With Valentine’s Day just a week away, convenience stores are stocking up on popular chocolates as well as classic confections including conversation hearts, gums, mints, and other sweets. Prepare for the day of love with items from leading brands like Hershey’s, Mars, Ferrara, Van Melle, and Hostess!
In 2022, the National Confectioner’s Association reported that “Valentine’s Day selling season resulted in total candy, mint and gum (CMG) record sales of $4.1 billion, according to Information Resources, Inc. (IRI) multi-outlet channel sales… All product sectors contributed to the sales record, with chocolate being the largest seller, non-chocolate being the fastest growth area and gum/mints having completed a full comeback from the 2020 declines.”
Their findings indicated that this was the first time the holiday has broken the $4 billion mark, meaning that it’s highly likely that this Valentine’s Day will continue the upward trend.
NCA further broke down the revenue generated into subcategories, concluding that “chocolate contributed $2.5 billion to the total $4.1 billion seasonal period sales. Despite being the biggest contributor to sales and having the best performance in 2021, chocolate sales still grew 8.7 percent. Non-chocolate sales amounted to $1.2 billion, up 12.5 percent. Non-chocolate had the strongest growth across all channels and did particularly well in the drug and convenience channel.” Furthermore, seasonal-specific Valentine’s Day items garnered $729 million, a 6.2 percent increase from the year prior.
As a result of this segment’s expansion, there is a large opportunity for retailers to get in on the action. C-stores can prepare for Valentine’s Day sales with a wide variety of chocolate and on-theme items. Here’s an order guide of our top picks to get you started! Be sure to ask your sales representative for details on how to order.
Chocolate:
Hershey’s king size items and peg bags are on sale this February! You cannot go wrong by stocking up on these bestsellers anytime of year, but especially during Valentine’s Day. Additionally, you can find savings on Icebreakers Ice Cubes!
Similarly, Mars share size chocolates and Wrigley and Orbit gum are on sale this month! A simple bag of M&M’s or Skittles, or a decadent Snickers or Twix Bar can be the cherry on top to any Valentine’s Day gift. Supply your customers with everything they need to put the finishing touches on their Valentine’s surprise.
(Farmingdale Insider image included, but deals are running across divisions).
See the full February Insider here.
Mints/Gums:
Help your customers achieve fresh breath and a white smile for the perfect Valentine’s Day kiss! Perfetti Van Melle doesn’t just stop at Mentos, they are also the brand behind Dentyne Ice and Trident.
Mentos Gum Freshmint 10CT
Mentos Gum Pure Fresh Spearmint 10CT
Mentos Gum Pure White Mint 10CT
Mentos Clean Breath Peppermint 12CT
Mentos Clean Breath Wintergreen 12CT
Dentyne Ice Arctic Chill 9CT
Dentyne Ice Peppermint 9CT
Dentyne Ice Spearmint 9CT
Dentyne Ice Winter Chill 9CT
Trident Value Pack Wintergreen 12CT
Trident Value Pack Mint Bliss 12CT
Trident Value Pack Minty Sweet Twist 12CT
Trident Value Pack Peppermint 12CT
Trident Value Pack Spearmint 12CT
Trident White Peppermint 9CT
Trident White Spearmint 9CT
Trident White Wintergreen 9CT
Themed:
From pink items to the grade school tradition, find it here!
New! Hostess Strawberry Cupcakes 6CT – on deal now in the February Insider! (All Divisions)
Ferrara Valentine’s Brach’s Conversation Hearts 5 oz. 24CT (Farmingdale only)
Ferrara Valentine’s Brach’s Tiny Conversation Hearts 4PK 1 oz. 24CT (Farmingdale only)
