The CPG baked goods business is getting bigger…kind of. Cupcake bakery chain Sprinkles (Booth #4902) officially debuted Sprinkles CPG, a new branch of the brick and mortar bakeries, franchise network and “cupcake ATM” business, aimed at creating all types of sweet treats. “[Think] the ice cream category, the cookie category, the baking set – really any bakery, chocolatey, decadent item we feel like we could be,” said Ashley Rogers, president and CEO of Sprinkles CPG. The new venture debuted with a four SKU line of chocolate bars – each flavored to replicate one of the brand’s best selling cupcakes – in addition to two small, “snackable” chocolates. The full sized bars come in Red Velvet, Salted Caramel, Sprinkle White Chocolate and Milk Chocolate and the minis are sold in Red Velvet and Salted Caramel. “Sprinkles cupcakes has built this amazing brand over the last 20 years with bakeries across the country,” said Rogers. “We thought it was a next natural step to create a product that could also be distributed in retailers nationwide underneath the Sprinkles name. The chocolate piece of it was just a natural, indulgent step for us.” Utilizing its 24 store brick-and-mortar cupcake shop footprint, the line will first roll out on home turf before heading into one of “the largest national retailers,” next month, according to Rogers. The team is also working out a plan to get the chocolates into Sprinkles’ 50 cupcake ATMs (think: fancy vending machines). Talk about a diverse channel strategy. And that's not all. Over the next year the products will roll out to retailers spanning mass, conventional, natural, drug and club. Those partnerships are also being targeted on a national scale, Sprinkles CMO Michelle Wong emphasized. So as we head into Expo West – what will the presence of baked goods be like this year? Right around Expo West 2023, Sprinkles’ East Coast competitor Magnolia Bakery dipped its toes into the consumer packaged goods space with the launch of a cookie line inspired by (you guessed it) the bakery’s most iconic product: Banana Pudding. The line launched into stores like The Fresh Market and Harris Teeter with Classic Vanilla, Confetti and Chocolate Chunk flavors. While cookies might be closer to Magnolia’s core offerings, Rogers and Wong believe the Sprinkles brand is flexible enough to make a longer leap into shelf-stable confections. “What has helped us is that we’ve really built a lifestyle brand [with Sprinkles] and our consumer sees us that way,” said Wong, Read the full story for more details about Sprinkles CPG’s expansion plans on Nosh. | 
