By Mark Seavy

As chocolate prices soar and consumer spending tightens, candy makers are showing a growing appetite for licensing.

This expansion was underscored at the recent Sweets and Snacks Expo in Indianapolis, IN as a wave of candy makers could be seen striking licensing deals with other candy brands.

Spangler licensed Just Born’s Peeps for marshmallow-flavored candy canes, while Flix is adding Frankford’s Mike and Ike label to its range of lollipop rings. And Elmer Chocolates entered into licensing for the first time in applying Hershey’s Pot of Gold to chocolate gift boxes.

Additionally, restaurant brands were being served up in a variety of licensed combinations. Frankford Candy, for example, is applying the Dunkin’ brand to brownie batter chocolates in a riff on the coffee chain’s brownie batter donuts. It also is teaming up with Baskin Robbins to launch chocolate shells with mint or chocolate chip cookie dough filling.

Companies are doubling down on these partnerships as prices soar. For example, costs have reached as much as $9,755 per ton for chocolate (up from the $2,500 per ton that has been typical for much of the past decade).

Failed crops in Ghana and the Ivory Coast, which together account for more than 60% of the global chocolate crop, have put prices on a roller coaster for much of the past year and the candy industry is forecasting a chocolate shortfall of 374,000 tons in 2024—up from 74,000 a year ago. The issue has been exacerbated by financial speculation, all of which has led to candy suppliers imposing wholesale price increases.

“Shoppers in many markets are becoming increasingly sensitive to the absolute price point, driving them to choose smaller pack sizes in chocolates,” said Hershey CEO Michele Buck, whose company has reduced the multi-pack size of Clif Bars to 10 bars (down from 12). “Lower-income consumers feel pressured, and we see that pressure weighing on their frequency in the category, especially among brands that skew more to that group.”

With consumer spending shifting, licensing will become more important to the candy category than ever before. Licensing International’s 2024 Global Licensing Industry Study shows that the growth of retail sales of branded products and services last year (up 4.59%) outpaces that of the overall retail market (up 3.7%), proving that brands are a difference-maker for consumers.

America Nostalgia Products is reviving the Reggie! candy bar, which was named after former New York Yankee slugger Reggie Jackson and debuted in 1978. Standard Brands discontinued it three years later, but it was revived in 1999 and again in 2023. Camouflage design firm Mossy Oak is licensing its brand to Uncle Rays for sweet and spicy potato chips. And Snax-sational Brands introduced popcorn under J.M. Smucker’s Jiff peanut butter brand, while Hormel’s Skippy brand was licensed to Morris National’s Stuffed Puffs for milk chocolate minis.

“It is important to underscore that despite short-term marketplace volatility, many companies remain focused on advancing our long-term growth strategy by reinvesting in our brands, reshaping their portfolio, and scaling sustainable snacking,” said Mondelez International CEO Dirk Van de Put. “Companies are playing for the long term in chocolate because it is fundamentally a great category with very high brand loyalty and low private-label penetration. Despite this near-term headwind, chocolate volume continues to grow.”