We sat down with company leaders sculpting new products and market strategies for three of the Italian confectioner’s iconic names: Ferrero Rocher, Kinder and Tic Tac. The Sweets and Snacks Expo, sponsored by the National Confectioners Association, packed thousands of brands and hundreds of product launches into three days in Chicago. Not to be outdone by newcomers or fellow established confectioners, Ferrero highlighted two major product innovations and one highly anticipated US launch in an interview with ConfectioneryNews.

Ferrero entered the US market in 1969 with Tic Tac, waiting until the 1980s to debut its line of hazelnut pralines known as Ferrero Rocher. As a chocolate brand, Ferrero has long focused on its signature product, Shalini Stansberry, marketing director for Ferrero’s premium chocolate, told ConfectioneryNews, introducing various pack types and sizes. These decisions have helped make it the number-three brand at Valentine’s Day, she said, but “it’s a lot of one type of thing.”