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The Hershey Company
The story of Hershey’s Swoops is a tale of a candy that couldn’t find its place in the world.
In 2003, someone at Hershey’s had a great idea on paper. What if chocolate could be like potato chips in the shape of a Pringle? Not chocolate-covered chips, but actual chocolate shaped like chips that you could mindlessly munch.
The concept was unique. Swoops were Pringle-shaped chocolates that launched in 2003. The thinly sliced candies were curved and designed to offer — in Hershey’s words — an “indulgent, mouth-melting experience”. The chip conformed to the roof of the mouth for a slow, chocolate-melt experience, creating an entirely new way to enjoy chocolate.
The product design was as innovative as the chocolate itself. A Swoops box contained three separate plastic cups with peel-back, foil lids. Each cup held six curved chocolate slices, sealed fresh with metallic foil. It was like peeling back a yogurt container.
The packaging felt futuristic. Opening a cup of Swoops was an experience. The satisfying peel of foil. The perfect arrangement of chocolate chips inside. The snack was wrapped up in a brown cardboard box that looked like nothing in the candy market.
The marketing campaign was unforgettable. The playful ads featured people holding the chocolates and dancing to a jingle that swapped the “Swoops” for the “Whoomp” in Tag Team’s hit “Whoomp! (There It Is)”. The commercials were catchy and fun.
If you lived through 2003 and 2004, that jingle probably still gets stuck in your head. “Swoops! There it is!”
The campaign suggested that Swoops were a new way to snack, socialize, and satisfy your chocolate cravings. The campaign painted a picture of young, hip consumers choosing Swoops over everything else. The perfect sociable snack.
According to Wikipedia, Swoops were produced in the following flavors: Hershey’s Milk Chocolate, Reese’s Peanut Butter, Almond Joy, York Peppermint Pattie, White Chocolate Reeses, and Toffee and Almond. Beloved Hershey’s brands converted into a chip format.
But they didn’t stop there. Limited edition varieties included White Chocolate Peppermint (available around Christmas), Special Dark with Almonds, and Strawberries & Creme. Hershey also offered Swoops in a festive peppermint flavor during the 2004 holiday season.
The variety was impressive.
By April 2004, just one year after launch, troubling data emerged. According to a market research study of April 2004, only 14% of the customers knew Swoops. Despite all the marketing dollars, fewer than one in seven consumers even knew the product existed.
This was a devastating blow for a company like Hershey’s. When you’re spending serious money on television commercials and national advertising campaigns, 14% awareness is a red flag.
Also, the value proposition began to fall apart. Each 3.78 oz. box of Hershey’s Swoops retailed for $1.79. The carton opened to reveal three individually sealed cups (1.26 oz. each), with each cup containing six slices of chocolate.
Do the math, and for most, you just weren’t getting your money’s worth. You could buy three chocolate bars for about the same price, enjoy more chocolate, and throw out less packaging. One package of Swoops, containing 18 pieces, was priced higher than three Hershey’s chocolate bars. Which together contained more chocolate than Swoops.
Consumers weren’t stupid.
By 2005 and 2006, the writing was on the wall. When you can’t sell chocolate to a country full of sugar addicts, you know you have a problem, as Fast Company later noted about the product failure.
Sales continued to disappoint. The novelty factor that had initially attracted some consumers wore off quickly.
Swoops were discontinued by Hershey in August of 2006, ending the product’s three-year run. Unfortunately, that success never came, and Hershey’s Swoops were gone only three years after their debut.
The discontinuation was quiet, without explanation.
The chip format experiment was over.
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