The UK's Best-selling Wholesale Confectionery
Throughout the world of confectionery, 2025 was a year where value played a central role. Shoppers still bought sweet treats, but in the formats that felt easier to justify: smaller and cheaper singles; familiar and reliable branded favourites; and the self-serve or bespoke treat of pick n mix. Around gifting occasions or seasonal peaks, this value was also found in trusted brands, with shoppers tending to prioritise premium purchases at the expense of other supplementary purchases.
At the same time, the market had a few practical headwinds retailers had to navigate. The standout being chocolate—impacted by cocoa costs, pushing price rises and pack changes across the category.
In the main, the winners of 2025 share similar characteristics: they’re recognisable, offer value, and are straightforward to merchandise. Below, we’ve pulled out the lines our customers bought the most across key categories and looked at what their performance suggests looking forward into 2026.
Best-selling Confectionery
The overall leaders show a split between high-frequency singles that drive impulse buying and pick n mix lines that shoppers can enjoy both little and often, or spend bigger and make it last.
Haribo Starmix proved once again why it’s a fixture across so many stores, while Kingsway Assorted Fizzy Mix and Kingsway Giant Strawberries showed that classic flavours in beloved pick n mix formats delivered serious value, portion control, and variety.
From this, you can take a useful range-planning tip into 2026: keep your everyday grab lines ready, while protecting space for pick n mix formats that support repeat shoppers.
Best-selling Wholesale Sweets
In sweets, 2025 saw iconic brands shine, as familiar flavours feel like low-risk purchases when budgets are tight. Smaller bag formats also help keep confectionery affordable at the point of sale, which is crucial when shoppers are watching their spending across the shop.
Shoppers clearly stuck with what they know and love, with overall bestseller Haribo Starmix leading the way, followed by the nostalgic pull of Barratt Fruit Salad Chews, and the consistently strong fizzy appeal of Haribo Tangfastics reiterating the power of sour.
These are strong sellers across forecourts, convenience stores, specialist stores and high-footfall sites—especially when supported with clear visibility and reliable availability. The fact that these are either small treat bags or countlines reinforces the 'little and often' trend and shows that shoppers are still spending pocket money and treating themselves to big-name favourites.
Best-selling Wholesale Pick n Mix
Pick n mix continued to win on personalisation and portion control—shoppers like choosing their favourites, and being in control of how much they spend. For retailers, pick n mix is also among the most versatile wholesale stock, excelling in a host of wholesale formats.
Offering top quality pick n mix that shoppers kept returning for, it’s no surprise that the most popular pick n mix lines are all Kingsway. The Assorted Fizzy Mix topped the category as a truly tangy favourite, offering retailers better bang for their buck, like the whole Kingsway Mega Value Range. Being pre-mixed, it is also ideal for pre-packing with a great variety. A long-standing pick n mix favourite, Kingsway’s Giant Strawberries were close behind, and Kingsway Jelly Mix again shows that pre-mixed, quality pick n mix works for retailers and their customers.
The standout here is the ongoing pull of fizzy and fruity classics, whether in a traditional pick n mix stand, pre-packed, or picked to order online. For 2026, pick n mix will support re-packers and refill-led retailers, as they provide varied basket opportunities, give customers control, and can more easily provide shopper value.
Best-selling Wholesale Chocolate
A year largely impacted by price, trust saw shoppers gravitating to what they know and lines that feel worthwhile at checkout. This was clearer in chocolate than any other category.
It’s not surprising, then, that the top line was price-marked, whilst all three were much-loved and long-trusted Cadbury lines. The ever-smiling Cadbury Freddo 39p PMP bar was the most popular chocolate treat, followed by the iconic ice cream accompaniment in the Flake 99 and then, in what may surprise some, the Cadbury Creme Egg! Whilst all three are Cadbury lines, the Creme Egg and the 99 prove that there is still demand for real shopper favourites—even if they’re only in peak season for a few months. This year, make the most of these whilst you can!
Looking ahead, rising cocoa costs mean shoppers will most likely remain cautious, so prioritising availability on proven, reliable sellers is key, whilst multipacks best serve frequent shoppers.
