Haribo Brand Guide: Kids and Grown-Ups Love It So!

I used to love going on a family holiday in the UK. My mum and dad would pack up the car while we all tumbled around the house arguing about who was going to see the sea first and who was going to sit next to who on the journey.

Now I’m sure there were a couple of things going through my dad’s mind at this point:

1. How am I going to get all this stuff in the car? We’re going for a week, not a month.
2. How am I going to stop these lot from arguing all the way there?

He went for the classic trick of sweets, as all parents do! And he always bought Haribo. There is no happy ending to this story. He would eat most of them, and we would all argue about it.

But the slogan rings true, kids and grown-ups love it so, the happy world of Haribo! And that’s why Haribo has some of the best-selling sweets in the UK.

In this article, we’re going to through the brand’s history, what the brand stands for and what their best products are. We’re going to talk about why you should stock Haribo.

All of a sudden I’m feeling like a holiday.

Who Is Haribo?

In basic ‘business terms’ Haribo is a German confectionery founded by Hans Riegl Sr in Kessenich, Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia. There’s no imaginative tale around the origin of the name; it comes from taking letters from Hans Riegl Bonn. 

He invented gummy candy in 1922 in the form of the ‘Gummibärchen’ or ‘gummy bear’ as we know them in the UK – plus many other fantastic creations that we’ll get to later!

Who Is Hans Riegl?

Hans Riegl Sr was born in Friesdorf near Bonn in 1893, he trained as a confectioner and became a partner of the Heinen & Riegel company. 

He launched Haribo on the 13th of December 1920 in a small kitchen with a sack of sugar, a marble slab, a stool, a stove, a copper pot and a rolling pin. 

His wife Gertrude became his first employee in 1921, and the company grew in popularity in the coming years.

What Does the Haribo Brand Stand For?

Every big brand has a set of core values that flow through the company and make them so attractive; Haribo is friendly, fun and joyful. Here are some of their core values:

Family

Haribo had always managed to stay true to its roots, as Hans Riegl Sr passed the company onto his sons when he died. And although the group has such a vast array of employees, they continue to promote family values.

Their extraordinary success comes from team spirit, working as a close-knit family. The company entrust people with responsibility and freedom so that they can always make the best decisions. 

This statement echoes in their products and in the people that buy their products, it’s all about sharing something you love with your family.

Variety

Haribo has a vast assortment of sweets – some which we’ve never heard of in the UK – which means they’re always innovating and pushing themselves to create something new. 

This level of variety means they can serve different customers in different locations without fear. You never walk into a shop and see one type of Haribo sweets, do you?

Quality

Ever got a bad Haribo bag? Didn’t think so. Haribo has always managed to uphold excellent standards which are phenomenal, considering they operate in so many countries; many businesses would find it difficult to maintain that quality control. 

Everything from appearance, taste, production levels and product development are consistent, so you always know you’re getting a quality product. It’s easy to say something is quality; getting people to believe it is different and comes with practice.

Haribo Worldwide

Haribo’s success wasn’t limited to the German market, and they now sell sweets in over 100 countries worldwide and produce them in 16 locations in ten countries, employing over 7,000 people. The company progressed from a small enterprise to a global market leader, no wonder Haribos are on everyone’s shelves.

3 Reasons Why Haribo Is So Successful

People buy sweets; they eat sweets. Simple, isn’t it? Not exactly. What made my dad always buy Haribo? We still have our reasons for purchasing goods that go beyond their functional purpose – this is where the makeup of the brand gets sewn into our brain. For us, there’s one thing that Haribo stands for, which is why my dad always bought them.

1. Kids and Grown-Ups Love It So…

Haribo has always been a product that kids and adults can enjoy together, and the company has used the slogan as a driver for its marketing activities since the 60s. 

You’ll always see kids and adults eating sweets in any advert, and Haribo even went as far as giving adults kids voices in the hilarious TV ads we see today. 

2. Location, Location, Location

Haribo is conscious of where its customers live and what their sweet preferences are, so they tailor the sweets to different countries. 

For example, Orangina Haribo sweets are available in France but not the UK, and Scandinavian countries are more fond of liquorice varieties than other countries.

