Where the Gains Are
Dollar sales of baked sweet goods rose nearly 10% in the 52 weeks ending Dec. 27, 2014, according to Nielsen. Units were up 5.4%, reflecting an increased price per unit. In fact, the average price per unit for baked sweet goods rose 7.9% from December 2012 to December 2014, or a nearly 8% increase.
Within the segments, cake and doughnuts saw big gains in dollars and units, in part because of Hostess Brands’ re-entry into the sweet-snacks category, according to Nielsen.
IRI figures show bakery snacks—where Hostess Zingers, Twinkies and Ho Hos brands, among others, are categorized—up nearly 19%.
C-store sales, 52 weeks ending Dec. 28, 2014
| Product | C-store sales ($ millions) | PCYA* | Unit volume (millions) | PCYA* |
| Bakery snacks | $747.9 | 18.7% | 555.1 | 9.9% |
| Cookies | $628.7 | 1.5% | 599.2 | 0.3% |
| Pastry/Danish/coffeecakes | $605.3 | -0.2% | 478.8 | -2.9% |
| Doughnuts | $559.2 | 12.5% | 379.4 | 8.1% |
| Muffins | $143.0 | -0.3% | 84.3 | -2.5% |
Source: IRI
* Percent change from a year ago
C-store sales, 53 weeks ending Dec. 27, 2014
| Product | C-store sales ($ millions) | PCYA* | Unit volume (millions) | PCYA* |
| Breakfast cake | $630.8 | 2.7% | 468.1 | -1.5% |
| Cookies | $597.3 | 5.8% | 557.4 | 5.0% |
| Cake | $579.8 | 21.0% | 409.8 | 13.6% |
| Doughnuts | $548.6 | 14.9% | 357.6 | 10.8% |
| Muffins | $160.4 | 0.5% | 94.0 | -2.4% |
| Pie | $136.4 | 8.1% | 95.6 | -0.4% |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
* Percent change from a year ago
Breakfast-Cake Trends
C-store sales, 53 weeks ending Dec. 27, 2014
In 2014, more than half of total baked sweet units sold in c-stores were breakfast cakes or doughnuts, according to Nielsen.
Breakfast-Cake Brands
| Brand | C-store sales ($ millions) | PCYA* | Unit volume (millions) | PCYA* |
| Bon Appetit | $224.8 | -3.7% | 123.0 | -5.3% |
| Little Debbie | $152.1 | 8.1% | 175.0 | -2.7% |
| Private label | $72.6 | 8.7% | 52.3 | 4.6% |
| Tastykake | $52.2 | 11.6% | 34.4 | 11.1% |
| Bimbo | $23.8 | 15.2% | 13.1 | 14.4% |
| Total (including brands not shown) | $630.8 | 2.7% | 468.1 | -1.5% |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
* Percent change from a year ago
Market Share by Brand
| Brand | Dollar share | Point change | Unit share | Point change |
| Bon Appetit | 35.6% | -2.4 | 26.3% | -1.1 |
| Little Debbie | 24.1% | 1.2 | 37.4% | -0.5 |
| Private label | 11.5% | 0.6 | 11.2% | 0.6 |
| Tastykake | 8.3% | 0.7 | 7.4% | 0.8 |
| Bimbo | 3.8% | 0.4 | 2.8% | 0.4 |
| Others | 16.7% | -0.5 | 15.0% | -0.3 |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
* Percent change from a year ago
Breakfast-Cake UPCs
| UPC | C-store sales ($ millions) | PCYA* | Unit sales (millions) | PCYA* |
| Bon Appetit Berry Danish (5-oz.) | $50.2 | 0.3% | 27.4 | -1.4% |
| Bon Appetit Cheese Danish (5-oz.) | $39.5 | -1.8% | 21.7 | -3.3% |
| Bon Appetit Apple Danish (5-oz.) | $37.3 | -3.0% | 20.4 | -4.5% |
| Little Debbie Honey Bun (3.0-oz.) | $29.7 | 11.9% | 62.6 | 11.5% |
| Little Debbie Iced Honey Bun (4.02-oz.) | $28.1 | 3.6% | 28.6 | -16.5% |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
* Percent change from a year ago
CONTINUED: Cookies, Cakes & Doughnuts
Cookie Trends
C-store sales, 53 weeks ending Dec. 27, 2014
C-store sales of cookies rose nearly 6% in 2014, led by Nabisco, Little Debbie and private-label brands, according to Nielsen.
Cookie Brands
| Brand | C-store sales ($ millions) | PCYA* | Unit volume (millions) | PCYA* |
| Nabisco | $211.0 | 6.6% | 142.2 | 6.4% |
| GrandMa’s | $105.5 | -2.2% | 109.1 | -2.2% |
| Little Debbie | $94.3 | 11.0% | 158.9 | 8.6% |
| Private label | $54.7 | 17.1% | 47.6 | 18.0% |
| Keebler | $31.4 | -4.6% | 28.0 | -3.5% |
| Total (including brands not shown) | $597.3 | 5.8% | 557.4 | 5.0% |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
* Percent change from a year ago
Market Share by Brand
| Brand | Dollar share | Point change | Unit share | Point change |
| Nabisco | 35.3% | 0.3 | 25.5% | 0.3 |
| GrandMa’s | 17.7% | -1.4 | 19.6% | -1.5 |
| Little Debbie | 15.8% | 0.7 | 28.5% | 0.9 |
| Private label | 9.2% | 0.9 | 8.5% | 0.9 |
| Keebler | 5.3% | -0.6 | 5.0% | -0.4 |
| Others | 16.7% | 0.1 | 12.9% | -0.3 |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
Cookie UPCs
| UPC | C-store sales ($ millions) | PCYA* | Unit sales (millions) | PCYA* |
| GrandMa’s Peanut Butter (2.875-oz.) | $22.4 | 3.0% | 23.1 | 3.6% |
| GrandMa’s Chocolate Chip (2.875-oz.) | $18.3 | 0.7% | 18.8 | 1.3% |
| GrandMa’s Vanilla Crème (3.025-oz.) | $17.9 | 0.3% | 18.3 | 0.6% |
| Nabisco Oreo (2-oz.) | $16.3 | 2.2% | 17.4 | 0.4% |
| Little Debbie Nutty Bar (3-oz.) | $15.3 | 9.7% | 20.5 | 9.7% |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
* Percent change from a year ago
Cake Trends
C-store sales, 53 weeks ending Dec. 27, 2014
The re-emergence of Hostess Brands into the cake segment pushed c-store dollar and unit sales up by double digits, Nielsen figures show.
