Bulk confectionery, pick and mix candy, candy walls, or simply loose candy is a retailing strategy where various types of

confectionery Confectionery is the Art (skill), art of making confections, or sweet foods. Confections are items that are rich in sugar and carbohydrates, although exact definitions are difficult. In general, however, confections are divided into two bro ...

are sold together in a large container or in separate bins, allowing customers to select the assortment and quantity they prefer. Typically used in

vending machine A vending machine is an automated machine that dispenses items such as snacks, beverages, cigarettes, and lottery tickets to consumers after cash, a credit card, or other forms of payment are inserted into the machine or payment is otherwise m ...

s or confectionery

retailer Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is the sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesal ...

s, this method involves dispensing candy by weight or piece count. This method has a global presence, with variations in practice and terminology across regions.

History

Sweden

Bulk confectionery (Swedish: ''lösgodis'') originates back to the 1930s, when Swedish agriculture began to supply the country with refined sugar and made it possible to sell bulk confectionery in smaller shops. In 1984, the

Swedish National Food Agency The Swedish Food Agency (), formerly the National Swedish Food Administration () is a Swedish government agency that answers to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Consumer Affairs. The agency is located in Uppsala. It is the central superviso ...

(''Livsmedelsverket'') approved selling it in ordinary larger stores, given that the candy varieties were kept in separate containers and picked with a scoop or a smaller bucket. Self-serve loose candy walls were introduced by two Finnish students educated in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

, Sweden. They developed the idea in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

, Finland, in the early 1980s. Since then it has started to spread all around the world, mostly in Europe and Asia. Even some

IKEA IKEA ( , ) is a Multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in Sweden that designs and sells , household goods, and various related services. IKEA is owned and operated by a series of not-for-profit an ...

stores in North America have started to sell mostly Swedish varieties but also American classics. Swedes ate the most pick and mix candy in the world in 2009.

Maundy Thursday Maundy Thursday, also referred to as Holy Thursday, or Thursday of the Lord's Supper, among other names,The day is also known as Great and Holy Thursday, Holy and Great Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Sheer Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries. is ...

is the biggest selling day in grocery stores. In Sweden, about 18 kilograms of candy are consumed per person per year (as of 2014).

United States

The first penny candy to be sold in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

was the

Tootsie Roll Tootsie Roll () is a chocolate Taffy (candy), taffy candy that has been manufactured in the United States since 1907. The candy has qualities similar to both caramels and taffy without being exactly either confection. The Manufacturing, manu ...

, in 1907, followed by

Necco Wafers Necco Wafers are a sugar-based candy, sold in rolls of variously-flavored thin disks. First produced in 1847, they became the namesake and core product of the now-defunct New England Confectionery Company ( Necco), which operated near Boston, Ma ...

and

Hershey's Kisses Hershey's Kisses are chocolates first produced by the Hershey Company in 1907. The bite-sized pieces of chocolate have a distinctive conical shape, sometimes described as flat-bottomed Drop (liquid), teardrops. Hershey's Kisses chocolates are wra ...

in subsequent decades. Bulk-sale of candy in the 20th century US was mainly through the F.W. Woolworth Company’s five and dime store chain, which closed in the 1990s, marking an end in popularity of the phenomenon.

Gallery

File:Candysticksphoto.jpg#file, Peppermint and other candy sticks File:Dscn0452.jpg#file, A lollipop File:Jawbreaker_plate.jpg#file, A plate of

gobstopper A gobstopper, also known as a jawbreaker in Canada and the United States, is a type of hard candy, boiled sweet. It is usually round, and usually ranges from across; though gobstoppers billed as having a diameter as large as have been marketed ...

s in various sizes File:Bit-o-Honey_3.jpg#file, Bit-o-Honey File:Gummy_bears.jpg#file,

Gummy bears Gummy bears (German: ''Gummibär'') are small, fruit gum candies, similar to a jelly baby in some English-speaking countries. The candy is roughly long and shaped in the form of a bear. The gummy bear is one of many gummies, popular gelat ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bulk Confectionery Candy Confectionery

History

Sweden

United States

Gallery

See also

References