Macarons are the new popular trend in confectionery world; Here’s why

Macarons: In the world of confectionery, macarons are emerging to be the next big thing! This has been determined in a report commissioned by luxury chocolate brand SMOOR. Over the last few years, there have been promising trends around this delicacy, and this has also been noticed in India, where increasing disposable income and growing availability of the product due to several distribution channels is likely to aid the further growth of the segment. The report exclusively accessed by Financial Express Online, called SMOOR Global Macarons Market Report, looked especially at North American, European and Asia Pacific regions.

To understand more about this, FE Online talked to Vimal Sharma, Founder-Director and CEO, SMOOR.

Macarons: Why are they becoming so popular?

Well, Sharma explains why macarons are all the rage right now. “A macaron or French macaroon is a sweet meringue-based confection. It is made using egg white, granulated sugar, almond powder or ground almond, icing sugar and food colour. What sets them apart is a unique chewy texture. They are small in size and are hence ideal as snacks. They are filled inside, usually with rich cream, homemade fruit jams or ganache. While the outside of the macarons are a little crisp, they are creamy in the centre,” he said.

“Macarons are increasingly popular and easier to find now. Macarons today are available in a range of flavours and fillings, appealing to a wide audience with their offering. It has been observed that the growth is majorly driven by factors such as increasing awareness about the products and services, availability of macarons in the convenience stores as well through online channels, the increasing number of brands store bakery and the growing use of macarons for the premium gift item at the institutional level,” he added.

The report noted that this segment is becoming popular due to several factors like increasing disposable income, an increase in the spends on premium bakery and pastry products, as well as a strong distribution channel. Apart from this, the rise in home-grown bakery industry over the past few years has also lent a helping hand to the segment. The fact that these treats are small in size, have different flavours and textures and beautiful colours just add to the appeal they hold.

Global trends around macarons

Talking a little about the trend that the report witnessed globally as well as in India, Sharma said, “According to the SMOOR Global Macarons Market Report, the global macarons market is expected to reach $1.10 billion by 2026 from $832.8 million in 2019, at a CAGR of 5.03% from 2021 to 2026.”

In the US and the North American region, an increasing number of people are deeming macarons as a gifting option.

The European region has the highest value sales as compared to other regions, as per the report, and it is expected to dominate the market at least till 2026. What adds to the segment in this region is the appeal that macarons hold for people of all ages, and this is especially true for France.

As far as India is concerned, Sharma said, “Growing population combined with increasing disposable income in developing countries like India is expected to top the growth rate of the macarons.”

While macarons have been witnessing an increased popularity, the global trends around vegetarianism and veganism have impacted the segment as well. This means that companies are looking at eggless variants of macarons, which typically make use of egg whites, to gain popularity among this potential consumer group.

Now coming to the best part – the flavours! To appeal to each market, there needs to be localisation of flavours to some extent, and this seems to have worked really well for macarons.

In the US, the following flavours have worked really well for macarons:

• Peanut Butter Jelly
• Strawberry Cheesecake & Candy Corn
• Salted Pretzel

Meanwhile, in Japan, macarons with matcha tea are one of the top selling flavours favourites and this is also true for India.

Future of the macaron segment?

The report has stated that the segment is expected to grow at 25% CAGR in India, led by more players offering macarons and even international players entering the market.

“Indians today are well travelled and continue to seek experiences. Consumers with hectic schedules tend to be more inclined towards confectionery products such as macarons, as they are tasty and consume less time. Macarons are one such experience they want to savour domestically.” Sharma said.

He further shared that SMOOR is about to launch an exclusive-store to retail range of macarons – TRUE MACARON – which would offer eggless macarons to cater to the large vegetarian population in the country.