3. Dependable and Innovative Products

Knowing what people like enables Haribo to create it for them, so they have a blend of products they know they can depend on such as the Supermix and more innovative short-term themed products such as the Scaremix.

In Germany, they have over 200 products of various types and sizes, but the Gold Bear will always be the flagship product that holds everything together. It took 85 years to add one new flavour to the Gold Bear range, showing careful innovation prevails (apple, in case you’re wondering!).

Which Haribo Products Should You Buy?

Haribo splits into two product categories, seasonal and classics. Here are some of our best-selling products and some seasonal additions that always go down a treat!

1. For Halloween Sharing – Haribo Tangfastricks and Scaremix

Give the kids (and parents) something to get excited and deceived by this Halloween with a twist on two popular Haribo products.

Scaremix is a remix of Haribo Starmix, switching up different flavours to reveal ghoulish treats. TangfasTricks are where is gets ‘tricky’, with a mixture of super sour and spicy sweets that’ll send anyone’s tongue into a meltdown.

Whether your customers are pranksters or plain old sweet lovers, both of these Haribo bags have you covered.

Scaremix Contents:

• Toffee apple monster’s eyeball.
• Blackcurrant and bubblegum vampire hearts.
• Blood orange witches brew.
• Blackcurrant and blueberry, blood orange and apple, and apple and blackcurrant Dracula rings.
• Blood Orange, lime, and cherry boo bears.

TangfasTricks Contents:

• Fizzy cola bottles (super sour or spicy)
• Fizzy crocodiles (super sour or spicy)
• Fizzy dummies (super sour or spicy)
• Fizzy cherries (super sour or spicy)

2. For Christmas – Haribo Advent Calendar and Selection Boxes

Christmas is coming up, so it’s important to stock up on the latest Haribo goodies that’ll give your customers something different to look forward to – people are always looking for novelty, and Haribo is certain to offer that in 2020.

Haribo advent calendars will help your customers count down to Christmas without the traditional chocolate calendar, a trend we’ve been seeing for a few years now.

Haribo also make selection boxes, which come in handy for people who don’t like chocolate or have allergies to dairy. Give your customers something different this Christmas with our Christmas Haribo products.

Haribo Advent Calendar Contents:

• 15 mini packs in 7 varieties
• 2 Maom Bloxx and 2 Pinballs
• 2 happy smiles
• 3 special sweets

Haribo Selection Box Contents:

• 7 mini packs containing Haribo’s most popular sweets

Other Christmas Products:

• Haribo Starmixmas
• Haribo Christmas Hamper
• Haribo Puck Penguin
• Haribo Giant Trees

3. For the Bargain Hunters – Haribo 50p Favourites

Who doesn’t love a bargain? Whether you’re setting out on the open road or filling Christmas stockings, our 50p range are perfect for parents looking to stock up or kids who want to spend their 50p pocket money.

Plus, people tend to buy more when they know they’re getting a good deal, so you can maximise your profits and shift more stock. Here are some of our top picks, but you can also check out the full 50p range:

• Haribo Yellow Bellies
• Haribo Fruity Frogs
• Haribo Giant Strawbs

4. The Classics – Haribo Gold Bears, Supermix and Starmix

Whatever the occasion, you can’t go wrong with the Haribo classics. There’s something in there for everyone, and they’re the packs we’ve been munching on since we were little kids (and continue to munch on now!).

These packs are some of our best sellers, so you can’t go wrong having them on your shelves. While some products are a gamble, Gold Bears, Supermix and Starmix are sure to fly off your shelves.

Haribo Gold Bears Contents:

• Raspberry, orange, lemon, strawberry, and pineapple bears.

Haribo Starmix Contents:

• Gummy bears, rings, hearts, fried eggs and cola bottles.

Haribo Supermix Contents:

• Milk bottles, jelly men and foam sweets in various, shape, colours and flavours.

Stocking Up On Sweets?

If you’re stocking up on sweets, we have the perfect blog to help you decide what to buy. It’s called American vs European Confectionery: What Should You Stock? You’ll find some tasty accompaniments to your Haribo selection, so it’s well worth a read.

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