Seasonal chocolates remained a top shot for Japanese chocolate market over the last five years: Bonafide Research

With the gift-giving traditions surrounding chocolate confectionery so deeply ingrained, manufacturers have found it easy to market their high-end luxurious chocolate products to Japanese consumers. More and more consumers are taking chocolate as a luxury, rather than as food. Seasonal chocolates, which are usually launched around some holidays or occasions in Japan, possess a high-end gift like characteristic. Japanese consumers buy these products at a much higher price to reciprocate to gifts on occasions such as Valentine's Day and White Day. The confectionery market of Japan can be majorly divided into three sectors viz. sugar confectionery, chocolate confectionery, gum, and others. Chocolate is the most popular confectionery sector in Japan, followed closely by sugar confectionery whereas gum remains a small market. Japan consumes the most chocolate in the Asia-Pacific region and has a per capita consumption of above 2 kg per person per annum.