Dot's Pretzels Hits $626M, Anchors Hershey's Salty Snack Push

Dot's Homestyle Pretzels generated $626 million in sales over the last year, making it Hershey's largest salty snacks brand and the centerpiece of the company's bid to become what it calls a "snacking powerhouse."

The number matters. Hershey paid $1.2 billion in 2021 for Dot's and its co-manufacturer, and the brand is now growing at 9.3% over the last 52 weeks in a $2.7 billion pretzel category that managed just 2.5%, according to Circana data. That's nearly four times the category pace.

Hershey isn't stopping at pretzels. Dot's already holds a 23% share of pretzels, and the company sees runway across the broader $44.5 billion salty snacks space.

"Dot's is the centerpiece of Hershey's ambition within salty snacks," Amy Minderman, senior director of marketing for pretzels and snack mix at Hershey, said in an interview. "We don't just see Dot's as the best pretzel in the category. We think it's a billion-dollar brand."

Where is Dot's stretching next?

In March, Hershey launched Dot's Original Snack Mix, a Chex Mix competitor that has already grabbed 6% market share. Minderman said that early win has given Hershey "confidence that the brand can stretch" further.

Snack mixes suit Dot's for three reasons, per the executive: the category is overdue for a refresh, it plays in larger social gatherings, and the Dot's pretzel itself is a key ingredient.

"We've been disciplined with our approach by protecting the core product, expanding distribution, increasing awareness and then using consumer insights at this point to say, 'Where do we go next? Where can we credibly stretch the brand,'" Minderman said. "We are working on considering all growth levers for this brand right now."

What does this change for Hershey's portfolio?

The Pennsylvania company spent most of its 132-year history selling Reese's, Kisses, Almond Joy and its namesake chocolate bar. Over the last decade it has added popcorn brand SkinnyPop, puffs maker Pirate's Booty and, most recently, healthy snacks company LesserEvil.

Notably, Hershey has avoided the chips aisle, where PepsiCo dominates. Instead it has targeted what it calls permissible snacking — popcorn, puffs, pretzels — categories it views as scalable and ripe for bold-flavor innovation.

The strategy is producing results. Hershey's salty snacks business posted $1.3 billion in sales in fiscal 2025, up 12% year over year, out of $11.7 billion in total company sales. Salty now accounts for roughly one in every nine dollars Hershey brings in.

To accelerate Dot's specifically, Hershey plans wider distribution, a new marketing campaign in 2027 and positioning around eating occasions such as tailgating and watching sports.

CEO Kirk Tanner told analysts in September that innovation across the salty brands will help Hershey reach new consumers and compete in more occasions.

"We see a clear line of sight to be the No. 2 salty player in the space," Tanner said. "We want to own that permissible snacking occasion."

A pretzel brand started in a North Dakota home kitchen in 2011 carrying a 132-year-old chocolate company into the No. 2 slot of salty snacks. Stranger bets have paid off less.