Ice cream remains a classic favourite that retailers can continue to lean on in the summer months to drive sales – especially in Scotland.
By Elena Dimama
Ice cream is often viewed as a timeless dessert staple despite inflationary pressures, remaining incredibly popular with younger consumers and undergoing something of a culinary revolution in Scotland.
In the UK overall, the category has seen a 4% increase in value sales from 2022 to 2023, according to Nielsen, but volume sales fell by 8.2% in the same period, highlighting the impact of inflation on consumer purchasing habits.
The Scottish uplift
However, Scotland has emerged as a “standout performer,” according to Andrew Niven, Strategic Market Intelligence Manager for The Knowledge Bank. The country has outpaced England and Wales with a 6.3% value growth – Nielsen data has shown – with Scottish brands led by Mackie’s of Scotland having carved a “niche with a slight preference for tubs over other formats, taking more than 93% of brand sales”.
Indeed, the numbers speak for themselves; Mackie’s saw its turnover rise from £17.7m two years ago to £20.8m in the last financial year, while also increasing its UK market penetration by 13%. “Over the past few years, we’ve seen a meteoric rise in sales of our Honeycomb, which we make by mixing molten pieces of our hand-made honeycomb into each tub,” says Stuart Common, Managing Director at Mackie’s of Scotland.
“It’s great to know that the team’s hard work in making our high-quality products is appreciated by our consumers across the country, and really exciting for us to be seeing such growth in the business as a result.”
Warm weather and innovative flavours
Summer seasonality is still quite important when it comes to ice cream, with 2022 seeing an earlier June peak in sales compared to 2023, according to Nielsen. Niven adds: “Handheld ice cream drives sales at this time of year and have seen a considerable increase of almost £40m in value between 2021 and 2023 in the UK. This reinforces the importance of harnessing seasonal preferences for product promotion, as the warmer months tend to encourage consumers to purchase products such as handheld ice cream which can be more conveniently enjoyed out of home.”
In terms of consumer demographics, a total of 97% of consumers aged between 16-24 and 85% of consumers between 24-35 years old ate ice cream between July and September 2023, according to Mintel. However, older age groups also demonstrate an interest in frozen desserts, but tend to prefer products that contain natural ingredients. Mintel data showed that a total of 60% of people aged 55 and over showed a stronger interest in natural products in comparison to 46% of 16-24-year-olds.
“These findings reinforce the importance of consumer preferences. However, innovative flavour combinations also drive interest, with 47% of UK consumers intrigued by sweet and salty flavour combinations,” Niven explains. “These numbers are most prominent among younger audiences, with half of all 16–24-year-olds expressing an interest in trying exciting and unconventional flavours, as well as snacking formats.”
Carte D’Or has launched a new mini pots line in three flavours to offer a portionable solution to ice cream snacking.
The new flavours include Vanilla Caramel Pecan, Eton Mess and Chocolate Cookie. The brand has also expanded its Deluxe range of 850ml tubs with two new variants, Tiramisu and New York Cheesecake.
Hannah Faulkner, Desserts Brand Manager at Unilever, said: “The launch of two new iconic dessert flavours, Tiramisu and Cheesecake, builds on the success of Carte D’Or Baileys at Christmas, which was the number two Winter NPD.
“We are adding more luxury to the range by bringing together the number one premium ice cream brand with two indulgent desserts, guaranteed to attract dessert lovers to the ice cream category.”
