Nestlé International Travel Retail (NITR) has underlined the confectionery category’s potential for growth in Asia.
“While Asia continues to spearhead travel retail growth within most product categories, confectionery and fine/other foods is one area where there is still unprecedented potential and opportunity for growth,” NITR said.
NITR General Manager Stewart Dryburgh added: “Traditionally, confectionery has not been as front of mind in Asia as in other regions. This is particularly true of China, which is still a relatively ‘young’ chocolate market in comparison to the rest of the world.
“But we know this is changing and we know there are huge opportunities for confectionery, particularly given the gift-giving mentality of travellers within the region.”
Dryburgh noted the role NITR’s SOUL (Stories, Occasions, Unique, Local) strategy plays in travel retail.
“SOUL is how we bring all elements together – product innovation and uniqueness, brand stories, global and regional specialities – and deliver those to the consumer through compelling and powerful activations and promotions that touch all purchasing motivations and reasons to buy.
“Our research has revealed new drivers that, we believe, can help us reignite the growth of this amazingly varied and exciting category.”
Dryburgh is a guest speaker at the TFWA Asia Pacific Conference on 13 May. He will detail NITR’s drive to double the confectionery and fine foods category to US$10 billion in ten years. And he will also reveal “untapped” motivations and drivers to leverage category growth through greater sales conversion and higher spend per head.
NITR will present its KitKat Senses range to conference delegates at the afternoon coffee break it is sponsoring in partnership with Incheon Airport.
NITR recently partnered with The Moodie Davitt Report in a website makeover to support the launch of its updated KitKat Senses range.
KitKat Senses includes five flavours: Milk Chocolate, Tiramisu, Crème Brulée, Strawberry Cheesecake, and Cherry Brownie.
The range will be highlighted at the TFWA Asia Pacific Exhibition (Basement 2 K29) along with other KitKat formats, including a limited-edition 20th ‘Chunky Anniversary’ gift pack for Milk, Hazelnut, Peanut Butter, or Mixed flavours. The packs feature ’90s break memories such as: ‘Remember how much desk space your computer took up?’ and ‘Remember how high your platform shoes were?’.
NITR’s product line-up includes the Smarties Music Creator, with a recorder and 38g hexatube of Smarties, and new 195g tablets from the Nestlé Swiss range, which is exclusive to travel retail.
The tablets are available in Milk chocolate with Cranberries, Almonds and Hazelnut, Milk chocolate with Grapes, Almonds and Hazelnut, and Dark chocolate with Orange Zest & Cacao Nibs flavours. A Nestlé Swiss Chunks Assorted Gift Box is also new. It contains 20 chunks from five different flavours: Milk chocolate, Dark chocolate, Hazelnut chocolate and new Milk chocolate with biscuit cereals and Blond almond chocolate, which are both exclusive to the pack.
At the Singapore event, NITR will also highlight merchandising units from Nestlé Swiss, Smarties and After Eight, along with the KitKat red ‘London Bus’.
The bus is featured in a promotion at Changi Airport T2 this month, where KitKat Senses is highlighted along with KitKat Mini Moments and KitKat Two Finger bars. Similar activations will take place at London Heathrow and Dubai International Airport from May and June respectively.
