Shoppers snapping up bagged confectionery at a rapid rate
HANGING bags appear to be the format of the moment, having rapidly increased market share over the last two years.
Category data from IRI Total Market for the 52 weeks to 20 December 2019 – provided by Swizzels – revealed hanging bags had grown by close to £100 million in value sales over the previous 24 months, and now account for 50% of total sugar confectionery sales.
That’s been good news for Swizzels as Mark Walker, sales director at Swizzels, said the firm had enjoyed a 14% sales uplift across a 24 month period.
“Bagged confectionery continues to be a hugely popular choice for shoppers – whether seeking sweet treats for their big night in or even when looking for cheaper alrernatives for their night out at the cinema.
“Therefore, developing a bagged confectionery offering that provides both value-for-money products as well as breadth of choice is key for retailers looking to maximise their sales opportunities within the category,” he said.
Swizzels has a broad portfolio of hanging bags for retailers to choose from, but Walker highlighted the Squashies range in particular for its strength in convenience stores.
“Squashies continues to be a huge success story for the business and is now the number one hanging bar brand in sugar confectionery, making it the most succesful NPD launch in over ten years.
“90% of Swizzels Squashies that are sold in symbols and independents are price-marked packs, which highlights that convenience shoppers are attracted to this value-for-money best-selling product, making it a must stock.
“Squashies original flavour has the highest rate of sale out of all £1 price-marked sugar confectionery packs in the market, 22% above the next nearest competitor,” he said.
Walker added that due to their continuing strong performance, retailers should keep an eye out for a “major new launch” in this format later this year.
“The total confectionery market is in growth, with sales increasing by 4.5% in the past 12 months. The fruity confectionery category is also experiencing success, growing by 3.7% to £922 million.
“Over the past 12 months, Mars Wrigley has seen fruity confectionery sales grow by 20.5%.
“For us, the category’s success is driven by innovation, while volumes are still driven by its bestselling core range.”
– Victoria Gell, Fruity Confections Portfolio Director, Mars Wrigley
