How much is the UK popcorn category worth and is the category in growth?
As demand for more permissible treats increases, Popcorn is seeing dynamic value growth, with the category worth almost £190m and growing +6% in value terms, well ahead of overall Bagged Snacks at +2%1.
What are the major drivers of category growth?
Worth £2.1bn, Sharing is the largest segment within Bagged Snacks and continues to expand as consumers look to economise by spending more time at home with family and friends.1 The growth of Big Night In occasions is continuing to drive this momentum as people seek to elevate at-home experiences like movie nights with tasty snacks.
In fact, in-home entertainment is a key driver of sharing occasions, with 55% of consumers choosing Bagged Snacks to maximise enjoyment when in front of the TV.2
Popcorn has long been synonymous with movie and TV occasions, and Butterkist, the UK’s number one popcorn brand, is uniquely positioned to help retailers and wholesalers capture their share of this growth.
Our Butterkist portfolio features iconic options including our Crunchy Toffee flavour – the UK’s best-selling branded popcorn SKU – alongside core favourites like Salted and Sweet & Salty, which consistently deliver the perfect snack for sharing occasions. Our popular microwave range, available in Sweet, Salted and Sweet & Salty, also taps into these occasions, offering a tasty, freshly popped option to enjoy alongside in-home entertainment.
How is the Butterkist brand performing?
At nearly twice the size of the nearest branded competitor, Butterkist continues to lead the Popcorn category with a massive 30.4% market share1. Now worth £57.1m and growing, the brand remains the nation’s clear favourite within the category.1
Well known for our great-tasting popcorn, our strength lies in consistent quality and strong performance across core formats, including Sharing, PMPs, multipacks and microwave. Our Butterkist portfolio delivers the right flavours and formats that meet consumer demand and drive category growth.
Tell us about the Paramount+ partnership. What kind of activity will it include?
We have expanded our partnership with Paramount+ through an exciting and relevant on-pack promotion running until 22nd December across our sharing, microwave, and £1.35 PMP packs.
The promotion offers consumers a month’s access to movies and shows on Paramount+ (worth £9.99) with the purchase of Butterkist Sweet, Sweet & Salty, Salted, or Crunchy Toffee. With 64% of consumers having a regular Big Night In and 70% of movie-watching occasions happening at home3, the new on-pack promotion reinforces Butterkist’s position as the perfect snack to enjoy alongside quality entertainment, elevating those in-home occasions.
How can wholesalers best capitalise on the popcorn category?
Wholesalers can tap into the growth of the Popcorn category and drive sales by focusing on the right range of best-sellers for retailers to shop, including the segment’s best-selling SKU: Butterkist Crunchy Toffee.
Prioritising key formats like £1.35 PMPs is equally important, with PMPs providing strong value perception and reassuring price-conscious consumers, accounting for 71% of Bagged Snacks sales in independent stores. Microwave formats are also performing strongly within the segment and shouldn’t be overlooked. Our Butterkist microwave lineup is well-positioned to help both wholesalers and retailers tap into this demand.
To drive category sales, wholesalers should also capitalise on major partnerships and promotions, like our new Paramount+ on-pack, positioning promotional packs with high visibility to excite and engage their shoppers.
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