Market positioning

According to the Government of Canada's 2021 Market Trends Report, the COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly transformed Canadians' eating habits. In 2020, as Canadians spent more time at home and ate out less often, food preparation became a popular family activity. This new dynamic led to an 8.9% year-over-year growth in bakery sales. Frozen bakery products, in particular, experienced significant growth of 14.3%, driven by the growing popularity of convenient, ready-to-bake packaging.

In 2023, the Canadian frozen bakery market continued to grow, reaching a value of USD 4.2 billion. This expansion is fueled by the growing demand for convenient, healthy, and ready-to-bake food options. Canadian consumers, faced with increasingly busy lifestyles, are favoring products that offer convenience and time savings without compromising quality. This trend is reflected in the growing popularity of frozen baked goods, including bread, pastries, pastries, and savory snacks. Manufacturers are responding to this demand by offering products with healthier ingredients, clearer labels, and a variety of flavors inspired by global culinary trends.

In recent years, there has been a renewed craze for the scone, which seems to fit into these categories of new launches in Canada. In 2019, Voir magazine wrote: "The sacrosanct French croissant could well be dethroned by the scone, which comes straight from the British tradition, and is making a name for itself on shelves. The buttered roll is still making waves..." It is a gourmet and regressive product (establishing an emotional connection with the potential buyer), offering consumers a moment of indulgence and pleasure. This could be the reason for the scone's increased presence in bakeries.

While we're seeing a general increase in health and wellness products and other lighter recipes, we're also seeing a consumer need for simpler eating, with less processed, local, and high-quality products. In this sense, the traditional scone recipe not only meets consumers' need for indulgence and comfort, but also for a short and understandable list of local ingredients. In grocery stores, with its prominent position among frozen baked goods, the scone appears to be an excellent candidate for offering consumers a gourmet experience, aligned with the values ​​of a return to simplicity.