Savoury snacks continue to dominate the market and some buyers are sceptical about consumers' willingness to buy sweet alternatives in the pub.
Research company TNS found that, in the last year, 2,500 consumers purchased confectionery in the pub on 2.5 million occasions, a decline of 16.7% on the previous year. Buyers say they are not surprised at the decline, with many admitting that sweet snacks are not a priority for their business. Christine Cross, marketing manager at JD Wetherspoon, says: "We don't have confectionery, although we have looked into it. Chocolate doesn't work well in the pub environment as it is prone to melting."
Cadbury is one of the few confectionery suppliers driving brand awareness in the on-trade. Its innovative "pub cards" can be hung on the wall, each displaying 24 units of Cadbury Dairy Milk Tasters, Fruit and Nut Tasters or Butterkist Popcorn. But these efforts might be in vain, as some buyers believe sweet is not as efficient as savoury when it comes to driving the volume of alcohol sales. As Paul Saxby, managing director of Jonathan Crisp puts it: "I think in the pub the reason most snacks are salty is that it helps the consumers drink more."
Another factor is that confectionery is still viewed as a children's snack by many buyers.
The Spirit Group reports that sweet snacks are doing well in its Wacky Warehouse estate, where children are a key part of the clientele. However, some licensees are less than keen on attracting children to their pubs and view confectionery as the enemy. Sarah Barnfield, assistant purchasing manager at Mitchells & Butlers says: "Stocking chocolate would show we are encouraging children to our outlets instead of tolerating them, which is what we do at the moment."
Mints are also losing their appeal, with buyers expressing doubt over their future in the on-trade. Cross says: "We have tried a mint-based snack in our business that we added no more than a year ago, but it hasn't achieved the same volumes as salty snacks."
But buyers have not ruled out pubs' ability to sell more sweet snacks, particularly as more places start to serve hot drinks like tea and coffee. The changing face of pubs does promise some good news for manufacturers of cakes, biscuits and flapjacks. As Barnfield puts it: "There's an opportunity there for things like muffins, which will take off if the occasion in the pub changes that is, if people go there instead of the coffee shop."