SkinnyDipped first came onto the scene in 2012 with its dark chocolate covered almonds, which Griffiths and her mom Val created in their home kitchen. Nearly 10 years later and with the launch of its peanut butter cups, chocolate bars, and baking bits line, the brand's mission has remained the same, which is to "create products that are absolutely delicious, that are lower in sugar, and don’t rely on the use of stevia and sugar alcohols," Griffith told FoodNavigator-USA.
While the company's original chocolate-covered nuts line of products doesn't include any sweeteners, its newest product launches contain trending sweetener allulose [which has 70% of the sweetness of sucrose but is metabolized differently and is not listed as added sugar on the Nutrition Facts panel].
"We really took a step back to look at the way the market was headed. There’s a whole segment of the population that doesn’t like to eat stevia and sugar alcohols," explained Griffith, who turned to allulose for its 0g of sugar nutritional profile and undetectable aftertaste.
Despite several challenges thrown at the brand during the COVID-19 global pandemic, Griffith shared that over the past 18 months the company has been hyper-focused on innovation, launching its peanut butter cups in milk chocolate and dark chocolate varieties as well was as its dark chocolate bars.
Expanding into the growing area of better-for-you confectionery has introduced SkinnyDipped to more consumers who want to indulge with less associated guilt, said Griffith, adding that unlike other leading chocolate brands, SkinnyDipped products contain 5g or less of sugar per serving.
"The salted caramel bar is our #1 SKU right now. That bar has a lot of excitement around it, and we’re seeing a lot of repeat purchase around those and great feedback from retailers," she said.
'Baking has transformed over the last few years'
Earlier this month, SkinnyDipped entered the baking category with its line of allulose-sweetened chocolate baking bits available in flat pillow packs and stand-up resealable pouches (for the alternate use of easy snacking).
According to SPINS US retail data, sales in the baking chocolate category were up +140% during the pandemic, with overall home baking products sales showing significant growth in 2021, and Griffith believes it will remain an area of solid growth in the years to come with the rise of simple baking recipes anyone in the household can make.
"I think baking has been transformed over the last few years. There are all these amazing five ingredient recipes that you can use. We felt that we could make a product that was every bit as good for baking as it was for snacking," she said.
SkinnyDipped launched its baking bits line on Amazon and at select Walmart stores.
"We wanted to be able to prove ourselves in a variety of channels, and that’s exactly what we’ve done because we really believe in accessibility of delicious and nutritious food," said Griffith.
Doubling the business
Looking ahead to the end of 2021, Griffith said that the company will come very close to doubling its business after spending the last 18 months focused on bringing its new product innovations to market.
"I think going into next year, everyone on the team is laser focused on continuing to grow our ACV on our coated nut line but really driving new distribution on those three new platforms knowing that all of our early data is indicating that those products are going to sell really, really well," added Griffith.
