Hershey's CMO Stacy Taffet details a new occasion-led approach after 67% of parents bought Halloween candy in summer. The strategy includes lower-priced formats and AI tools to reverse last year's disappointing sales.
Stacy Taffet, Hershey's chief growth and marketing officer, is already thinking about Halloween. The Reese's and Jolly Rancher parent has carved the holiday into distinct micro-seasons that start months before October 31, Taffet told CMO Insider.
A Morning Consult survey commissioned by Hershey in July found 67% of US parents bought Halloween candy or snacks during the summer in recent years. Almost half of parents surveyed were familiar with the term "Summerween."
Taffet said Hershey shifted from treating Halloween as one long extended season to a more occasion-led approach, with different brands and products promoted at different points. Summer is about cueing the season with Reese's assorted Halloween shapes and marketing that centers on rituals like pumpkin carving and fall lattes.
"We'll use more parts of the portfolio that are either for individual consumption or for sharing in small groups as a way to say, 'Let's get excited, the season's coming,'" Taffet said.
As fall approaches, Hershey plans to lean into the trunk-or-treating trend, where families gather in parking lots for children to collect candy from car trunks. When October nears, activity will ramp up, including a partnership with Amazon to deliver ready-to-go large trick-or-treat bowls and a bigger push for non-chocolate brands such as Pirate's Booty salty snacks.
Halloween is a high-stakes moment for Hershey. Last year, CEO Kirk Tanner said Halloween sales had been disappointing, citing warmer weather among other factors. Retailers were discounting candy at the time, following price hikes driven by higher cocoa costs. Tanner said on last October's earnings call that there were opportunities to "go to school" on consumer insights to improve for 2026, such as evaluating new pack types, price points, and the product mix.
Behind the scenes, Taffet, who joined the company in April 2025, has been reconfiguring her department. "The biggest thing I've been focused on is really breaking down functional silos," so the company can react faster to consumer trends, Taffet said. Within the growth office, the marketing, insights, innovation, and research and development teams now function together.
Hershey recently introduced a new marketing mix model enabled by AI. Taffet said AI and automation tools are making it easier for Hershey to flag celebrities and influencers already talking about its brands and reach out about potential partnerships. It has also deployed AI tools to its retail sales force to strengthen merchandising. "Our retail team will go to a store manager and, using an augmented reality tool and analytics powered by AI, say, 'If you put the KitKat display over here by the checkout, your sales are going to go up by X%,'" Taffet said.
Taffet said Hershey is also aware that many people are financially stretched, and is introducing new product formats at lower prices. "If they only have $20 to spend on getting their kid excited about Halloween, it could be a costume, it could be decorations, it could be Reese's Shapes, and we want to make sure that we're top of mind to delight people in that season," she said.
The strategy comes as Hershey (HSY) looks to recover from a disappointing 2025 season. The company's stock page shows a mixed Alpha Score of 36 out of 100, reflecting the challenges ahead. Whether the micro-season approach and lower price points can reverse the trend will be tested in the coming months.
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