Note on the U.S. Chocolate Market Case Solution And Analysis, HBR Case Study Solution & Analysis of Harvard Case Studies

In 2000, 81% of U.S. adults consumed chocolate. Despite the popularity of chocolate in the United States, many analysts believe that the market is far from saturation, noting that European per capita consumption of chocolate is much higher than that of U.S. consumers. Indeed, the retail sales of chocolate in the United States have experienced steady growth in recent years. The total retail value of the U.S. chocolate market is estimated at $ 13.7 billion in 2002, 10.2% more than in 1998. Retail sales in the U.S. chocolate is projected to grow to $ 14.5 billion in 2007. Much of this growth is the retail price can be attributed to the shift of American consumers to more expensive chocolate. In 2002, revenue growth ahead of volume gains for chocolates by 8.7 percentage points compared with the previous year. Gourmet category will grow as consumers included the more expensive refined foods in your diet, and this trend is starting to beer, wine, coffee, cheese and ice cream industries. Two giants dominate Hershey controlled 32.6% of the market, and Mars was 29.6%. The market share was split between the mass-market, gourmet, and cause-related manufacturers. Mass-market chocolate were defined as those selling chocolate less than $ 10 a pound retail, while the gourmet chocolate were defined as those selling chocolate, or more than $ 10 a pound retail. "Hide
by Glenn Carroll, Greg Powell, 19 pages. Publication Date: November 30, 2004. Prod. #: E188-PDF-ENG