Hostess Hopes To Tap Into Texture Preferences With Candy Bar-Inspired Treats

Hostess as a brand is practically synonymous with snacking, having introduced iconic snack favorites such as Cupcakes, DingDongs, and Twinkies to generations of consumers. Hostess Cupcakes, in fact, have now been sold for over 100 years.

This generational aspect matters quite a bit, as food and marketing research companies have observed that nostalgia is an important element in our snacking choices (via Supermarket Perimeter). Of course, consumers also appreciate new products that offer innovative twists on familiar styles and flavors. That's why Hostess isn't resting on its laurels, and in fact has just announced a new candy-bar style snack treat, one that combines plenty of familiar chocolate and caramel flavors, but with several new twists.

Hostess' new snack bar boasts a rich variety of layers, for example, with multiple textures, as well as multiple flavors, evident in each bite. The multiple textures are a key design component that may appeal to younger consumers. Texture, after all, was revealed in a 2019 research study to be more important than the ingredients themselves to a majority of snack consumers 35 years old and younger.

Hostess' new Kazbar is often creamy, chewy, and crunchy, all in the same bite. That's because the snack bar features layers of chocolate, creme, and caramel, although the exact blend of ingredients will depend on flavor choice. The product is available in two flavors, Chocolate Caramel and Triple Chocolate, the snack giant recently announced. The latter flavor, for example, not only showcases chocolate cake and chocolate fudge, but chocolate drizzles and crunches as added textural elements.

Hostess had promised innovation in various snacking categories at a consumer conference last fall, and the new Kazbar certainly qualifies on that count. "It really brings something that is more like what a consumer might experience in ice cream or maybe in candy, and it takes inspiration from those other categories," Tina Lambert, a vice president at Hostess Brands, told Food Dive.

The Kazbars are expected to appeal to kids as an after-school snack, as well as to adults as a break option at home or work, Food Dive reports. The new multiply textured treats are available in two sizes and will be sold at retail outlets across the U.S. starting in mid-March, per Hostess.