In 2022, a whole lot of convenience store shoppers were in the mood for something sweet. Packaged sweet snacks sales rose 18.9% in 2022 compared with 2021, according to the NACS State of the Industry Report of 2022 Data. “Packaged sweet snacks were up year over year, with pricing pushing a lot of the sales growth,” said Jayme Gough, NACS research manager.

The category had the second-largest year-on-year gross profit growth across in-store merchandise and foodservice categories, up 22.7%. “Packaged sweet snacks are a small in-store category, accounting for 1.67% of in-store sales in 2022, a 0.16 point increase from 2021. The category averaged $3,417 in per store, per month sales in 2022,” Gough said. Category margins of 44.98% were up 1.38 percentage points from 2021, which helped push monthly per store gross profits up 22.7% year over year.

“Packaged sweet snacks are a high impulse item for consumers,” said Alyssa Barrett, customer marketing manager, Rich Products. “Capturing these impulse purchases can be a challenge with so many options the consumer has to choose from, but making sure packaged sweet snacks are displayed in highly visible areas in eye-catching displays can help c-stores make those sales.”

The Shout & Sack in Vinita, Oklahoma, does well with packaged sweet snacks, although inflation put a dent in unit volume. “The volume is down some but because the cost is higher, we’re still doing OK in packaged sweet snacks,” said owner Chris Carter. “In fact, I recently ordered a new island deli case because I want to put 30 new packaged sweet snacks into my lineup to add more diversity to the selection.”

Sales are up over last year at the Jolley in South Burlington, Vermont. “Probably about 75% of our sales are from men who grab a cup of coffee and a donut on their way to work,” said manager Kelley Morin. “With the workers back at full force, we’ve got more people coming into our store wanting that little indulgence.”

Last year, FriendShip Kitchen, a 29-unit chain in Ohio, made a bigger push into packaged sweet snacks. “We increased our shelf space in the category, from a three- to four-foot gondola section to nine to 12 feet,” said Adam Kaverman, loyalty and brand manager for the Fremont, Ohio-based retailer, which is owned by Beck Suppliers. “We wanted to make packaged sweet snacks a bigger presence in our stores to grow the category for us.”

Sweet Trends

Many customers enjoy the familiarity of packaged sweet snacks. “Millennials nostalgic for the treats of their childhoods could be tempted by little donuts and other snack cakes,” Gough said.

Others like to treat themselves by trying new flavors, so having a variety of new and classic products in the category can increase the number of returning customers. “You’re definitely seeing products get more indulgent as people look to truly treat themselves on the go,” said Alicia Mosley, vice president of marketing at Keebler. “Consumers want more variety wherever they shop, including at convenience stores. They’re looking for different flavors, textures, sizes and even packaging formats.”

“Flavor is king,” said John Brown, senior vice president for Flowers Foods. “Fruit flavors such as lemon, cherry, raspberry and orange continue to be key flavor profiles, especially in the warmer months.”

“Blueberry is very popular right now in packaged sweet snacks,” said Morin. Blueberry-flavored treats are flying off the shelf at Jolley.

At Shout & Sack, blueberry, chocolate chip, banana and chocolate-chocolate have been the top packaged muffin flavors. “I’ve got around 80 linear feet devoted to the category and try to offer as many different flavors as I can,” Carter said.

Packaged sweet snacks are a high impulse item for consumers.”

While the evergreen flavors of milk chocolate, chocolate, vanilla and peanut butter remain in the top spots, the category is branching out into flavors that aren’t traditionally considered sweet. For example, Brown pointed to chili, cheddar cheese and black pepper as up-and-coming packaged sweet snack flavors. “Consumers seem to show signs of a more adventuresome palate, so it will be interesting to see how the sweet snacks category evolves as a result,” he said.

In addition to flavor trends, more convenience stores are packaging their own sweet snacks to capture more dollars in the category. That has worked extremely well for Carter of Shout & Sack, which bakes cookies, cupcakes and fried pies onsite and packages them for sale in groups of two to three. “We go through dozens every day,” he said. The prepackaged baked goods are placed in baskets around the store to capture impulse sales.

Seasonal Treats

Seasonal flavors in their favorite packaged sweet snacks offer consumers “an affordable way to create special moments around holidays,” Mosley said. “Whether it’s leaning into the holiday spirit with flavors like gingerbread fudge stripes or pumpkin spice fudge stripes, limited-edition favorites that celebrate the season help us excite loyal fans and reach new ones. These seasonal editions have been really successful for us.”

But seasonal trends extend beyond holidays too. “Consumers tend to favor lighter fruit flavors in the spring and summer months and shift to warming, comforting flavor classics in the fall and winter,” said Brown. Flowers Foods’ Tastykake brand has a robust seasonal calendar that capitalizes on those trends, with orange donuts and banana pudding-glazed pies in the summer and pumpkin spice donuts and caramel apple-glazed pies in the fall.

FriendShip Kitchen uses manufacturer shippers to advertise the seasonal flavors. They draw attention to the new arrivals and boost sales. “Our customers are really receptive to these limited-time offers,” Kaverman said.

Consumers seem to show signs of a more adventuresome palate.”

“People look for seasonal treats,” said Morin with Jolley. “From pumpkin flavors in the fall to blueberry in the spring and summer, seasonal flavors bump sales of packaged sweet snacks.”

A Sweet Future

Consumers will continue to seek out packaged sweet snacks at convenience stores, as innovative flavors and package sizes keep the category fresh and accessible. “We’ve been seeing a lot of enthusiasm among consumers for package types that fit into more on-the-go moments, such as something on the way home from work, sharing on a road trip or enjoying with coffee,” Mosley said.

To meet that demand, convenience stores need to examine how they display packaged sweet snacks. “Offering packaged, convenient items that appeal to different consumers, are visibly displayed and are available during key times like mid-morning, after lunch and late at night, will bring more impulse sales to convenience stores in this category,” said Barrett with Rich Products. These retailers see packaged sweet snacks as a small but mighty category. “It’s an integral category to our stores because people want sweetness on the go,” said Kaverman.