HERSHEY, Pa. -- Performance was sweet for Hershey in 2016. At the company's most recent earnings call last week, Michele Buck, executive vice president and COO, credited new-product rollouts as well as growth of the company's seasonal-candy share.
“We anticipate these investments and related consumer marketing plans will accelerate our North America sales growth versus 2016 performance, which should enable us to outpace the broader food group in this challenging operating environment," she said.
The company's earnings for the fourth quarter capped off a year of growth with consolidated net sales of $1.97 billion compared with $1.90 billion for the fourth quarter of 2015. The net sales increase in North America was 3.8% in the fourth quarter.
“Our brands continue to respond positively to marketplace investments and we plan to continue with this approach," she said. "Specifically, we’re making additional investments this year in advertising and marketing, technology and IT capabilities and analytic approaches we believe will be an enabler of predictable and profitable growth.”
Here are the products the company plans to focus on in the coming year to maintain its steady pace of growth ...
barkThins snacking chocolate combines Fair Trade dark chocolate with non-GMO ingredients. Hershey purchased the brand's parent company in April 2016. This newcomer to the Hershey portfolio comes in nine flavor combinations: Dark Chocolate Almond with Sea Salt, Dark Chocolate Pretzel with Sea Salt, Dark Chocolate Coconut with Almonds, Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Sead with Sea Salt, Dark Chocolate Peanut with Sea Salt, Dark Chocolate Mint, Dark Chocolate Blueberry with Quinoa Crunch, Dark Chocolate Gingerbread, and Dark Chocolate Peppermint Pretzel with Sea Salt.
One of the company's biggest new releases in 2016, Hershey's Cookie Layer Crunch came out in December. The bars pair Hershey’s chocolate with layers of crunchy cookie bits and decadent fillings. The snack is available in Caramel, Vanilla Creme and Mint flavors at 90 to 100 calories per serving. The bars come in multiple sizes, including 6.3-ounce bags with nine individually wrapped pieces (SRP $4.19); 3.5-ounce XL Bars with five pieces (SRP $2.89); 2.1-ounce King Size Bars with three pieces (SRP $1.69, in Caramel only); and 1.4-ounce bars (SRP 99 cents, in Caramel only).
Hershey's purchased meat-snack manufacturer Krave in 2015. Last year, the company expanded into meat bars and meat sticks. Created in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America, the new Krave Stick is a meat-based snack layered with beans and sweet potatoes in three flavors: Spicy Red Pepper Pork with Black Beans, Rosemary Lemon Turkey with White Beans and Sesame Garlic Beef with Sweet Potato. The Krave Bar blends sweet and savory notes with quinoa and dried fruit.
Crunchers will be available in March. Reese’s Crunchers and Hershey’s Cookies ‘n’ Creme Crunchers "combine classic sweet tastes with crunchy textures for easy, on-the-go-eating—a great, innovative pairing," the company says.
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