Its confectionery highlights include:

• Shaq-A-Licious XL Gummies 
• Reese’s Chocolate Lava Big Cup
• Reese’s Filled Pretzels 
• Jolly Rancher Ropes, Jolly Rancher Chewy Poppers, and Jolly Rancher Freeze Dried­
• Ice Breakers Flavor Shifters Gum 
• Kit Kat Vanilla and Kit Kat Super King 

Shaq-A-Licious XL Gummies

One of the standout additions to Hershey's sweets lineup is Shaq-A-Licious XL Gummies, a collaboration with basketball legend and entrepreneur Shaquille O'Neal. Available in both original and sour varieties, the gummies feature shapes inspired by O’Neal himself. This celebrity-driven partnership showcases Hershey's approach to merging cultural icons with consumer trends in the fastest-growing category in the sweets market.

Reese’s: A billion dollar brand in C-Store

Reese’s brand consistently ranks as the top-performer in convenience stores, says Hershey, where its presence boosts sales by attracting loyal customers and generating impulse buys. From chocolate to protein bars, filled pretzels, and the number one innovation in confection - Reese’s Caramel Big Cup - Reese’s name power remains a key asset, helping retailers maximize success in the competitive convenience channel.

New sweets innovations

Alongside Shaq-A-Licious XL gummies, Hershey will showcase additional new sweets innovations, including:

• Jolly Rancher Ropes (available now) – These ropes are packed with dual fruit flavors, offering a taste experience from the chewy outer layer to the inner filling. 
• Jolly Rancher Chewy Poppers (available November) – This triple-layered innovation, with a candy shell, chewy core and fruity center, reportedly gives consumers a textured experience in a new chew form.
• Jolly Rancher Freeze Dried (available February 2025) – Fans of Jolly Rancher hard candy will be able to experience the fruity flavors in a crunchy form. 

“As a leader in snacking innovation, we are committed to understanding and responding to the needs of our consumers and retailers to elevate shoppers’ experience and fuel growth across every category," says Nick Hansen, vice president, C-Store, Drug, Dollar & Emerging/Specialty Retailers, The Hershey Company. “Through new innovations and offering key shopper insights, we’re providing our consumers with more options catered to their preferences and helping our retail partners drive sales.” 

Convenience channel insights

Hershey will share strategies with retailers at NACS 2024, focusing on boosting sales and enhancing shopper engagement. Insights include:

• Chocolate in C-store: Chocolate continues to be a growth driver within instant consumables. Standard size serves as a key entry point for first-time buyers, while king size has the highest household penetration in convenience stores. Both formats are essential to the category's success.
• Sweets packaging trends: Take-home peg packs continue to be the entry point for new consumers seeking sweets, providing them the best visibility and value.
• Value and convenience: Value means different things to different consumers. Foodservice remains a key area with a strong value proposition, enhanced by meal deals and promotions. Hershey works with retailers on achieving excellence in-store to enhance overall customer experience and engagement.

For nearly 15 years, The Hershey Company’s tailored planograms have helped retailers optimize their shelves and drive confection sales. Now, Hershey is applying insights from new research to better understand the salty snack shopper and grow sales in this expanding category. Our findings delve into areas such as:

• Organizing salty snacks by segment and product type helps align with shoppers' decision-making processes.
• Using strategic vertical placement of products within shelving displays to boost shopper engagement by 20% compared to other display methods.
• Enhancing category flow and adjacencies leads to higher shopper spending.

The Hershey Company is on the current Candy Industry “Global Top 100 Candy Companies” list. Click here to view the current “Global Top 100” rankings.