Confectionery stands strong against the backdrop of tighter household budgets, as brands aim to offer value in the category.
By Elena Dimama
Negative headlines regarding health worries and the cost-of-living crisis mean retailers might have to think twice about which offers to push for, but brands still have a strong appetite for innovation and NPD, making the job a lot easier for them.
The arrival of the Minions sequel movie, Minions 2, has prompted Hancocks to launch a range of Minions-branded sweets ahead of its release on 1 July. The company is rolling out five Minions-branded sweet treats, including Minion-shaped jelly sweets in 200g share bags, the Minions Peace Veggie and Original jelly sweets, alongside a selection of four different Minion characters in Pez candy and dispenser packs with banana-flavoured refills. The firm is also launching Millions tiny chewy candies in a Minions banana-flavoured edition.
The Minions craze is also shared by Swizzels, which is launching a limited-edition Minions-themed range of confectionery to coincide with the movie’s UK release. The range includes Minions Banana & Blueberry Squashies, Minions Tropical Chew Bars, and Minions Tropical Fizz Individual Chew Bar.
Staying with movie launches, a new Buzz Lightyear-branded Pez will be flying into stores ahead of the launch of the new Lightyear movie. The character dispenser is being added to the selection of Pez products, comprising three character options – two are of Buzz Lightyear and the third is Sox, a robotic cat and Buzz’s personal companion. Other new additions to the Pez range include Pez Pezimals.
Looking at chocolate, 63% of consumers have recently purchased block chocolate, versus 54% in the same period, the previous year, according to Mintel, while large block chocolate purchases at 63% are second only to single-serve bars at 65% (down from 67% the previous year).
Ritter Sport is aiming to take advantage of chocolate trends by bringing back its limited-edition Taste The World range for summer, with two new flavours launching alongside the return of the bestselling bar from the past two years. A new Salted Caramel variant headlines the three-strong range. The southwest America-inspired bar is joined by Cherry & Almond Milk Chocolate, which borrows flavours and design from Japanese culture.
The range is completed with Costa Rican-inspired White Mango and Passionfruit, which is back by popular demand and topped Ritter’s sales charts in both 2020 and 2021. Ritter Sport Taste The World block chocolate bars have an RSP of £1 and are available until September.
