The Hershey Company said earlier this month it plans to launch Reese’s Snack Cakes in December, aiming to spark growth in the snack cake category through targeting convenience store customers.
Customers are seeking new flavors and open to trying new brands, the Hershey, Pa.-based snacks company said, after studying key insights within its convenience channel. In a recent in-market test at a leading c-store retailer, the new Reese’s Snack Cakes product was the third best-selling snack cake in the packaged baked goods category, Hershey said.
“We pride ourselves on knowing our consumers, and based on our research and insights, we knew there was an opportunity in the snack cake category and the desire for innovation,” Glenn Frazier, Hershey director of category management U.S. convenience, said. “Hershey has had great success with cross-merchandising beverages like coffee with confectionery items. These cross-merchandising solutions have helped boost sales for our retail partners and, most importantly, have given the shopper the product they are looking for when they want it.”
The third-largest c-store category is bakery snacks, but the pace of growth has slowed in the past year because of a lack of innovation, the company said. Growth from innovation is between 4 percent and 6 percent of total annual sales.
After mid-morning, customers transition from healthy foods like yogurt and nutrition bars to treats like snack cakes, with nearly every consumer stopping by the snack cake end cap area. At least 50 percent of snack cake and nutrition-bar consumers are open to trying new brands.
“Hershey is excited to bring significant innovation and leadership to this category,” Frazier said.