Consumers aged 55 and over could provide confectionery manufacturers targeting the UK children’s market with a “lucrative” alternative market, according to new research.

Older shoppers ate over GBP1bn (US$1.57bn) of confectionery in 2011 and accounted for over 24% of UK sales – greater than children and teenagers combined, industry analysts at Canadean have claimed.

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The young consumer ate confectionery more frequently, which may have led manufacturers to “neglect” 14m older consumers in their fifties and sixties “with an appetite for the occasional indulgence”, Canadean said.

Older consumers have a “less of the best” approach to confectionery, Canadean argued in its Consumer Trends in the Confectionery Market in the UK, 2011 report.

“They prize quality and still have the disposable income to pay for it, leading them to opt for premium brands. Their love of good quality, their ability to pay for it and the sheer number of older consumers means this under-served GBP1bn market offers a potentially lucrative alternative to the competitive, crowded space of children’s confectionery.”

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