Jamie Laing's Candy Kittens to acquire UK snack brand Graze

Jamie Laing's Candy Kittens will buy Graze from Unilever with support from Katjes International, a German candy firm.The contract is likely to go through in the first half of 2026, which would have a huge effect on the snack market in the UK. Unilever paid roughly £150 million buying Graze in 2019, but the company has problems earning money.Once sales decreased a lot, the brand never made any more money.The price is a much lower, at £35–36 million, according to most people.This is a substantial drop that indicates how hard things were for Graze when Unilever was in charge. Kittens is known for its colorful vegan candy and creative branding. The company feels that owning the confectionery will help it develop beyond candy and into the wider market for healthy snacking. Jamie Laing has declared in public that he has "always loved Graze" and thinks the company can "take that even further." This makes it look like he wants to bring the brand back to life by focusing on health-conscious customers and new retail channels.

Unilever's main goal is to get rid of food brands that aren't doing well or aren't crucial to the corporation so it can focus on areas with strong profit margins, like beauty and personal care. This plan includes the buyout. Graze's move from a major worldwide firm to a small, specialized snack company gives it an opportunity to refresh its goods and reach out to UK customers who seek healthier snacks. This could help the company get back on track after the mass market crippled its revenue. The purchase shows that the UK snack food market is changing. It shows that shoppers are picking snacks that are better for them and easier to eat. It also shows that smaller, less well-known businesses are better at quickly adapting to these changes than major, well-known FMCG enterprises.