Savoury pastries 2025: Posh pies and pastries keep sales warm

Posh pies and innovative on-the-go formats have stopped the savoury pastry market going stale over the past year.

While category volumes have fallen, most of that decline has been driven by the smallest brands. Major players have performed much better: eight of the top 10 have increased value and volume sales by meeting demand for premium and convenient pastries.

“Brands that have done well have been bold with new flavour variants and keeping the range fresh with limited editions,” says Lisa Rees, NIQ team leader for retailer services. “They have also tapped the desire for more world cuisine recipes and niche ingredients.”

Take Ginsters, Britain’s biggest pastry brand. It’s invested in innovation alongside a focus on media and in-store marketing, helping to add more than £5m to its value.

In April, Ginsters unveiled Pockets, an on-the-go range in trendy, street-food inspired variants such as Sriracha Chicken. The lineup clocked up value sales of more than £3.8m in its first six months, says Ginsters.

The NPD didn’t stop there. October saw the rollout of Pastry Toastie, which can be heated in a toaster in just four minutes (see Top Launch, below).

A key target of the launch is lunchtime shoppers, who are proving a lucrative market for many savoury pastry brands.

In fact, the lunch market has contributed to Wall’s recording the category’s largest absolute value gain. It’s up £7.6m on a volume rise of 13.6%. “Wall’s continues to lead the way in front-of-store formats, particularly in meal deals,” says Jason Manley, brand director at owner The Compleat Food Group.

As such, value sales of Wall’s Large Sausage Roll have grown 82% year on year, he adds. “It is attracting three times as many young shoppers compared to standard single rolls elsewhere in store, proving that format and placement are key to unlocking new audiences and driving incremental growth.”

Demand for posh products has also helped to drive growth in the market. The category’s premium tier is up 18% in value and now accounts for 16% of total category sales, Manley notes. “Consumer appetite for elevated meal occasions like the ‘picky tea’ is fuelling this trend”.

Retailers are spotlighting premium lines in cross-category promotions such as ‘3 for £8’ deli deals, which combine chilled pastry with deli products and dips, he says.

“We’re also seeing a year-on-year increase in the number of premium products featured in these promotions,” Manley adds. “This shift has driven up distribution levels for premium chilled savoury pastry, further contributing to value growth.”

One brand clearly benefiting from demand for posh pastries is Higgidy. Its value and volumes are up 16.2% and 15.9% respectively.

“It has been a phenomenal year for Higgidy’s performance, with penetration growth at an all-time high,” explains CEO Rachel Kelley.

“While the savoury pastry category has traditionally had an older consumer profile, Higgidy is bringing more youthful shoppers into the category and is helping to revitalise the category by making products that are relevant to younger consumers – particularly with its snacking range.”

Higgidy’s 200g pies, downsized from 250g at the end of 2024 with a cut price to match, have been the big success story. “The new pack size has hit a sweet spot for consumer affordability,” Kelley adds.

Conversely, other suppliers have enjoyed success with larger products. Take Pukka Pies’ 500g The Big One range. The range has driven 70% incrementality in the pies market by bringing in new shoppers without cannibalising the brand’s core range, says Pukka.

Another supporter of larger portions is Peter’s, which puts its growth down to a combination of innovation, value and brand strength. “In a market heavily impacted by shrinkflation, Peter’s has chosen to go against the trend, offering great quality, bigger portions, and better value,” says brand manager Katie Rees.

The brand’s most successful NPD of 2025 has been the 230g Chippy Pie lineup, she adds. It launched in May 2025, replacing Peter’s 200g pies. “A true return to our roots, these have really struck a chord with consumers thanks to their larger size, great value, and an uncompromising delicious taste.”

Own label dominates

Brands aren’t alone in innovating, of course. Own label – which accounts for 60% of category value sales – has also been adapting to demand for exciting and premium products. And it’s having an effect: own label volumes of savoury pastries are up 1.7%, compared with a 7% decline for brands.

“Supermarkets are increasingly prioritising their premium own label pies, which of course creates a challenge for us,” says Pieminister MD Jon Simon.

That strategic shift is the key reason why Pieminister value sales have fallen 9.3% this year, he admits. June’s recall of 10 incorrectly dated products didn’t help, either.

Bells’ sales have also fallen in the past year: value is down 4.5% and volumes are dived 9%. Trading has been tougher this year as high beef costs have increased on-shelf prices, says MD Ronnie Miles. “The widened price gap and broad retailer ranges make own label an easy choice for value-seeking shoppers, particularly in a cost of living crisis.”

He describes 2025 as a year of consolidation and planning for Bells, which will launch an individual bakes range in 2026 alongside further NPD.

“Trusted, established brands like Bells that deliver clear value for money, quality and consistency have many opportunities available in 2026,” Miles believes.

Despite the pressure from own label, many other brands are confident in their prospects for the coming year.

Wall’s, for example, says it’s proud of what it has in the pipeline and is excited to launch “genuinely new innovation” that will reflect changing consumer behaviours.

Meanwhile, Peter’s has launches planned for spring 2026 – and will continue to invest in its core brand and the Epic Rolls sub-brand of handheld pastries, which debuted last year.

Finally, Pukka CEO Isaac Fisher believes the coming year will see retailers focus on a balance of core bestsellers alongside innovations that are genuinely driven by food trends and demand.

“In other words,” he says, “gimmicks are out, and new products that people actually want are in”.

And if they’re posh and convenient, then all the better.