Credits: finance.yahoo.it
If we think about summer, besides the sea another thing that comes to mind is ice cream, after all it is not a typical winter thing, and among them the brand Magnum is one of the most famous... I always remember how many years ago on television there was so much advertising that encouraged people to buy it and eating a Magnum almost made you feel "cool". But things change and now I read in the newspaper that Magnum Ice Cream, the historic company behind those very ice creams, has just published its first financial statement after the separation from Unilever: revenues substantially stable at 7.9 billion euros (+4.2% compared to 2024), but net profit down 48%, stopping at 307 million euros, and operating profit down 21% to 599 million. As a result the shares have fall by 12%.
Now one could simply say “ok people change brands, summer didn’t last long, etc”, but instead behind these declining numbers there is a very deep phenomenon and, at least for me, unexpected that comes from the USA: the ice cream sector is facing a big problem with the arrival of anti-obesity GLP-1 drugs, such as Ozempic, which are changing eating habits, reducing the demand for sweet snacks and traditional ice cream... Because you need to know that these drugs increase satiety and reduce the desire for sweets and junk food causing a decrease in demand. There is obviously no certain proof that the decline depends on the drugs, but rather strange as a coincidence their massive use with the drop in sales.
For this iconic brand the future represents a challenge: it has never had to face a change like this, will it manage to maintain its identity and adapt to the new health and cultural trends? A first response from Magnum is to try to respond with low-calorie, high-protein ice creams and controlled portions, but the outcome remains uncertain. We will see how it goes, but I didn’t think that drugs could end up influencing even the ice cream market.
References: https://www.ft.com/content/f1ecd89f-c9f9-4ab0-b375-60163c3e7d1b