Report: Chocolate Candy In The U.S., 10th Edition

NEW YORK, May 28, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Chocolate continues to be an indulgence that consumers can't live without. While the U.S. chocolate market is dominated by a small group of players, with Hershey's and Mars controlling a large chunk of market share, there are still many innovative chocolate makers trying to make their marks and find an audience. The category has experienced solid market growth in the last year, and premium chocolate makers continue to be at the forefront of innovation. This report takes a comprehensive look at the market for chocolate in the U.S. The report examines the trends driving growth in the category. Readers will learn about fast-growing brands and rising stars; the big gainers in brand share; the diverse range of chocolate products; chocolate's functional benefits and marketer's efforts to capitalize on them; demographics and psychographics of the chocolate consumer, and information on consumption habits; and the new, engaging ways in which chocolate marketers are connecting with customers. 
Chocolate Candy in the U.S., 10th Edition segments and quantifies the market by channel and product type, providing historical sales figures and forecasts through 2018. The report examines market size, drivers and trends, retail sales-tracking data from IRI and SPINSscan, new product trends, and national consumer survey data, both from an extensive analysis of Simmons data as well as the proprietary Packaged Facts Chocolate Usage Survey. The report also thoroughly maps out the competitive situation at the marketer and brand levels, with detailed profiles of Hershey, Mars, Russell Stover, Nestle, Lindt and others. 

Report Methodology 
The information contained in this report was obtained from primary and secondary research. Primary research entailed consultations with chocolate market sources, on-site examination of retail venues, and fielding a proprietary Packaged Facts online consumer survey focusing on chocolate product shopper insights – the Packaged Facts Chocolate Usage Study. Secondary research included extensive Internet canvassing and research- and data-gathering from relevant consumer business and trade publications; company reports including annual reports, press releases, and investor conference calls; company profiles in trade and consumer publications; government reports; and other food and chocolate market reports by Packaged Facts. 
Sales estimates are based on data from the above sources as well as IRI data for mass-market channels; SPINSscan data for natural supermarkets; published and estimated sales of major market participants; market size estimates from other sources, including those appearing in the trade press; the performance of relevant retail venues; consumer usage rates for chocolate products; and new product introduction activity in the market. 

Our consumer analysis draws primarily on two data sources. The first is national consumer survey data from Simmons. Through an ongoing program of telephone and booklet questionnaire surveys of a large probability sample of consumers who represent a statistically accurate cross-section of the U.S. adult population, Simmons is able construct detailed demographic profiles across various consumer product and service markets, including the chocolate market. The discussion of consumer patterns also draws on the proprietary Packaged Facts Chocolate Usage Survey, which is based on 2,000 U.S. adults who in aggregate are census representative on the primary demographic measure of age, gender, geographic region, race/ethnicity, and presence of children in the household. 
Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p02332905-summary/view-report.html