Ferrero focusing on festive season

The brand are heavily investing in Christmas NPD

The new Thorntons Pearls come in two flavours: Salted Caramel and Nutty Crunch

GETTING people excited about Christmas isn’t always easy. With the festive season seeming to get more expensive every year, shoppers can feel a bit hard-pressed.

But, to help revive excitement among weary consumers, chocolate brand Ferrero is investing £6.74m in its Christmas range for 2018.

At the firm’s ‘Great Ferrero’ event held in London last month, Ferrero announced several NPD launches across its portfolio, with particular focus on the Thorntons brand.

Following on from the success of its Reindeer and The Snowman figures last year,  Ferrero has added a ‘Cheeky Elf’ figure to its 2018 lineup, in the hopes of tapping into the popularity of the ‘elf on the shelf’ phenomenon among families.

But the biggest news of the day was the introduction of a permanent, premium product for the boxed chocolate category:  Thorntons Pearls.

Coming to the market this month, Pearls have delicate chocolate shells and an option of two flavours inside, gooey salted caramel and praline nutty crunch.

They will be aimed at younger consumers (especially 25-34 year old women), with a focus on the sharing occasion.

The 167g boxes have an RRP of £4.99, and will be supported by PR and social.

As well as Thorntons, Ferrero also has big Christmas plans for another of its brands, Kinder, with new Kinder Surprise hollow figures and collectable winter Kinder Joy eggs coming to the market.   

The firm hopes these products will help drive early season excitement, as well as making the most of Kinder’s 50th birthday celebrations that are taking place this year.

Nutella is another Ferrero brand that is benefitting from some Christmas investment, with limited edition festive jars rolling out to stores.

The first ever glow-in-the-dark Nutella  jar will be available as a 200g seasonal pack, with a supporting campaign across TV, social media and in-store displays.

Levi Boorer, customer development director at Ferrero said: “It is important as a leading confectionery manufacturer to offer retailers products and ranges that help them cater to the different types of festive shopping needs.”