[ CONFECTIONERY ]
Making life sweeter After more than a year of the pandemic, which has stifled growth in the confectionery market, Kevin Whitlock considers the state of play as lockdown eases and looks ahead.
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here’s nothing like a small indulgent treat to lift the spirits, and there’s no treat which offers as much for as little money as confectionery, be it sugar or chocolate-based. Given how convenience stores, independents and symbols have seen sales move upwards during the past 13 months, it would be natural to assume that confectionery, as an affordable treat, would likewise prosper. However – and although no definitive figures are yet available – there is plenty of anecdotal evidence to indicate that confectionery sales haven’t prospered in lockdown as much as one might expect. This is primarily due to the decline of shopping on the go, thanks to the cessation of commuting and travel more generally. With this decline of shopping on the go, there is a need for suppliers to differentiate, innovate and excite consumers – and market their products to stimulate growth as lockdown eases and consumers start to move around more freely. It’s worth remembering that confectionery remains the top impulse purchase in the independent and convenience channels. Figures from Valeo Confectionery show that during lockdown, shoppers have been shopping less frequently (-0.7%) and buying more packs of confectionery per trip (+3.4%). Prior to the first lockdown last March, the category saw strong growth, due to wider ‘stockpiling’ missions. But the category then experienced significant sales decline and never truly caught up to 2019 levels. “Different formats and types of sweets have been affected very differently,” says Russell Tanner, marketing & category director. “Aside from the impact of the first lockdown, sharing bags of sweets have seen continued growth. This is driven primarily by gums and chews, popular with the whole family and purchased by shoppers as mood boosters.” Levi Boorer, customer development director at Ferrero, believes there is an opportunity to be had in the crisis: 18
April 2021
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“Having had to remain away from loved ones during the pandemic, we are seeing shoppers wanting to treat their family and friends more than ever. Wholesalers should therefore stock affordable luxuries, meaning retailers can make these occasions even more special for their shoppers,” he says. “Confectionery is one of the few categories where retailers are willing to spend money on the products that shoppers love, in order to cater for demand for treating. While the recent lockdown has added a degree of uncertainty to how people might celebrate, retailers will still be looking for highquality products to stock. We know retailers turn to the brands they know and love during times of uncertainty.” Swizzels is the largest British-owned sugar confectionery manufacturer in the UK and has enjoyed good growth in these difficult times. Mark Walker, sales director, says that keeping the innovation and NPD pipeline flowing will be crucial over the coming months, as will keeping ‘much loved’ brands top of mind via strong marketing initiatives. ‘‘Sugar confectionery continues to perform well over the course of the pandemic as shoppers seek out treats from well-known brands to cheer themselves up,” he says. Swizzels’ NPD includes Drumstick Chocolate Bar. This new concept for Swizzels sees the flavour of the Drumstick Lolly, which has been a firm consumer favourite for more than 60 years, encased in milk chocolate. The chocolate bar has a raspberry and milk fondant centre and real raspberry pieces, bringing Drumstick into the chocolate category – currently in growth, with chocolate blocks up 21% (IRI). Available to depots now in the standard pack format, there will also be a wholesale-exclusive PMP introduced later this year. Walker adds that hanging bag (100-199g) sales have seen growth of 6% over the past year and now account for 54% of total sugar confectionery sales (IRI), indicating that consumers are choosing to engage with these products most during lockdown: “We expect this to continue this year, so these are also a must stock for cash & carries.” Swizzels’ newest addition to its hanging bag range is Great British Puds, invented by an avid Swizzels fan who won the chance to have her own sweet brought to life through the company’s 90th anniversary competition. Great British Puds includes individually-wrapped chew bars in four nostalgic British dessert flavours – Sticky Toffee Pudding, Rhubarb Crumble, Apple Pie & Custard and Lemon Meringue.
