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CONFECTIONERY CONVERSATION Converting Chinese shoppers into confectionery spenders
In the fifth edition of this year’s Confectionery Conversation – a monthly column which shines a spotlight on the confectionery category, sponsored by Mars Wrigley International Travel Retail – Charlotte Turner finds out how suppliers and retailers are actively targeting Chinese consumers.
Mixed confectionery store at CDFG’s Haitang Bay duty free shopping complex in Sanya. A
s China Duty Free Group President Charles Chen tells TRBusiness on p36 Chinese travellers continue to be
considered the most important shoppers to the global duty free industry. However, the market in China is not an easy one to crack for many confectionery suppliers, and store selections are often dominated by legacy brands – according to some suppliers spoken to for this column – making it hard for smaller brands or new products to really penetrate the market. However, even a low penetration of
such a huge volume of travellers results in significant returns, as Perfetti Van Melle (PVM) has discovered. “Chinese consumers are important to
us,” says Femke van Veen – GTR Marketing Manager. “We are very happy that PVM brands are currently listed at Beijing airport and although we see that within Asia, and especially China, our sugar confectionery share is still low, we know there is potential to grow.” Van Veen says she sees ‘more
opportunities than challenges in the Asian market’. “Our main focus strategy for Asia is the
same as our global strategy and that is to concentrate on the distribution of our
MAY 2020
bestselling items through duty free and travel retail channels. “We have adapted some of our hero
products to make them more relevant to Chinese or Asian consumers in general. For example, we have done this with our Chupa Chups Markers which we transformed into Hello Kitty Markers.”
‘Well-known’ in Asia, says PVM While PVM has created special edition products for the Chinese market, it believes that much of its existing assortment is already suitable without need for modifications. “Our brands are very well known by Asian consumers. The iconic products like our Megachups and BackPacks perform very well in the Asian market.” Besides these products PVM says its
lower priced items, such as its Mini Mentos Pencil-case or Chupa Chups Crazyplane, continue to be popular. “Nevertheless, we do also aim to
constantly develop products that are specifically or mainly targeting the Asian market with the Chinese consumer being an important sector within that.” Optimising its cash-till assortment is key
to its travel retail strategy and one that has been paying off in Asia. “We know
TRBUSINESS 15
“We have adapted some of our hero products to make them more relevant to Chinese or Asian consumers in general. For example, we have done this with our Chupa Chups Markers which we transformed into Hello Kitty Markers.”
Femke van Veen, GTR Marketing Manager, Perfetti Ven Melle
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