HERSHEY, Pa., Oct. 01, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY), celebrating 125 years as a category management and snacking leader, will showcase new insights and investments to increase sales of instant consumables to more than 23,500 convenience store (c-store) retailers at the 2019 National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) Show Expo on October 2-4 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.
Visitors to Hershey’s booth (#1931) will discover how Hershey is driving trips and conversion for instant consumables through emerging media channels, cross-merchandising solutions, new product offerings and actionable shopper insights.
EMERGING MEDIA CHANNELS
Hershey is investing media in data-driven platforms that utilize geo-based targeting and audio programs to drive trip frequency and instant consumables sales among shoppers.
“As consumers change the way they shop, they also change the way they consume media and we must respond accordingly,” said Charlie Chappell, Head of Media and Communications Planning, The Hershey Company. “We’re developing an agile approach to media across platforms so we can target not only regular c-store customers, but also take a geo-based approach to target consumers on mobile devices when they are near a store location.”
FOODSERVICE OCCASION-BASED BUNDLES
In U.S. c-stores, five billion foodservice snacks and meals are sold annually and bundling these items together presents c-store retailers with another opportunity to increase basket size and drive trips among shoppers1. The natural affinity presents an opportunity for Hershey and c-store retailers to create new sales.
“Given Hershey’s proven success with cross-merchandising hot and cold beverages with confectionery items like KIT KAT® and Reese’s in the past, we’re investing in insights around cross-merchandising solutions to boost foodservice sales for our retail partners and create a seamless experience for shoppers,” said Ben Stoffel, Senior Director of U.S. Convenience Sales, The Hershey Company.
Packaged carbonated beverages, prepared food and snacks are three of the top ten cross-purchased categories.2 Offering convenience store “meal deal” bundles for these items using in-aisle merchandising displays and fixtures has been proven to increase trip frequency.3 Prompting shoppers to include a confection item with their bundle at checkout can increase basket size by 22 percent.4
SWEET NEW PRODUCT INNOVATION
At NACS, visitors to Hershey’s booth will sample the latest new product innovations from the Hershey’s, Reese’s, KIT KAT® and Jolly Rancher brand franchises.
This December, Hershey will roll out Hershey’s White with Whole Almonds bar, which features a smooth white creme packed with whole roasted California almonds. This latest innovation from Hershey will give consumers the perfect sweet and crunchy treat.
For the first time in almost a decade, a new year-round KIT KAT® flavor will be coming to the U.S. and available nationwide in December 2019. The new KIT KAT® Duos Mint + Dark Chocolate bar, will feature a mashup of two iconic flavors - mint crème on the top and dark chocolate on the bottom, all surrounding light and crispy wafers.
Since its launch in 2004, Reese’s peanut butter has always been one of five items included inside a Take5 bar. This summer, the Reese’s brand decided to reclaim what was rightfully theirs and reintroduce the five-layered candy bar under the Reese’s brand name. Aside from its new orange packaging, Reese’s Take5 bar will still pack the ideal combination of salty, sweet, crunchy and chewy all in one candy bar.
Also launching this December is the Jolly Rancher Gummies Original Flavors item. The franchise includes all of the flavors you know and love, but now in gummy form. These were re-created to deliver those fruit Jolly Rancher flavors in new fruit character shapes. The new gummies are pop-able, shareable and chewy. Additionally, to impress sour lovers everywhere, the Jolly Rancher brand will debut the new Jolly Rancher Gummies Sours product. They bring the same shapes of the fruit characters as the original gummies but with a sour pop.
TIME-SAVING TOOLS FOR C-STORE RETAILERS
This summer, Hershey unveiled a new tool for registered retailers through its Hershey Solutions online portal. The continued expansion of the Hershey Solutions platform allows c-store retailers to increase product speed to shelf with the time-saving capability of new product online ordering.
For contracted retailers, the online portal also provides current updates to their Retailer Rewards rebate status, identifying compliance gaps with the click of a mouse or tap of a screen. In addition to the new online ordering capability, registered Retailer Rewards program visitors now have the ability to act immediately on any compliance voids.
The Hershey Solutions online portal is accessible to retailers 24-hours a day, 7 days a week and serves as a go-to resource for the latest insights-focused planograms, promotional program offerings, expert merchandising strategies and shopper insights.
For more information about the online portal, stop by Hershey’s booth for a live demonstration or visit hersheysolutions.com.
Also, during the NACS Show Expo, Dave Nolen, Vice President of Category Management & Shopper Insights, will be speaking on "Category Management 101" at noon on Tuesday, Oct. 1 in Exhibit Hall A, Room A411. Attendees will learn basic steps of category management that c-store retailers will be able to use on the job, starting from selecting a vendor, all the way through reporting on category performance.
To stay up-to-date on Hershey’s trends and insights, visit Hershey’s company blog.
About The Hershey Company
The Hershey Company, celebrating its 125th anniversary in 2019, is headquartered in Hershey, Pa., and is an industry-leading snacks company known for bringing goodness to the world through its iconic brands, remarkable people and enduring commitment to help children succeed. Hershey has approximately 16,500 employees around the world who work every day to deliver delicious, quality products. The company has more than 80 brands around the world that drive more than $7.8 billion in annual revenues, including such iconic brand names as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Kit Kat, Jolly Rancher, Ice Breakers, SkinnyPop and Pirate’s Booty.
For 125 years, Hershey has been committed to operating fairly, ethically and sustainably. Hershey founder, Milton Hershey, created the Milton Hershey School in 1909 and since then the company has focused on helping children succeed.
To learn more visit www.thehersheycompany.com
Media Contacts:
Todd Scott | The Hershey Company
(717) 215-9399
tmscott1@hersheys.com
Kelsey Powell | PriceWeber
(502) 499-4218
kpowell@priceweber.com
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1 Source: QSR Magazine
2 Source: Leading C-Store Shopper Card Data
3 Source: * IRI, 2017
4 Source: Convenience Bundling Research, 2019