BIP Candy & Toy, a novelty confectionery company, has acquired What Next Candy Ltd. in an attempt to enhance its presence in the UK and Ireland, BIP says.

“The combination of What Next’s distribution power and know-how of the market with our licensed candy novelty product concepts will provide our clients a chance to grow,” says Rogier Korsmit, president of BIP Candy & Toy.

BIP says the management of What Next Candy Ltd. - an import and distribution company based in Derbyshire, England - will remain unchanged, and that the acquisition will not affect the existing organizational infrastructure. What Next also will continue to operate under the same name, but will be considered a wholly owned subsidiary of BIP Candy & Toy.

“The partnership with BIP Candy & Toy will allow What Next Candy Ltd. to re-establish its position as a leading supplier of licensed novelty confectionery products in the UK,” says Ian Gavin, What Next Candy Ltd. “Our enormous distribution network will allow BIP Candy & Toy greater access to food and non-food retail in the UK.”

BIP Candy & Toy is in the process of integrating the organization into the BIP Group of Companies present in The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, Spain, Czech Republic, Poland, Malaysia, China, Hong Kong and now also in the UK.

Founded in 1987, BIP Candy & Toy is the maker of popular licensed children’s novelty confectionery. The company serves more than 76 countries in the world and has won numerous awards for its products.

For more information about BIP Candy & Toy, visit www.bip-international.com; for more information about What Next Candy Ltd., visit www.whatnextcandy.co.uk.

-M.K.