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How is the Swizzels range currently performing?

Swizzels has continued to grow over the last year, especially in symbols and independents, where we have seen that the brand has grown faster than the overall total market*.

Squashies, our popular sweets that come in a variety of much-loved flavours, have been a massive success for Swizzels and has continued to grow 2.4% over the past year**, known now as the number one sugar confectionery brand** in the UK.

Including 4 different flavours, such as the latest Rhubarb & Custard flavour, Squashies is available across £1 PMP hanging bag formats and a 45g pocket sized treat size. According to research, price is the no.1 factor when purchasing singles confectionery*** so this 50p PMP is a must stock.

Is it important for retailers to stock sugar confectionery?

Sweets is the second highest category that shoppers like to spend time browsing****, so any wholesaler or retailer that doesn’t currently stock sugar confectionery is missing a trick.

However, it’s not just about stocking sugar confectionery, but ensuring you are stocking the biggest and best brands that will drive a strong rate of sale and therefore profit. Sugar Confectionery has continued to grow over the last year***** and Swizzels have a broad range of products to fit customer needs including singles, sharing bags and seasonal lines. We work with our customers base to ensure they have the strongest range and supply strong sales materials to maximise their sales.

What are the main reasons and occasions to consume sugar confectionery?

Sugar confectionery is bought all year round, however, there are strong spikes in the summer months and around Halloween. Time of day is also a critical measure as a lot of sugar confectionery is bought in the afternoon and evenings.

Did lockdown change consumer habits?

Research suggests that in-home eating occasions have risen by +60%******, likely due to the pandemic, meaning bigger at home family and social occasions are growing in importance*******.

With this in mind, shoppers are looking for sharing packs to cater for get-togethers and ensure they have a mixture of sweet options that the whole family can enjoy.

Perfect for all sharing occasions, Swizzels’ Variety bags have recently been rebranded to include everyone’s favourites in three different packs, such as Luscious Lollies 176g, Scrumptious Sweets 173g, and Curious Chews 171g. Available with a £1 RSP, the bags are free from artificial colours and suitable for vegans.

What trends are driving the market?

Sugar confectionery has continued to grow over the last 12 weeks******** and with restrictions now removed, we can expect to return to pre-covid life and anticipate that more time will be spent outdoors with families and friends as the weather warms.

As such, we predict that sharing bags sales will continue to grow. Countlines and single product confectionery will also be in higher demand than before, as more customers will be purchasing sweets for themselves on the go.

Which pack formats are growing in popularity?

Value-for-money confectionery continues to be a hugely popular choice for shoppers, particularly as financial circumstances have changed over the course of the pandemic.

According to recent research, one in five shoppers are more likely to shop in a particular convenience store if they know it stocks PMPs*********, and price marked packs sell 5 times more than non-price marked equivalents*********, so it’s important for retailers to stock a range of value products from popular brands to boost sales.

What merchandising advice do you have for retailers?

Creating theatre in store via first class marketing campaigns remains an opportunity for those retailers who wish to use key supplier initiatives to add an exciting shopping experience for their customers.

As mentioned, with confectionery noted as a category with high impulse buys, retailers should look to prioritise locating these categories on secondary locations throughout the store to reach as many shoppers as possible**********.

Retailers could also feature a range of £1 PMP near till points and end-of-aisle as a last-minute appeal to shoppers before they finalise their purchase. However, from October 2022 care must be taken with the new HFSS rules coming into place.

As only 5% of sweets purchases are planned***********, it’s important to create eye-catching displays to attract shoppers, as well as taking advantage of seasonal events such as Easter by combining chocolate and confectionery into an Easter themed display.

Retailers should ensure they are stocking a variety of sweets which vegetarian and vegan customers can choose from. Creating a section within their shops which is labelled clearly as vegan, will also make it easier for consumers to see what their vegan offering is.

Swizzels has a vegan range of confectionery, available all year round, which includes favourites such as Drumstick and Refresher Choos, as well as the recently reformulated variety range from Swizzels which is now all Vegan, a £1 PMP filled with a range of our most popular and well-loved sweets and lollies – perfect for all sharing occasions.

The clear on pack £1 price point is guaranteed to catch the eye of shoppers on the hunt for value-for-money sweet treats to share with friends and family, so is a must-stock for cash and carries looking to attract retailers who look to stock a vegan confectionery offering.

Finally, for fans of a retro Swizzels sweet, the Originals range, which includes packs of Love Heart rolls and Parma Violet rolls, are also suitable for vegans to enjoy at any time of the year.

What marketing support do you have coming up for your brands?

In coming months, we have impactful POS displays for cash and carries, delivered wholesale and retailers, ensuring all our key marketing activities and NPD are supported throughout the year.

Additionally, we are supporting all our key campaigns and NPD with trade marketing adverts and key messages in all trade press and also visibility within our customers own trade channels such as brochure ads and digital banners.

We will be running more exclusive competitions for retailers, where they can win free stock for their stores which has also been successful for previous campaigns we have run, like the Swizzels Big Night In. Watch this space for an exciting Swizzels summer campaign, too!

Is there any new NPD this year?

We are beyond excited to be launching our entrance into the mallows market, with our brand-new product Marvellous Mallows.

The mallows category is worth £24.7 million************, so it’s the perfect time for Swizzels to branch out into a new market, launching with the Drumstick raspberry and milk flavour which we know our customers love.

Finally, this year we also have a really exciting partnership with a well-known film franchise… so keep your eyes peeled!

 

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