Brands to Target Kids to Promote their Chocolate Confectionery Growth

15 September 2020: The chocolate confectionery market is expected to witness a substantial growth due to low prices of cocoa beans, which is used as a raw material in chocolate manufacturing. Along with that, innovative and interesting ways of product packing, branding, selling strategies, and promotions are gaining popularity among consumers, fueling the growth of the market. 

Modern Consumer Eating Patterns Propel Growth of the Product Segment

Based on product, the segment is categorized as countlines, boxed, seasonal, molded bars, straightlines, chocolates, etc. In 2016, countlines held the largest share of the chocolate confectionery industry. Countlines are customized to suit the needs of modern day consumers with informal eating patterns. This is due to the fact that they are ready made, easily available, and present an easy snack option. 

However, the fastest growing segment is the seasonal chocolates, which is anticipated to expand further over the forecast period. Chocolate confectionery are the popular and the most preferred choices of gift items during festivals such as Easter, Christmas, and holiday season. This is a significant factor promoting the growth of seasonal chocolates segment. The premium chocolates range is also expected to positively impact the segment growth. However, sudden increase in the prices of sugar and cocoa butter, which are imported raw materials, is a factor likely to hinder the growth of the market.

Market Insights

Companies are inclined to focusing on innovative products packaging, promotional and branding activities, and advertising to propel the demand for chocolates. Due to increasing popularity among children and high demand for chocolates during holiday and festival seasons, companies are inclined to take advantage of these factors thereby driving the growth of the segment. 

Leading companies are increasingly adopting marketing strategies that target kids. For instance, Ferrero India has undertaken many marketing activities targeting kids, to promote its product, Kinder Joy chocolates. The company launched pink and blue chocolates for girls and boys along with kinder toys for children. The company has actively conducted various marketing events for brand engagement, for instance, in the 2016 the event included an innovative platform for storytelling, ‘The Kinder Joy story station’. With this successfully organized event, the company received over 2.2 million calls in three months. 

In 2015, Eurostat published that Europe has witnessed a major surge in demand for chocolate products. Also, in 2017, Nielsen Holdings plc stated that in Western Europe the growth of the grocery market was fueled due to confectionery and food items. Some of the major players in the chocolate confectionery market are Mondelēz International Inc.; Mars, Inc.; The Hershey Company; the Ferrero Group; and Nestlé.