Cake Brands
| Brand | C-store sales ($ millions) | PCYA* | Unit volume (millions) | PCYA* |
| Hostess | $180.7 | 230.1% | 102.6 | 225.9% |
| Little Debbie | $94.8 | 0.8% | 116.1 | -4.3% |
| Bon Appetit | $63.5 | 2.7% | 34.9 | 1.1% |
| Bimbo | $60.0 | 8.1% | 31.2 | 6.2% |
| Private label | $54.0 | 14.1% | 41.2 | 10.6% |
| Total (including brands not shown) | $579.8 | 21.0% | 409.8 | 13.6% |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
* Percent change from a year ago
Market Share by Brand
| Brand | Dollar share | Point change | Unit share | Point change |
| Hostess | 31.2% | 19.7 | 25.0% | 16.3 |
| Little Debbie | 16.4% | -3.3 | 28.3% | -5.3 |
| Bon Appetit | 15.4% | -2.8 | 11.9% | -9.1 |
| Bimbo | 10.3% | -1.2 | 7.6% | -0.5 |
| Private label | 9.3% | -0.6 | 10.1% | -0.3 |
| Others | 17.4% | -17.1 | 17.0% | -1.1 |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
Cake UPCs
| UPC | C-store sales ($ millions) | PCYA* | Unit sales (millions) | PCYA* |
| Hostess CupCake (3.17-oz.) | $37.4 | 111.5% | 21.2 | 107.0% |
| Hostess Twinkie (2.7-oz.) | $30.4 | 40.2% | 17.4 | 38.3% |
| Bon Appetit Banana Bread (4-oz.) | $25.6 | 0.9% | 14.0 | -0.7% |
| Private-label brownie (3.7-oz.) | $22.9 | -11.5% | 19.8 | -12.9% |
| Hostess Ho Hos (3-oz.) | $22.1 | 264.4% | 12.6 | 266.4% |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
* Percent change from a year ago
Category Insight
In c-stores, sales of breakfast cakes, doughnuts and muffins in the past year have been driven by the channel’s greater focus on the morning day-part and coffee in particular, according to Chuck Clevenger, product manager of Little Debbie Snacks for McKee Foods Corp. By units, honey buns are tops in the breakfast-cake segment, followed by Danish. Product type is much more fractured in the cakes segment, where there are no more than four of the same product type within the top 40 products.
Doughnut Trends
C-store sales, 53 weeks ending Dec. 27, 2014
Another segment shaken up by Hostess’ re-entry, doughnuts grew c-store dollars by nearly 15% in 2014.
Doughnut Brands
| C-store sales ($ millions) | PCYA* | Unit volume (millions) | PCYA* | |
| Little Debbie | $125.4 | 10.2% | 145.4 | 7.1% |
| Hostess | $109.6 | 286.2% | 55.9 | 277.1% |
| Private label | $73.4 | -6.4% | 47.1 | -8.5% |
| Krispy Kreme | $71.8 | -3.1% | 23.5 | -8.2% |
| Tastykake | $63.0 | 18.5% | 31.8 | 14.3% |
| Total (including brands not shown) | $548.6 | 14.9% | 357.6 | 10.8% |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
* Percent change from a year ago
Market Share by Brand
| Brand | Dollar share | Point change | Unit share | Point change |
| Little Debbie | 22.9% | -1.0 | 40.7% | -1.4 |
| Hostess | 20.0% | 14.0 | 15.6% | 11.0 |
| Private label | 13.4% | -3.0 | 13.2% | -2.8 |
| Krispy Kreme | 13.1% | -2.4 | 6.6% | -1.4 |
| Tastykake | 11.5% | 0.4 | 8.9% | 0.3 |
| Others | 19.1% | -8.0 | 15.1% | -5.8 |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
Doughnut UPCs
| C-store sales ($ millions) | PCYA* | Unit sales (millions) | PCYA* | |
| Hostess Frosted Mini (3-oz.) | $31.1 | 208.5% | 17.5 | 208.5% |
| Little Debbie Frosted (3.1-oz.) | $30.5 | -4.5% | 41.8 | -3.5% |
| Hostess Powdered Sugar (3-oz.) | $21.6 | 202.3% | 12.3 | 204.3% |
| Hostess Crunch (4-oz.) | $20.4 | 262.7% | 11.4 | 264.4% |
| Little Debbie Glazed Donut Stick (2.75-oz.) | $17.9 | 29.3% | 23.9 | 29.3% |
Sources: The Nielsen Co., McKee Foods Corp.
* Percent change from a year ago
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