The US confectionery giant said the guidelines were built on its research that shows confections are a main basket builder with over 50% of confectionery purchases decided in-store, yet only 30% of shoppers walk down the confections aisle.
Additionally, confectionery makes up 70% of the total add-on purchases, and shoppers only spend 14 seconds shopping the category, with fruity confections, chocolate and gum having the greatest ability to drive conversions.
‘[We] found that c-store retailers have the opportunity to increase confectionery sales by leveraging key shopper principles to address barriers to purchase and provide actionable insights, to ultimately drive conversion in store,’ said Mars Wrigley.
Power brands, package type and flavor zones
Mars Wrigley noted its merchandizing recommendations are centered around three key areas: Power brands, package type and flavor zones.
“To get shoppers down the confections aisle, lead with chocolate and gum, the largest and most broadly appealing segments for consumers,” it said.
“To ensure the shopper can easily navigate the aisle… carry [their favorite brands and] an assortment of chocolate, gum, mint and fruity confections, and make sure to vertically organize all segments by flavors.”
The company added each segment can be shelved in different ways to make the confectionery aisle easier to shop:
• For gum: Lead with bulk sized gum packaging, then novelty/fun gum and opening price point products, and organize horizontally by brand
• For chocolate: Lead with power brands, place share-size over singles and organize vertically by brand
• For mints: Organize horizontally by brand blocks
• For fruity confections: Place share-size over singles and organize horizontally by brand
Tiffany Menyhart, VP of US category leadership at Mars Wrigley, concluded: “As the category leader, with the largest confectionery share at c-store, Mars Wrigley Confectionery is committed to improving the in-store experience for our partners.
“Our updated shelving recommendations give c-store retailers guidelines to seamlessly connect with today’s shopper behavior,” she added.
