US shoppers remain financially squeezed, and big packaged-food companies are winning sales with smaller containers at more accessible price points. During earnings calls this week, leaders at Coca-Cola, Mondelez, Procter & Gamble, and Hershey said consumers are embracing the new, lower price tags. The beverage giant is doubling down on mini cans.
CEO Henrique Braun opened the discussion Tuesday by noting that lower-income customers are still under pressure but are looking for ways to buy the drinks they love. "We made it easier for the consumer," he said. "When you go into the convenience store, you have the mini-cans sold as a single at the lowest entry price."
During a separate call Tuesday, Mondelez CEO Dirk Van de Put discussed how value-seeking shoppers have prompted the company to explore new packaging sizes and pricing structures.
P&G bucked the trend somewhat Wednesday. Its customers skew somewhat wealthier and tend to care more about value per dollar than the lowest possible sticker price. Those shoppers often save by buying in bulk, and P&G says its priority is improving products rather than cutting prices to win new sales. The company's finance chief, Andre Sultan, said consumers hit hardest by gas prices "continue to look for smaller pack sizes. They continue to be very affected by promotion patterns."
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By Thursday, Hershey announced that it had finished rolling out a revised assortment of store packaging that includes more compact alternatives, a move initiated the previous year when cocoa costs climbed sharply. Boston Beer, earlier in the summer, unveiled four-can bundles of its Twisted Tea, introducing a price point that comes in under $10. Even though many firms have faced shrinkflation complaints, this approach is far more apparent than stuffing fewer chips into an identical bag for the same cost.
That gives budget-conscious shoppers a clear choice without the feeling that they are being shortchanged.
For buyers on tight budgets, a smaller portion of a beloved treat can be the difference between skipping it and enjoying it. This approach also aligns with efforts to encourage moderation, as analysts point out that smaller servings of snacks and candy are easier to manage.
"The consumer is most likely getting a poorer value in these smaller pack sizes, but it may make a product that was just simply not affordable into something that someone can now at least buy a smaller size of," said Jerry Thomas, chief executive of the research firm Decision Analyst, in an interview with Business Insider.
Thomas also argued that giving people smaller servings of candy, snacks, and other highly processed items may be a healthier option than oversized packages. "It's a good thing in the sense that people have an option that is easy for them to consume less of a product that might not be especially good for them," he said.
The pattern extends beyond snacks and soda. Hershey began its packaging overhaul the previous year as cocoa costs climbed, and Boston Beer's four-can bundle rollout came earlier this summer with a price point under $10. Those moves, along with comments from Coca-Cola and Mondelez executives on this week's calls, show that accessible pricing is now a priority across food and beverage categories.
Regardless, the latest earnings calls suggest that compact packaging is likely to remain common on store shelves for the foreseeable future.
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