Halloween hots up

In a recent market research project carried out by Conlumino on behalf of Webloyalty, it was discovered that almost two thirds (64.5%) of UK consumers will celebrate Halloween in some way this year and they are spending more than ever with spending expected to be up 5.2% on 2013 at £443m.

Both adults and children are preparing to dress up and decorate their homes in order to celebrate the spooky event.

An average spend of £10.77 per head is anticipated, including food, clothing and decorations. Of course, in that food will be confectionery as has always been the case.

And did you know that 82.6% of pumpkins purchased annually are bought at Halloween? I guess I’m not that surprised as it is also the season for them!

So, Halloween is on the up for sure. Whilst we’re not bothered about the sale of fancy dress costumes, we are interested in the general trend as that is sure to have an impact on Halloween confectionery sales.

Get prepared immediately if you are not already! Think about the buying occasions and price points of your customers. A huge number of people buy in sweet treats for the trick or treaters, whilst confectionery is always in demand for Halloween parties, whether for grown-ups or kids.

So don’t ignore the opportunity. Grasp it with both hands. It might only be one day in theory, but the celebrations are sure to last all weekend and many purchases will be close to the date. Make sure you earn some extra cash from it.

www.sweetretailing.co.uk

Christmas gift planning again!

The time is almost upon us again and confectionery retailers need to be planned ready and stocked. Christmas confectionery gifts have become a staple over the festive season. We all seem to have at least one gift where we resort to sweets or chocolates. For some, it’s many more. Every retailer imaginable jumps on the bandwagon from supermarkets, clothing chains, distinctive food halls and of course, specialist sweet shops and retailers that sell confectionery all year round.

Whilst it might seem like there is a huge amount of competition to retail confectionery gifts at Christmas time, the surge in supply is quite simply a reflection of the surge in demand. Get on the band wagon and boost your sales is our advice!

There are many ways to tackle the Christmas confectionery gift market but they all require one thing – careful planning and time given to determine the correct product range and method of display for your business. Starting now gives you that much needed time to talk to a number of suppliers and consider how you might improve on your Christmas range from last year.

Every confectionery manufacturer small and large can offer you ideas for Christmas confectionery gifts. Packaging and presentation is everything here and you’ll also want to consider what level your customers wish to buy at and what price points are important to them. The token gift market is a popular one, designed to supply small, low priced gifts for colleagues, neighbours, friends and more. It’s worth considering stocking more substantial gifts too, either for the recipient that has everything or perhaps as a family or office gift to share.

Many specialist confectionery retailers are enjoying the benefits of creating their own bespoke confectionery gifts for their store, perhaps packaging unique sweet selections into smaller containers or attractively packaged bags. Filling larger sweet jars with a selection to share can be a great alternative to a tin of chocolates at Christmas time and a profit winner for your store.

Do your research now and benefit from some great festive confectionery sales in the months to come. We’ll keep you posted on new products and ideas as they launch too!

www.sweetretailing.co.uk

Rising online confectionery sales

Some figures were recently reported that suggested more than £100m of confectionery sales are now done online. This has apparently grown by 28.4% in the last year and accounts for 3% of all confectionery sales in the UK. Is this a trend that we should take especially seriously? Well, extrapolate that growth rate and it’s not unreasonable to suggest that within the next five to six years, at least 9% of all confectionery sales could be done online. That’s serious!

Research suggests that there is a decline in on-the-go confectionery sales whilst purchases for home consumption are firmly on the up. Less a case of filling up on confectionery during the day but more indulging in our sweet treats in the safety of our own home when we are relaxing with friends and family – or alone perhaps. Shoppers are buying more planned confectionery with their main shop too.

This has big implications for product formats in both retail stores and online shops. Perhaps offering sharing products for home consumption to buy online is the winning formula?!

The fact that we all love our confectionery is not going to diminish to my mind, even if it is not the healthiest thing around – we need some pleasures! But it does look like how we buy it and where and when we prefer to consume it could change over time. The savvy retailer will surely keep a close eye on this so that they can move their range (and sales format) on in time with the changing trends.

www.sweetretailing.co.uk

Is smaller more healthy?

The news this week that members of the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) have signed up to a 250 calorie cap for all single serve confectionery sold in the UK might not be a surprise to many, as the big manufacturers have generally made initial progress in this area already. The FDF target is now spring 2016.

My first thought is to wonder whether this is a potential opportunity for manufacturers to make chocolate bars smaller still. After all, sugar, which makes up a fair percentage of calories in a chocolate bar, has a weight. Take this out or reduce it significantly (if the nation's taste buds can adapt) and the size of the bar falls.

Now, maybe eating smaller bars is a good thing (even if we don’t see a corresponding drop in the price and I’ll come back to that point shortly). Indeed Cadbury has chosen to scrap its CDM Bar and a Half range by the end of 2015 due to its higher calorific value. But being devil’s advocate, will smaller bars encourage those that like to indulge to buy two instead?! And will promotional activity encourage this?

Back to my point about price. There are pros and cons of smaller bars not seeing a reduction in RRP. Cheaper chocolate could mean that there is a tendency to buy more; certainly defeating the entire objective here. But make them smaller and retain the price and we’ll all feel somewhat cheated, perhaps indulging in better value confectionery items such as bigger bars to share and bags.

Another thought, will this activity in chocolate see sugar confectionery items (not calorie limited) look better value for money and move sales across to that category? And will £1 bars of chocolate simply become the loophole, further stinting the already faltering singles chocolate bar market.

The situation is far from clear in my humble opinion, even before we consider the excessive levels of sugar in many day to day foodstuffs such as bread and baked beans. I am wholeheartedly for developing a healthier nation and reducing obesity but if people want to eat chocolate that is exactly what they will do – in a quantity that they desire! 

A multi-pronged attack on obesity is certainly constructive, so long as we have the support of those that are obese. Eating and drinking less sugary foods overall and taking more exercise have to be key factors in the equation too.

www.sweetretailing.co.uk