Mars Galaxy eggs

Mars is set to go head to head with Cadbury’s Mini Eggs with the launch of Galaxy Golden Eggs in the run-up to Easter.

The solid chocolate eggs, which contain crunchy caramel pieces and have a gold-coloured coating, will be available from January in an 80g sharing bag (rsp: £1.30) and as a 234g Large Easter Egg (rsp: £5.29).

Mars is also growing its MaltEaster bunny range with a new family pack (rsp: £3.99) that contains four MaltEaster bunnies, six mini bunnies and two bags of Maltesers fun size.

Mars Chocolate UK trade communications manager Bep Dhaliwal said that almost eight out of 10 consumers bought chocolate for Easter, and that it was vital for retailers to use effective display ideas to take advantage of the opportunity. Mars will be providing PoS options including combined units for Galaxy Golden Eggs and MaltEaster bunnies.

Galaxy and Maltesers are the second and third-biggest brands in chocolate confectionery, with sales up 4.9% to £217.9m and flat at £179.8m respectively [Nielsen 52 w/e 12 September 2015].