Mars Wrigley Confectionery releases merchandizing guidelines to drive c-store sales

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.