Key takeaways:
- Gingerbread leads the flavor pack in 2025, joined by bold sweet-savory mashups and hybrid desserts built for social media buzz.
- Functional benefits and plant-based indulgence are now core to festive bakery and snack ranges, not niche add-ons.
- Value-led formats under £5/$5 and private-label assortments are set to dominate Christmas baskets alongside premium showpieces.
Tight household budgets haven’t dampened the holiday spirit; in fact, global holiday food sales are on track for another bumper year. In the UK, Circana reports that shoppers spent £4.1 billion on seasonal food and drink in 2024 - up 8% year-on-year – with expectations of another rise this year. Across the pond, NielsenIQ estimates holiday food sales reached $30 billion in the US in 2024, driven by bakeries, confectionery and festive drinks. Kantar confirms that shoppers are increasingly swapping pricey gifts for edible experiences.
The standout flavor trend this year is the sweet-and-savory mashup. From miso caramel brownies and chili-laced chocolate to fig & blue cheese tarts and maple bacon cookies, brands are leaning into flavor surprises. Gingerbread remains evergreen: Mintel reports autumn/winter gingerbread NPD has grown at double-digit rates for three consecutive years – a trend that seems unstoppable.
Fun, retro bakes are also making a comeback. Tesco ramps up the festive visuals with chocolate salted caramel wreath cake, snowflake berry panna cotta and star-shaped salted banoffee sponge. McVitie’s bets on heritage with Victoria and Family Circle assortments while adding playful formats like Jaffa Pole and Penguin Selection Box. Meanwhile, in the US, Walmart’s ‘Holiday Magic’ desserts lean nostalgic with red velvet and pecan pie, and Target revives best-selling cookie tins and peppermint bark assortments. YouGov finds that 72% of UK consumers crave traditional festive flavors, yet 47% also want something novel to talk about.
The 2025 brief: Indulgence, health, value
Indulgence is evolving to include a health-conscious edge. M&S’s Brain Food range, packed with omega-3, iron, and B12, is part of the growing wave of functional festive offerings. Euromonitor data shows 42% of consumers globally now consider functional claims when buying sweet treats, and 28% are willing to pay more for them.
Vegan offerings push beyond niche and into festive staples. Cake or Death’s all-vegan range – complete with a showstopping 1.4kg Biscoff brownie Yule log – is part of the mainstream. NielsenIQ reports 14% growth in plant-based baked goods in the UK in 2024, and SPINS notes a 9% increase in US plant-based desserts. Kroger has expanded its Simple Truth plant-based holiday options, and Nestlé Toll House refreshed its vegan cookie dough for the season. According to Innova Market Insights, consumers increasingly expect plant-based products to deliver the same indulgence and satisfaction as traditional options, with no sense of compromise.
Social media continues to write the rulebook for festive NPD. One in three UK consumers under 35 discovers holiday treats via TikTok and Instagram, says Kantar. That explains why Instagrammable formats dominate: glittery brownies, interactive advent calendars and puzzles built into packaging. Target’s social-savvy ‘TikTok-famous’ peppermint mocha cookie sandwiches are a prime US example.
Still, value matters. IGD data shows 61% of UK consumers plan to ‘treat themselves’ at Christmas but will ‘buy smarter’. That’s why brands are leaning into price points under £5 or $5. Stockley’s chocolate slab (150 g) at £5.99-£6.99, and McVitie’s Family Circle are smart low-cost indulgences. In the US, Hershey’s Kisses assortments and Mars’ M&M seasonal bags remain staple sub-$5 basket drivers.
Even ingredient innovation is heating up behind the scenes. Rabobank forecasts that hybrid dairy alternatives could account for 10% of the global milk market by 2030, with confectionery as a fast-in innovation testing ground. US startups are piloting collagen-infused cookies and immunity-boosting cocoa bombs in limited runs this season.
Retail competition is intense on both sides. UK retailers – Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Aldi, Lidl – are leaning into premium, affordable private-label seasonal ranges; NIQ data shows private-label bakery captured 41% of UK Christmas cake/dessert sales in 2024, up from 38%. In the US, Walmart’s Great Value holiday range jumped 11% in volume sales last year. Branded giants like Cadbury, Hershey, Mars, and Nestlé counter with bold NPD to stay relevant.
Here are six standout Christmas 2025 launches to watch.
Flipping the script with penguin power
pladis puts playful family gifting front and center with the first-ever McVitie’s Penguin Selection Box. Priced at £2.50 and rolling into Tesco, Asda and B&M from September, the colorful cardboard pack flips the usual chocolate-bar assortment on its head with six chocolate-biscuit treats: two Penguin Milk Chocolate Original bars, one Penguin Mint, one Penguin Orange, plus Penguin & Friends Cocoa & Orange Biscuits and Penguin & Friends Cocoa Biscuits.
The box doubles as entertainment – iconic Penguin jokes, a maze and a word search - making it a low-cost gift with built-in dwell time. It leans on a very large base: Penguin is bought by one in four UK households and is worth £37.6m RSV, growing at +20% year-on-year.
“Nostalgia and novelty are at the heart of Christmas gifting, and McVitie’s Penguin is a brand that resonates across generations,” says Emma Johnson, seasonal brand manager, pladis UK&I. “This selection box is not only a treat, but an experience – perfect for family shoppers seeking something a little different from the standard chocolate bar packs. Penguins are a beloved symbol of winter wonder, making McVitie’s Penguin the perfect brand to embrace the snowy season and spread festive cheer.”
pladis is also supersizing a seasonal hit with Flipz Gingerbread Pretzels in a larger 150g sharing bag (RRP £2.25), landing in Coop, Iceland, One Stop, Poundland and Home Bargains across the UK. The sweet-salty-crunchy profile speaks to evening ‘treat and share’ missions, while gingerbread remains one of the fastest-growing seasonal flavors, with double-digit growth in AW launches. Flipz itself is worth £17.6m RSV and growing +24.1% YoY.
