Abstract
The gum, mint and breath freshener category has experienced steady growth in recent years. The successful string of new flavor line extensions and new brand launches in the dynamic and highly competitive sugarless gum segment are largely attributed to this market growth.
Mintel provides insight into recent marketing activity in the category and analyzes sales results in order to help retailers and marketers plot a course for continued growth.
- Analysis of category sales by segment, retail channel, key manufacturer, and brand- including brand profiles of major category competitors.
- Discussion of recent new product introductions from major competitors.
- An overview of advertising in the category
- Examination of the recently announced acquisition of category-leading supplier Wrigley by confectionery giant Mars, Inc. and how the merger is likely to trigger a similar deal between Cadbury and Hershey, the category' s number-two and three competitors
Table of Contents
- Scope and Themes
- What you need to know
- Definition
- Data sources
- Sales data
- Consumer survey data
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
- Executive Summary
- Market size
- Two major suppliers dominate
- Mergers may make the strongest stronger
- Category marketing activity is concentrated in sugarless gum
- Recent innovation has focused on flavor
- Expanding distribution outlets equals expanding sales
- Key advertising themes delivered with a dose of irreverence
- Kids, teens, young adults control the category
- Market Size and Forecast
- Key points
- Sugarless gum leads category growth
- More retail outlets means more chances to pick up gum
- Figure 1: Total U.S. sales and forecast of gum, mints, and breath fresheners at current prices, 2002-12
- Figure 2: Total U.S. sales and forecast of gum, mints, and breath fresheners at inflation-adjusted prices, 2002-12
- Competitive Context
- Corporate dealing changes the category playing field
- Segment Performance
- Key points
- Spurred by new brands and innovation, sugarless gum has become the format
of choice for the category
- Figure 3: U.S. sales and forecast of gum, mints, and breath fresheners at current prices, by segment, 2002-12
- Figure 4: U.S. sales of gum, mints, and breath fresheners, by segment, 2005 and 2007
- Segment Performance--Sugarless Gum
- Key point
- Sugarless gum has become the focus of innovation for the category
- Figure 5: U.S. sales and forecast of sugarless gum, 2002-12
- Segment Performance--Regular Gum
- Key points
- Buoyed by kids ... but for how long?
- Figure 6: U.S. sales and forecast of regular gum, 2002-12
- Segment Performance--Breath Fresheners
- Key points
- Breath fresheners left out in the cold as consumers turn to gum
- Figure 7: U.S. sales and forecast of breath fresheners, 2002-12
- Segment Performance--Plain Mints
- Key point
- A quiet segment receives little attention, but keeps on rolling
- Figure 8: U.S. sales and forecast of plain mints, 2002-12
- Retail Channels
- Key points
- Riding a wave of convenience
- Figure 9: U.S. sales of gum, mints, and breath fresheners, by retail channel, 2005 and 2007
- Retail Channels--Convenience Stores
- Key points
- Along for the ride
- Figure 10: U.S. sales of gum, mints, and breath fresheners at convenience stores, 2002-07
- Retail Channels--Supermarkets
- Key point
- Gum and mint sales flat as channel struggles to redefine itself
- Figure 11: U.S. sales of gum, mints, and breath fresheners at supermarkets, 2002-07
- Retail Channels--Drugstores
- Key point
- Category helping spur front-end sales growth
- Figure 12: U.S. sales of gum, mints, and breath fresheners at drugstores, 2002-07
- Retail Channels--Other
- Key points
- A collection of growing channels leads to growing sales for the category
- Figure 13: U.S. sales of gum, mints, and breath fresheners at other channels, 2002-07
- Market Drivers
- Shifts in population composition by age and race/ethnicity will impact the
market
- Figure 14: U.S. population, by age, 2002-12
- Figure 15: U.S. population, by race and Hispanic origin, 2002-12
- Interest in healthy eating
- Figure 16: Attitudes towards healthy eating, 2002-07
- Leading Companies
- Key points
- The strongest may be getting stronger
- Figure 17: FDMx Sales of leading gum, mints, and breath fresheners companies, 2005 and 2007
- Brand Share--Sugarless Gum
- Key points
- In with the new...
