Sweets & Snacks
According to Insight And Info, China's sweets manufacturing market size has shown an overall upward trend since 2016, reaching 61.4 billion yuan in 2019 and 63.9 billion yuan in 2021. The retail market for sweets has similarly shown steady growth, increasing from approximately 93.7 billion yuan in 2014 to approximately 96.6 billion yuan in 2019 and reaching 99.7 billion yuan in 2021.
Demand for sweets and desserts continues to grow in South China, especially in Guangdong Province, which is a major sweets and desserts consuming province. Guangdong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang are the top three provincial administrations in terms of the number of dessert confectionery shops, with Guangdong accounting for 16.1% of the total.
According to iiMedia Research, the market size of China's snack industry has grown from 410 billion yuan to 1165.4 billion yuan from 2010 to 2022 and is expected to reach a size of 123.78 billion yuan by 2027.
In 2023, the China chic trend blew to the dessert category, with new Chinese-style sugar water shops appearing in Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Guangdong, Shandong, Fujian, Chongqing, Zhejiang, Hunan and many other places. With the emergence of new brands, the New Chinese-Style Sugar Water category has gradually branched out into subcategories such as health food, roasted pear and douhua.
Consumer profiling in the Shenzhen and South China market shows that snack consumers are mainly young people aged 22 to 40, a group that is highly receptive to new things and has diverse needs. Among them, 67.7% of Chinese snack consumers are female and 32.3% are male.
In terms of product innovation, brands are continuously exploring and launching new products that meet consumers' individual needs to satisfy the market's pursuit of high quality and healthy food. From trendy snacks to traditional pastries, the sweets and snacks segment in the Shenzhen and South China market is characterised by diversity and innovation.
*Reference:《2021年中国甜食行业分析报告-市场行情监测与未来趋势研究》《甜品甜点品类发展报告2024》《2023-2024年中国休闲食品产业现状及消费行为数据研究报告》《2023-2028年中国休闲食品行业市场发展监测及投资前景展望报告》