Uploaded March 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
In the mid-2000s, American chocolate maker Hershey went head to head with its rival Mars by introducing Kissables, its own version of candy-coated bite-sized chocolates. But Kissables were short lived, disappearing from store shelves after just four years. So what went wrong with Kissables?
Sources:
“Hershey’s New Hero,” Bernard Pacyniak, Candy Industry, Jun 2001
“Hershey Ups Kisses Budget,” Stephanie Thompson, Advertising Age, May 19, 2003
“Hershey: Candy is Dandy, But…,” Amy Barrett, BusinessWeek, Sep 29, 2003
“Hershey,” Lisa Gibbs, CNN Money, Jul 1, 2004
“Kisses Attempts to Smother M&M’s,” Stephanie Thompson, Advertising Age, Aug 1, 2005
“Hershey Candy is Dandy, But Shelf Space is Thicker,” Mike Beirne, Brandweek, Oct 3, 2005
“Sales are Sweet,” Tom Dochat, The Patriot-News, Oct 21, 2005
“Introducing Incred-Able ... Munch-Able ... Hershey's Kissables,” Hershey Press Release, Nov 17, 2005
“Hershey Unveils Kissables,” The Patriot-News, Nov 18, 2005
“Crunchy Kisses,” The Courier, Jan 16, 2006
“Candy is Dandy,” Stuart Elliott, The New York Times, Jan 30, 2006
“Hershey’s Kissables Aren’t Just for Eating,” Nicki Lefever, York Daily Record, Feb 8, 2006
“Pressure’s On Buck to Keep Hershey Sweet,” Stephanie Thompson, Advertising Age, Feb 13, 2006
“Colorful Coating Gives Hershey’s Kissables Crunch,” Bonnie Tandy Leblang and Carolyn Wyman, The Atlanta Constitution, Mar 18, 2006
“Hershey Co. CEO Touts Growth,” The Patriot-News, Tom Dochat, Apr 19, 2006
“Hershey 2Q Profits Up 6 Percent,” The Desert Sun, Jul 21, 2006
“Hershey Hurt by Sales Slide but Sticks to In-Store Tack,” Stephanie Thompson, Advertising Age, Oct 23, 2006
“Kissables (Reformulated), Candy Blog, Cybele May, Aug 7, 2008
“Chocoholics Sour in New Hershey’s Formula,” Laura T. Coffey, Today, Sep 19, 2008
“Candy Conflict,” Marc Levy, Ventura County Star, Oct 12, 2008
“Happiness is a Mouthful of HERSHEY-ETS,” Hershey Community Archives, Nov 20, 2013
In the mid-2000s, American chocolate maker Hershey went head to head with its rival Mars by introducing Kissables, its own version of candy-coated bite-sized chocolates. But Kissables were short lived, disappearing from store shelves after just four years. So what went wrong with Kissables?
Sources:
“Hershey’s New Hero,” Bernard Pacyniak, Candy Industry, Jun 2001
“Hershey Ups Kisses Budget,” Stephanie Thompson, Advertising Age, May 19, 2003
“Hershey: Candy is Dandy, But…,” Amy Barrett, BusinessWeek, Sep 29, 2003
“Hershey,” Lisa Gibbs, CNN Money, Jul 1, 2004
“Kisses Attempts to Smother M&M’s,” Stephanie Thompson, Advertising Age, Aug 1, 2005
“Hershey Candy is Dandy, But Shelf Space is Thicker,” Mike Beirne, Brandweek, Oct 3, 2005
“Sales are Sweet,” Tom Dochat, The Patriot-News, Oct 21, 2005
“Introducing Incred-Able ... Munch-Able ... Hershey's Kissables,” Hershey Press Release, Nov 17, 2005
“Hershey Unveils Kissables,” The Patriot-News, Nov 18, 2005
“Crunchy Kisses,” The Courier, Jan 16, 2006
“Candy is Dandy,” Stuart Elliott, The New York Times, Jan 30, 2006
“Hershey’s Kissables Aren’t Just for Eating,” Nicki Lefever, York Daily Record, Feb 8, 2006
“Pressure’s On Buck to Keep Hershey Sweet,” Stephanie Thompson, Advertising Age, Feb 13, 2006
“Colorful Coating Gives Hershey’s Kissables Crunch,” Bonnie Tandy Leblang and Carolyn Wyman, The Atlanta Constitution, Mar 18, 2006
“Hershey Co. CEO Touts Growth,” The Patriot-News, Tom Dochat, Apr 19, 2006
“Hershey 2Q Profits Up 6 Percent,” The Desert Sun, Jul 21, 2006
“Hershey Hurt by Sales Slide but Sticks to In-Store Tack,” Stephanie Thompson, Advertising Age, Oct 23, 2006
“Kissables (Reformulated), Candy Blog, Cybele May, Aug 7, 2008
“Chocoholics Sour in New Hershey’s Formula,” Laura T. Coffey, Today, Sep 19, 2008
“Candy Conflict,” Marc Levy, Ventura County Star, Oct 12, 2008
“Happiness is a Mouthful of HERSHEY-ETS,” Hershey Community Archives, Nov 20, 2013