- Figure 18: FDMx brand sales of sugarless gum, 2005 and 2007
- Brand Share--Regular Gum
- Key points
- Rapid share declines may be difficult to reverse
- Figure 19: FDMx brand sales of regular gum, 2005 and 2007
- Brand Share--Breath Fresheners
- Key points
- Looking for a leader ... and a big idea
- Figure 20: FDMx brand sales of breath fresheners, 2005 and 2007
- Brand Share--Plain Mints
- Key points
- Not quite candy, not quite breath fresheners
- Figure 21: FDM brand sales of plain mints, 2005 and 2007
- Brand Qualities
- A whole new Orbit
- Older brands reinvented
- Dentyne
- Trident
- Wrigley' s classics on the ropes
- Innovation and Innovators
- A flow of new fruit flavors and combinations
- Back to the future -- new gums that go squirt
- Two new brands offer new flavor experiences
- Hershey tries to extend Ice Breakers beyond core category benefits
- Advertising and Promotion
- Overview
- Figure 22: Media expenditure of selected gum/mint brands, 2005-06
- Oral Care
- Figure 23: Orbit television ad, 2007
- Figure 24: Orbit television ad, 2007
- Figure 25: Orbit White television ad, 2007
- Figure 26: Trident White television ad, 2007
- Figure 27: Trident Original television ad, 2007
- Flavor
- Figure 28: Trident Watermelon Twist television ad, 2007
- Figure 29: Wrigley 5 television ad, 2007
- Figure 30: Stride television ad, 2007
- Figure 31: Extra television ad, 2007
- Figure 32: Ice Breakers Ice Cubes television ad, 2007
- Figure 33: Altoids Mints television ad, 2007
- Fresh breath
- Figure 34: Ice Breakers Ice Cubes television ad, 2007
- Figure 35: Eclipse Gum television ad, 2007
- Usage
- Incidence of use highest among kids, teens
- Figure 36: Usage of gum and breath mints/strips--adults, teens and kids, May 2006-June 2007
- Figure 37: Usage of gum and breath mints/strips--adults, by age, May 2006-June 2007
- Figure 38: Usage of gum and breath mints/strips--adults, teens and kids, by race/ethnicity, May 2006-June 2007
- Kids and teens prefer sugared gum. Adults evenly split between sugared and
sugarless
- Figure 39: Type of gum chewed--adults, teens and kids, May 2006-June 2007
- Figure 40: Type of mints eaten--adults, and teens May 2006-June 2007
- With many brands chewed per week, loyalty appears to be low
- Figure 41: Brands of gum chewed--adults, by age, May 2006-June 2007
- Figure 42: Brands of gum chewed--teens, May 2006-June 2007
- Figure 43: Brands of gum liked best--kids, May 2006-June 2007
- Fewer mints/strips brands used
- Figure 44: Brands of breath strips/mints used--adults, by age, May 2006-June 2007
- Figure 45: Brands of breath strips/mints used--teens, May 2006-June 2007
- Figure 46: Brands of breath strips/mints liked best--kids, May 2006-June 2007
- Usage patterns: teens chew most frequently
- Figure 47: Average amount of gum/mints used--adults, teens, and kids, May 2006-June 2007
- Attitudes and Motivations
- Considerable interest in trying new flavors of gum and mints
- Figure 48: Trying new flavors of gum and mints, by age, March 2007
- Gum and mints are an everyday thing ... except for business meetings
- Figure 49: Attitudes towards and opinions about gum, by gender and age, March 2007
- Long-lasting flavor highly valued in gum
- Figure 50: Attitudes towards and opinions about gum, by age, March 2007
- Interest in functional gum strongest for oral-care benefits
- Figure 51: Interest in functional gum for oral health/care, by age, March 2007
- Figure 52: Interest in functional gum for purposes other than oral care, by age, March 2007
- Gum appropriate for a wider array of uses than mints
- Figure 53: Uses for gum and mints, by age, March 2007
- Appendix: Trade Associations
