Starburst bursts onto China market

Imagine using a mini-claw machine. What you grab turns out to be a fruit-flavored soft taffy candy. And the flavor of the candy is a random result. This is the latest marketing strategy adopted by Mars Inc to attract younger generation consumers in China where the confectionery market has witnessed a strong decline in years.

This is the first time that Starburst, the box-shaped candy has entered the Chinese mainland market. However, today in China, selling candy to Chinese youngsters is no longer an easy task. According to Euromonitor International, confectionery market value in China has declined from 110 billion yuan ($16.09 billion) in 2014 to 109 billion yuan in 2017 and has slightly recovered to 111 billion yuan this year.

A rising awareness of weight management among young Chinese, a generation growing up with health concerns such as obesity and diabetes has caused the shrinking size of the confectionery market in China, said Zhu Danpeng, an independent food analyst based in Guangzhou.