Mars Wrigley International Travel Retail (MWITR) will return to TFWA Asia Pacific Exhibition (7-11 May) this year (Stand 2-H22), where it plans to share its updated vision for the confectionery & food sector.
During the Conference on 8 May, MWITR Sales Director Marcus Hudson will talk about the potential for confectionery in Asia Pacific travel retail and the company’s vision to drive category sales.
At the MWITR-sponsored lunch on the same day, visitors will get a chance to sample Maltesers Truffles – the brand’s latest gifting innovation.
Hudson said, “In many of the domestic markets in the Asia Pacific region, confectionery is a developed and incremental category, engaging consumers with fun and exciting content, leveraging some very well-loved brands. However, this engagement in the category is not represented in many travel retail markets in the region.
“This is something we are excited to change, and due to the size of our business in domestic markets in the region, Mars is well positioned to drive this change.”
The Asia Pacific travel retail market holds significant potential for growth in the confectionery sector, the company noted. Hudson explained: “Confectionery is not like other categories in travel retail, and to build it we need to do things differently – a truly category-first approach, driven by consumption moments that we know are top of mind at the point of sale.”
The brand is planning to engage with local partners and share more about the evolution of its portfolio at the conference and exhibition.
The Maltesers Truffles offer fulfils the gifting ‘moment’ within MWITR’s updated category vision and strategy. First announced at TFWA World Exhibition last year, the strategy highlights ‘moments’ as the key enabler to unlock category growth. Alongside the ‘give a gift’ moment, these opportunities include ‘enjoying travel time together’, ‘refresh & energize on the go’ and ‘unwind and indulge’.
Hudson said: “Gifting remains the biggest segment within the travel retail confectionery category, and we know that travellers are becoming more budget conscious. Our gifting portfolio is designed to offer affordable gift choices in the three key price brackets, with this new Maltesers Truffles presentation designed to attract younger shoppers to the category. This new variant is sure to attract attention from shoppers who we know are keen to try new flavours from their favourite brands.” ✈
