and young families.

"Women are helping drive the growth of protein," says Stacey Hartnett, Chomps senior vice president of marketing. And while that might mean they are shopping for another meat snack, "it can also mean we're competing with a handful of nuts or a yogurt."

The new work is designed to break through as that competitive set keeps changing, while sticking with what has defined the brand since its launch in 2012.

Chomps is "a very clean product in a convenient package, which is what the modern consumer is looking for to fuel their busy lives," Hartnett says. "For us, the protein boom isn't a trend. It's a material shift in how consumers view what they put in their bodies, and what they feed their families."

The Chicago-based company is rolling out lighthearted ads from agency Nice & Frank, which portray three protein-needy situations: a bride-to-be about to step into the ceremony, a mom re-entering household chaos, and a night-shift doctor who hasn't had time to eat. But these women aren't hangry-frazzled. They're gracefully working some Chomps into the commotion, without missing a beat.

The brand voice, which Hartnett says strives to be bold, bright and approachable, also aims to be witty and playful. "That playfulness is how we're standing out. We already know and value her. She is living a full, active life, moving constantly between all these different roles she plays. She's ambitious but has a sort of lightness and spontaneity," Hartnett says of the brand's target consumer.

Media buys include programming where she is "kicking back and watching her shows, like 'Dancing with the Stars' or whatever else she is streaming, and also extends into YouTube, social media and anywhere she is researching her passions," Hartnett says. "We're hoping to connect when she is most laid back."

The main goal? Emotional connection, so that when people are first discovering the brand, "it becomes a really easy choice for them," Hartnett says. "We want them to get excited, tell their friends and share our product."