Haribo and Lidl unite once more

One is a confectionery powerhouse, hailed as the sweet brand for kids and grown-ups, the other is a celebrated budget supermarket loved for its middle aisle. With values based on fun and accessibility, Haribo and Lidl’s collaboration could be classed as a no-brainer.

Yet, before their recent recoupling, Haribo was delisted from Lidl’s stores and replaced with a private-label alternative brand, Sweet Corner, which remains on the retail giant’s chocolate and sweets website section.

Haribo returns to Lidl shelves

Now though, Haribo is making a comeback. Lidl has resolved a year-long dispute and can now sell Haribo sweets again. Following a 12-month delisting and the presence of a replacement sweet brand, Lidl reintroduced Haribo products back into its stores.

“We’re pleased that our much-loved Haribo products are already back or will be back shortly on the shelves of Lidl in most markets across the world, meaning that fans in different countries will be able to find their favourite treats in more stores,” says a spokesperson for Haribo.

Even for a confectionery giant like Haribo, the delisting and subsequent re-entry into Lidl is a significant business move. “With all our retail partners, we work hard to make sure our sweets meet the high standards of quality and value for money that our customers expect,” Haribo’s spokesperson confirmed.

Fruit gum manufacturer Haribo stopped supplying the discounter Lidl Global in April 2023 due to a dispute over conditions. However, both companies have now resolved their differences and reached an agreement.

Brand appeal wins for consumers

According to a Lidl spokesperson, the presence of the retailer’s own brand, Sweet Corner, and the delisting of Haribo benefited the supermarket, enabling it to balance sales, as reported in the German trade magazine Lebensmittel Zeitung.

However, market research data revealed that Lidl’s confectionery sales growth over the twelve months leading up to February 2024 was more than two percentage points below the overall market growth. Although Lidl tried to make up for the absence of the confectionery brand by promoting its own Sweet Corner label, it wasn’t sufficient.

Private label brands have performed well, historically, with Lidl Germany reporting in February 2023 that its own brands ​performed best in Stiftung Warentest’s quality comparison test, achieving the best quality rating on average.

In 2023, Stiftung Warentest published its ratings analysis of 1,414 food items from 58 tests conducted over the past four years. The meta-study focused on determining whether store brands can match the quality of traditional branded products. With 68 own-brand products tested between July 2018 and November 2022, Lidl received an overall quality rating of “Good”.

The Lidl range comprises approximately 4,500 items, including own-brand and branded products.

Back ahead of expansion

Lidl’s store count is expected to rise in the coming months. Following the supermarket’s extensive investment and opening of its largest regional distribution centre (RDC) in the UK, the retail chain announced its plans to open hundreds of new stores across the UK.

In March 2024, Lidl UK was named ‘Grocer of the Year’ at The Retail Week Awards. The win came after Kantar named Lidl the fastest-growing supermarket for six months in a row, making the retail chain the only grocer to achieve double-digit growth since the start of 2024.

Operating for over forty years, Lidl has expanded throughout Europe, building its retail reputation by striving to sell top-quality food at the best possible prices. Today, the large grocery and retail chain has approximately 12,200 stores and more than 220 goods distribution and logistics centres in 31 countries.