With the pandemic receding, the confectionery industry is slowly returning to its pre-March 2020 state. However, consumers are not the same as they were in early 2020, income-wise.

“Chocolate and candy have proven themselves resilient—especially throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and lingering economic uncertainty,” says Carly Schildhaus, director of public affairs and communications, National Confectioners Association (NCA). “In 2022, the confectionery category saw sales growth of more than 11% as consumers look to celebrate seasonal moments longer and make everyday celebrations a little more enjoyable.”

NCA’s 2023 State of Treating report states that “supply chain disruption, 40-year high inflation, and lingering COVID-19 concerns continued to affect confectionery shopping and consumption patterns in 2022. Consumers described life as ‘expensive’ and ‘somewhat stressful.’”

Lisa Burkart, category development manager, ECRM, says that along with supply chain, suppliers are also dealing with the rising cost of ingredients, packaging, and more, while still trying to supply retailers in the ways they used to—which is a big challenge.

“In some cases, we're hearing that it's not only cost that is a struggle, but some manufactures are not offering all they used to and suppliers may not be able to get the ingredients needed and could be forced to find a new source,” Burkart says.

However, she notes, producers have risen to the various challenges encountered through the past year. 

“[Producers are] getting creative—finding new ways to package or ship items so they can continue to fulfill the buyer's and consumers’ needs. Since we've seen more gatherings come back this year suppliers have capitalized on ‘share’-size bags encouraging consumers to share with a friend,” Burkart relates.

Despite double-digit category inflation, according to NCA’s 2023 State of Treating report, 74% of consumers agree that confectionery remains an affordable treat. To continue buying confectionery goods, 45% of consumers applied one or more money-saving measures in 2022, switching between types, brands, pack sizes, and stores.

And confectionery companies are listening to consumers.

“We also know that more consumers are looking for options to meet their physical wellness. Hershey’s portfolio has a growing list of better-for-you chocolate like Lily’s, ONE and FULFIL protein bars, and two new products launched this year, Hershey’s Plant Based Extra Creamy with Almonds and Sea Salt, and Reese’s Plant Based Peanut Butter Cups,” a Hershey’s spokesperson says.

Mike Gilroy, vice president of trade development and sponsorship, Mars Wrigley, says that the company is “consumer-obsessed,” which means listening to consumers and understanding what resonates with and is relevant to them.

“Through research and insights, we also stay current on the flavor trends that are popping up in culture. Across our chocolate portfolio, we have unveiled several new insight-backed offerings that deliver on shoppers’ evolving requests for a wider variety of products,” he shares. “We are obsessed with our consumers and constantly in touch with them to understand what they’re looking for from us. Across our treats and snacks portfolio we’ve strategically rolled out research-backed products that meet consumer demands.”

Consumers also want interesting, unique flavors and formats in their candy products. Ferrara’s Trolli brand released Sour Duo Crawlers in December 2022, which feature “duo”-flavored sour gummi worms that fuse together two different gummy textures on each side—one side classic chewy gummi, and the other side soft squishy gummy texture.

In addition, Ferrara’s Sweetarts brand discovered that a majority of its buyers were also purchasing gummies; thus, the Sweetarts Gummies Fruity Splitz were born. Each gummy candy’s flavors are split: half-sweet, half-tart, so that consumers are able to experience both a sweet side and a bouncy gummy texture.

On the manufacturing side, producers are expanding their manufacturing facilities. Ferrero will soon be opening a new chocolate manufacturing facility in Bloomington, Illinois, and it recently opened its new Innovation Center and R&D Labs in Chicago, says Shalini Stansberry, vice president of marketing for Kinder Snacking, Ferrero.

“We’ll be cutting the ribbon soon on a new chocolate manufacturing facility in Bloomington, Illinois and our new Innovation Center and R&D Labs in Chicago. And, particularly exciting for my team, we have broken ground on a new $214 million, 169,000 square foot facility in Bloomington that will manufacture Kinder Bueno products—the first time ever that an original Ferrero brand will be made in the United States,” she reveals.

In May of this year, Mondelēz International celebrated the grand opening of its new Global Research & Development Innovation Center in Whippany, NJ. The state-of-the-art facility, which is supported by an investment of nearly $50 million, includes pilot and scale-up capability for cookies, crackers, and candy. The Innovation Center provides new capabilities and technologies that propel R&D for consumer-loved snacks, including the Sour Patch Kids brand.

“This strategic investment in our new Global Innovation Center will enable us to pilot exciting new snacking breakthroughs and bring about the next generation of innovation for Mondelēz snacks around the world,” says Daniel Ramos, executive vice president and chief research & development officer at Mondelēz International. “We’re proud to bring together industry-leading talent and capabilities in this facility to create new products, packaging, and process developments across our portfolio of beloved snacks.”

Manufacturers are getting creative with funding, too. In November 2022, Organic Candy Factory launched a crowdfunding campaign to expand its production and e-commerce options. It was seeking $1 million in investor funds through crowdfunding platform StartEngine. It also partnered with three experienced executives to assist with marketing, retail operations, and worldwide growth strategy. 

Management changes in early 2023 included Second Nature Brands hiring a new CFO, Chris Caswell, who brought more than 20 years of financial and operational experience to the role—prior to joining the brand, he was the CFO of Welch Foods, Inc. Second Nature Brands is the manufacturer of Detroit-based Sanders, as well as snack brands like Kar’s Nuts. 

In early 2022, Just Born Quality Confections named Chidi Alams as its vice president and chief information officer. Alams joined the company from Team Car Care/Jiffy Lube, where he held the same role, and his responsibilities include establishing Just Born’s information technology vision and digital transformation strategy in alignment with its overall business strategy. 

In addition, in April 2022, PIM Brands Inc., makers of Welch’s Fruit Snacks, announced the appointments of Ramiro Fernández as chief financial officer, Susan Miller as chief human resources officer, and Jagannathan Ramachandran as vice president, manufacturing. 

Last October, Perfetti Van Melle named Paula Dart as its vice president, growth and transformation, for its North America arm. Dart was previously vice president of global ecommerce for Diageo; before that, she was with the Coca-Cola Company for more than 20 years.

At the end of last year, Lindt & Sprüngli CEO Dieter Weisskopf retired, after six years as CEO and 27 years with the company. Adalbert Lechner, CEO of Lindt’s German subsidiary and member of the group management, succeeded Weisskopf as group CEO. 

View our 2023 North American Sweet 60 Top Candy Companies list by clicking the link below or at the top of the article, as well as our previous years’ lists, starting in 2014.