With more than a 41% market share and topping every salty snack segment except snack nuts and seeds, Frito-Lay (Plano, Texas) dominates the salty snacks category. For a comparison, consider that the next-largest salty snack presence is private label items, accounting for 6% of the category total. This explains the abundance of regional brands strong in many segments. Mintel notes that the number-two brand is highly dependent on region, although a few other national companies challenge Frito-Lay in some segments.
Extensions in salty snacks can run the gamut between new flavors, innovative shapes and novel containers. Changing consumer tastes have had a direct influence on product innovations for snack foods, resulting in a richer variety of spices, herbs and other flavor enhancers, such as roasted garlic. Of course, this also results in a highly segmented market.