The national press loves a story about ‘shrinkflation’ – you know, products getting smaller but prices going up. The latest, earlier this week, was a story in both the Sun and the Mirror about Wispa bars being ‘half the size, but twice the price’. Cadbury brand owner Mondelez responded by saying reducing the size of its chocolate bars was a last resort in combating rising costs.
There’s no doubting that cocoa prices are going through the roof, with CNBC reporting that the commodity hit $10,000 per metric ton for the first time ever earlier this week. This means prices have already doubled this year. And apparently it’s all down to the weather with West Africa – where most of the cocoa comes from – being hit by heavy rain and the spread of something called ‘black pod disease’.
Thankfully, while consumers may moan about shrinking bars and rising prices, it doesn’t seem to put them off from buying and eating them – and many have good reason to. In its new Cadbury Unwrapped report, Mondelez found that 67% of adults who eat chocolate snacks agree that chocolate is a mood booster, giving them a much-needed pick-me-up. Meanwhile, 84% of adults who are chocolate eaters say that they eat it as a treat and 79% agree that they eat it to satisfy a craving. Over a third of adults who eat chocolate said they eat it to celebrate a personal achievement such as winning a football match or passing an exam.
Luckily for these chocolate lovers there continue to be many new products for them to try. Cadbury now has over 600 roles in research and development in the UK and, in the past 10 years, it has launched over 100 new products including Cadbury Caramilk, Cadbury Dairy Milk Fruitier & Nuttier, Cadbury Dairy Milk &More Caramel Nut Crunch and Cadbury Dairy Milk &More Nutty Praline Crisp.
The Cadbury Dairy Milk &More bars were only launched earlier this month. They come with larger chunks than normally associated with the same size bars, packed full of textures and flavours. Caramel Nut Crunch comes in a 200g bar size and Nutty Praline Crisp in a 180g size, but both have rrps of £2.75.
Over at Nestlé, their R&D department has been very busy. For example, they have taken Aero, Milkybar and Munchies and reimagined them with a nostalgic, ice cream twist. The results are Neapolitan flavour Aero Melts, Raspberry Ripple flavour Milkybar Buttons and Cookie Dough Ice Cream flavour Munchies.
The company also recently launched Aero Choco Hazelnut flavour – a variety that was apparently frequently requested by followers of Aero’s social media channels.
Championing new products
Matt Boulter, UK sales director, Mars Wrigley, says retailers should champion new products in store to raise sales and capitalise on early consumer demand. “A secondary siting by the till can boost both awareness and sales alongside displaying pos materials that highlight new products. Consumers will be intrigued by what catches their eye.”
One of Mars Wrigley’s most recent launches was of the Galaxy Vegan Salted Caramel bar as part of a refresh of the Galaxy Vegan product range. The new SKU, which is gluten-free, dairy-free and registered with The Vegan Society, joins Galaxy Vegan Classic, Vegan Orange and Vegan Crumbled Cookie.
Boulter adds that convenience remains key for consumers: “Consumers want ever more convenient ways to shop and ‘at my convenience, not yours’ is a trend we’re increasingly seeing.
“They want to be able to enter a store and easily find what they are looking for. Cross-merchandising can be useful for retailers looking to boost basket spend and generate impulse sales. By pairing items together, retailers can offer some inspiration for those mini moments.”
Boulter says that visibility is also key to driving sales and the use of engaging pos material can play a large role in increasing basket spend, alongside placing the items at ‘eye level’, or ‘buy level,’ which has been shown to boost sales by up to 20%.
200th birthday
While excitement surrounds new products, many people enjoy the familiarity of old favourites. One such old favourite – Cadbury – is celebrating its 200th birthday. Celebrations include the availability of heritage limited-edition bars. The 180g Cadbury Dairy Milk Bars, as well as 95g PMP packs, are available in seven different collectable designs, featuring packaging from across the ages, starting as far back as 1915 and running right up to the present day. Mondelez says this means shoppers from every generation should be able to recognise the Cadbury Dairy Milk bar they saw on shelves when they were growing up. Meanwhile, the inside of each pack is illustrated with a special artwork documenting some of Cadbury’s milestone moments.
In addition, to show its thanks to the retailers who have helped support the brand throughout its long history, Cadbury is encouraging store owners to share their Great Retail Ideas to win cash prizes. Any retailer who shares an idea via a specially-created form on SnackDisplay.co.uk, Mondelez’s trade-focused advice and information site – will be entered into a competition where they could win a cash prize of up to £5,000.
Retailers can also get involved in the Big Win-Win campaign, which returns after a hugely successful first year.
Running to mid-June, Cadbury Big Win-Win invites consumers to nominate their local shop to give retailers a chance to win a cash prize to match their own. There are 70 prizes of £1,000, and another 60 prizes of £500 up for grabs for shoppers, and 130 retailers will be given the chance to win those prizes alongside their shoppers.
The promotion is available across Cadbury’s full singles and duos range, including both PMP and non-PMP formats. Special packs will be available across the top sellers, such as Cadbury Twirl, Cadbury Dairy Milk and Wispa in both PMP & non-PMP formats. The campaign will also be activated off-pack across Cadbury’s full singles and duos range.
