Up in the air
Aerated chocolate has always been popular, with brands such as Aero, manufactured by Nestlé standing the test of time. The Aero brand was produced in England in 1935 and over the years the popularity of the brand has spread and today the Aero brand is enjoyed in many countries including Canada, Australia, South Africa and Japan.
The brand’s success comes from its bubbly texture. The way the bubbles collapse and then melt on your tongue creates a deliciously smooth chocolate sensation.
The Aero recipe has pretty much stayed the same since its introduction, apart from the removal of all artificial colours and flavours. Aero Mint now contains colours derived from a natural source, copper complexes of chlorophyllins and circumin.
In January 2012, Cadbury Dairy Milk, launched a chocolate bar called ‘Bubbly’. Primarily targeted towards young female adults looking for a moment of indulgence away from their daily routine.
Following the success of CDM Bubbly, CDM Bubbly Mint was launched in September 2012, which allowed consumers to enjoy the taste sensation of CDM Bubbly, complimented with a delicate mint crème. This variant is set to further drive growth in aerated tablets and attract lapsed female shoppers back to the tablet category.
Susan Nash, trade communications manager at Mondelēz International, comments, “The launch of CDM Bubbly has injected excitement into the category by introducing a dynamic and quirky new way to eat tablet chocolate, and the results speak for themselves – it was the biggest block launch in five years, generating over £18.3 million (€21.2m) in its first ten months.
“We feel that the launch of CDM Bubbly Mint will prove an incredibly popular and competitive product for retailers to offer their shoppers. This fun new variant stays true to the Cadbury Dairy Milk values of high quality and a wonderful taste experience.”
In 2010, Mars launched Galaxy Bubbles. This was followed by the brand launching its first ever limited edition chocolate product to support the Galaxy Win A Million Moments promotion with the introduction of a new 31g variant Galaxy Bubbles Orange.
Launched in February 2012 and available from many confectionery wholesalers, the introduction of the limited edition chocolate will build on the success of Galaxy Bubbles Milk 31g. The flavour orange ranked the highest out of various flavour variants in consumer tests. Orange has also topped the list of chocolate flavour variants seen in chocolate NPD between 2007-2009.
Share the air
The chocolate bags category is now worth £369.8m (€428.7m) and is growing at 15.9 per cent YOY.
The category continues to drive the confectionery market, thanks to the trend for ‘Big Nights In’, and the way these formats offer consumers a new way of sharing their chocolate with friends and family.
To take advantage of this trend Nestlé introduced Aero Orange Bubbles sharing bags in January 2012. The sharing bag sees Aero’s bubbly milk chocolate given a zingy orange twist and a new pack design.
To build upon the success of Cadbury Wispa, a brand that was famously brought back to market in 2007 by popular consumer demand, Mondelēz International launched a new chocolate sharing product, Cadbury Bitsa Wispa. The pack contains bite-sized chunks of the popular Cadbury Wispa chocolate in a convenient re-sealable sharing format.
This sharing product from the Cadbury brand therefore brings together an increasingly popular format, with a well-loved product, in a distinctive pack which comprises the easily recognisable Wispa logo, and trademark blue colour, to provide excellent stand-out on shelf.