Rounding out the line are McVitie’s Gingerbread Flavor Milk Chocolate Digestives (back with extra-chocolatey appeal), McVitie’s White Digestives in festive dress, the premium McVitie’s Victoria and Victoria Chocolate Creations assortments, McVitie’s Family Circle for value-led gatherings, and interactive gifting formats like McVitie’s Jaffa Tree and Jaffa Pole (the latter with a ‘Santa Stop Here’ craft activity).
Character chocolate
Norwich-based Gnaw wants more theater under the tree and backs it with flavor that matches the costumes. Its Ginger Dudes, Cool-Mint Penguins and Peanut & Popcorn Nutcracker Soldiers come as a 6×30g bundle at £12 RRP; the Podgy Christmas Puds arrive as an 8×14g pack at £11.
The positioning is unapologetically flavor-first: “Ginger Dudes should taste of gingerbread, Christmas Puds should conjure up happy family memories of a fruity, lightly spiced dessert whilst Toy Nutcracker Soldiers should shout peanuts & popcorn,” says spokesperson Josh Patterson. “As for the Cool-Mint Penguins well it would be rude to look beyond peppermint.”
Using smooth Colombian chocolate as the canvas, Gnaw also adds bakery-inspired notes with Apple Strudel and A Cherry Almond Tart elsewhere in its festive collection. These are premium stocking stuffers with clear flavor signposting and playful shapes, designed to attract both gift buyers and self-gift snackers. Available online.
The advent calendar that sells out
Walker’s brings back its all-butter Advent Calendar – 24 windows, each with a festive shape – after back-to-back sell-outs. The 2025 edition hits October 1 with an RRP of £20 at Ocado, Selfridges and online, dressed in the brand’s tartan and illustrated with busy elves in Santa’s workshop.
“We are always amazed by how quickly they sell out every year,” says commercial director Bryony Walker. “Christmas time is such an exciting and special time of year and we are thrilled that our advent calendar is here to bring even more delight and magic to the festive season.”
The calendar sits within a broader Walker’s festive range of tins and gifting formats that trade heavily on heritage and quality; the company’s Royal Warrant underscores those credentials. For retailers, the SKU plays double duty: a premium-looking gift at a mid-tier price, and a daily ritual that builds brand habit through December.
Hand-decorated tree slab
Lancashire stalwart Stockley’s – long known for handcrafted confectionery like sherbet-filled liquorice Flyers – steps from behind the curtain with a branded chocolate debut: a hand-decorated festive tree slab at 150g, RSP £5.99-£6.99.
It’s a concise proof-of-capability move from a producer that has worked with Belgian, milk, dark, white and increasingly in-vogue blonde chocolates on behalf of clients and now wants its own name on shelf.
“We felt 2025 was the moment to also retail under our proud Stockley’s name,” says spokesperson Andy Valentine. Positioning is mid-market gifting: generous enough to share, distinctive enough to wrap and priced to hit the ‘smart treat’ zone. Availability online, with independent distribution expected to follow across the UK.
Vegan showstopper
Exeter’s Cake or Death continues to prove that vegan can be decadent. The centerpiece is a 1.4kg Brownie Yule Log at £42 – rich, fudgy brownie rolled with Biscoff spread and crumb, covered in smooth chocolate ganache, dusted with sprinkles and edible glitter, and recommended with an icing-sugar ‘snow’ finish at serve. It’s designed to feed at least 12, to hold its shape for the reveal and to photograph beautifully.
Supporting gifts hit multiple price points: a Merry Christmas Brownie Message Slab at £26 (gluten-free for wider shareability), a Limited Edition Selection Box at £23 with five distinct bakes (Black Forest Cake Pop; chewy Jaffa-Stuffed Cookie with vanilla cake and marmalade; Cinnamon Cookie; Hot Chocolate Brownie topped with ganache and mini marshmallows; Mince Pie Flapjack with spiced fruit), Chocolate Cake Truffles from £5 (bags of three or six) and Gingerbread People at £5 with unique designs.
Nationwide delivery runs November 18-December 23, boxed in the brand’s signature pink leopard-print packaging. Products keep a week chilled or a month frozen, making them practical for hosting calendars.
Popcorn-meets-chocolate
Popcorn Kitchen leans into the natural chemistry between crunchy popcorn and creamy chocolate with a three-strong 100g bar line: White Chocolate Raspberry, Dark Chocolate Orange and Salted Caramel Milk Chocolate Popcorn. Each is pitched as a ‘share or not’ conundrum – affordable gifts that signal festivity through familiar flavor pairings and textural pop.
The bars extend the brand’s cult Salted Caramel Popcorn Chocolate and arrive as the company adds senior firepower: Vanessa Andrews (ex-Mars, Danone, pladis) joins as marketing director to steer new on-the-go and on-trade efforts. Availability online with seasonal off-shelf displays encouraged for impulse uplift.
Lakrids by Bülow
Denmark-based Lakrids by Bülow has launched its 2025 Winter Collection in the US, featuring gluten- and gelatin-free gourmet licorice in flavors like Classic Caramel and Double Chocolate (4.41 oz for $14.99, 10.4 oz for $24.99), plus luxury advent calendars priced at $69.99.