Best-selling Wholesale Retro Sweets
Still as popular as ever, yet with an ever-growing generation of newstalgic treats, retro sweets appeal to a wide range of customers. Some retro-inspired lines, like the award-winning Barratt Wham Candy Floss Cups, have made an impact on the market this year, but a trio of tried and tested favourites came out on top across the year.
Last year, Hannah’s Jazzies led the retro charge, followed up by Swizzels Love Hearts Mini Rolls—a classic for sharing and treating yourself. A real throwback, Taveners Coconut Mushrooms were the final inclusion, showing that well-loved classics remain a reliable driver of repeat purchases.
Dependable sales drivers, retro sweets entice multiple generations and hold plenty of shelf appeal. Whether in a pick n mix stand, pre-packed, or simply countlines on shelf, they’re among the most endearing confectionery.
Best-selling Wholesale Novelty Sweets
Novelty sweets perform best when they're clear, merchandised visually, but above all fun—and in 2025, the best sellers were lines that create instant curiosity and are also well-established.
Crazy Candy Factory Funny Money stood out for its playful, eye-catching format, clearly appealing to pocket money spenders. Over the last few years, Brain Licker rollers have been extremely popular. Now a household name for sweet lovers, it’s no shock that the Blue Raspberry and Sour Strawberry mixed case was such a hit. Finally, providing truly affordable fun, Fizz Wiz Strawberry sachets proved that recognisable excitement wins with cost-conscious consumers.
The wholesale takeaway is simple: novelty sweets stand out, so it pays to make them visible, easy to understand, and place them where impulse works best for you. Again, there should be plenty of custom for value lines, so offering £1 RRP sweets will be well-received, whilst our novelty sweets multibuy offers will help you boost margins.
High Impact Honourable Mentions
In a year where the value proposition was central to consumer buying behaviour, well-established lines dominated the landscape. However, there were still plenty of new additions to the market that had something special and made notable impacts.
The most-hyped product of the year, Dubai chocolate stole headlines throughout 2025. As you’d expect, the Alyan Dubai Pistachio Chocolate certainly made its mark. An indulgent centre of crispy knafeh and creamy pistachio, wrapped in a smooth milk chocolate layer, this bar perfectly demonstrates the social media hype!
A long-time crowd-pleaser, PEZ has been a household name for as long as we can remember—but two designs in particular shone throughout 2025. Both coincided with big movie releases in Lilo & Stitch and A Minecraft Movie to truly capture shoppers' imaginations. This just goes to show that the strength of the PEZ dispenser in the confectionery market is going nowhere.
Finally, promising delicious sweets for everyone, the Shades by Niko range uses entirely vegan and halal-approved recipes. With four brilliant flavours providing something to tickle every fancy, plus the notoriety of its YouTube star founder, this brand clearly appeals to a wide net of sweet lovers.
Takeaways for 2026
With little set to change, we expect value to stay the headline—but again, it will mean different things to different shoppers. Singles and PMPs will keep winning on affordability and speed of decision (especially in convenience locations), while bulk bags and tubs offer easy refills, repacking, and give shoppers control of both their mix and costs.
Unfortunately, pressure in the chocolate sector looks set to continue, driven by cocoa cost increases. In this case, it is safest to offer recognised favourites and price-marked lines that communicate value and are transparent. Trust signals, including recognised brands and clear pricing, will be pivotal in meeting shoppers' needs and securing sales.
Fizzy, sour, nostalgic, and social-led novelty should continue to lead the way in impulse. The strongest 2025 performers across pick n mix, retro, novelty and American all share a common trait: they’re easy to spot, easy to grab, and easy to justify, whether as a small treat or gift.
At Hancocks, we’ve been proudly supporting independent businesses since the beginning in 1962. Heading into 2026, along with the favourites mentioned here, you’ll find a wide range of confectionery to meet customer needs. From the great value wholesale pick n mix to bulk branded chocolate, novelty sweets, and a wide range of formats of sweets, we’ve got the wholesale stock to help your business make the most of 2026. As always, you can shop online, in-store, or make the most of our free Click & Collect service; you can shop however suits you best.
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