How BIP Group is using its growth to bring smiles to more children
BIP Group is an inventor, manufacturer, and distributor in one, combining high-quality confectionery products with nostalgic, fun toys and novelty items. Headquartered in the Netherlands, BIP Group has offices in the UK, Germany, France, Spain, and Poland, with operations extending across Europe and into North Africa.
Lee Fretwell, Head of Commercial, shares more details: “The group is circa £50 million in turnover, and that’s split across the different countries within the group. The UK makes up around 40 percent of that. We offer private label, licensed, and branded third-party candy and toy novelty ranges.”
Lee elaborates on the company’s product range: “Under our licensed range, we have brands like Paw Patrol, Marvel, Disney, and Stitch, to name a few. Across our third-party branded ranges, we have well-known brands such as Gummi Zone and Pop Ups, and we have launched Funriders, Mouthglower, and Magic Rainbow during 2024. We also have seasonal products and licenses that we can sell across all seasons, such as Halloween, Christmas, Valentine’s, and Easter. During summer, this could come in the form of a cool fan or water shooter, while at Christmas, it could be a candy cane or character-based lollipop, which can be hung on a Christmas tree.”
“What ties everything together and sets us apart from the competition is how we bring fun, novelty, and nostalgia for children and adults alike. That’s our unique point of difference,” says Lee.
Lee and his team have played a significant role in the company’s recent successes, joining the business during a difficult period in 2021, just after COVID-19, when many high-street shops were closing. “Our turnover at the time,” Lee explains, “had dropped to around £13 million, and we’ve now built it back up to between £17 million and £18 million.. This has come with a lot of challenges and forced some tough decisions in streamlining and tweaking our product ranges to make our operations more efficient. We had to take the decision to remove four or five branded partners from our stable for many different reasons. However, this was designed to enable us to have more focus and attention on key partners such as Yupindo and Flix Candy.”
For example, with Gummi Zone, by removing poor-performing SKU tails elsewhere and growing the range from six to 14 products, while also launching a new brand, Magic Rainbow, sales turnover doubled from £2 million to £4 million. “We are extremely proud of achieving 100 percent growth since we’ve come in,” Lee continues, “and this is a brand that is going from strength to strength. We have exciting developments coming with them in 2025, as well as rollouts into more countries across Europe.” 
Product innovation
Developing fun, innovative products is a particular strength of the business, and Lee elaborates on the creative process: “We have a team in the UK that helps advise the whole group, notably on private label. Together, they have an immense amount of experience, partnering with seasoned sales colleagues from across the group who have been in the industry for over 20 years. We tend to come up with a base idea, or if we’re working with a customer, take their base idea and add creative spins on it for each holiday or special occasion, such as Halloween or Christmas. We keep the core of what the product is but add a bit of theater with a sprinkle of fun and nostalgia, delivering an in-store customer experience.”
It’s a process that requires the teams to constantly look ahead, as Lee explains: “Our customers will send a brief of what they want to do, for Christmas, say, and then we will look at what has happened this year, what happened last year, and beyond. We then go and speak to our factories to see if there’s anything in development or coming out. One example we have seen in the last year or so is 4D gummies, where instead of just a 3D molded shape, there is additional juice inside the gummy. There’s also an emerging trend of freeze-dried candy coming to market. So, we look at all these factors and see what would work for us and with which products, and move on from there.
“A good example of products we’ve incorporated recently that respond to market trends are our sour products. We’ve launched six products in our Mouthglower range, ranging from a brain dipper lollipop to liquid gels, candy foam spray, and tongue painters, all with three flavours in each product. These are priced at a competitive RRSP and are a firm favourite for our customers.”
Demand driven
As consumer demands evolve and the world requires healthier products, Lee notes it has been challenging to find healthier solutions. “Meeting both the desire for a sugary treat among kids at the point of purchase and creating a healthier product at a similar price point is nigh on impossible, due to lower volume demand. But with the growing demand for less sugar, our Pop Ups are going sugar-free, and we’ve launched an HFSS-compliant sugar-free Pop Up under the Paw Patrol license.”
The products themselves aren’t the only area of innovation within the business, as Lee outlines: “We’re removing as much plastic from our ranges as we can, utilizing paper or card elements instead. Our new product, Real Good Egg, is a good example of this, as it’s made with pressed paper, and the fruity star packaging inside is made from recycled plastic. We are showing that we’re really serious about prioritizing our planet’s health through the materials we use, as well as the facilities we partner with on the manufacturing side. We are also constantly working to find healthier solutions that can still sit at the same price points, because at the end of the day, everyone in the company is in this to bring joy and smiles to children.”
With continued expansions across Europe and beyond on the horizon, as well as innovative new products and packaging solutions, BIP Group is set to continue breaking records as it maintains its current growth phase.