The Product
Spring & Mulberry, the Raleigh-based date-sweetened chocolate brand founded in 2022, has launched Salted Almond — a 72% cacao dark chocolate bar studded with whole roasted almonds and finished with sea salt — priced at $9.99 MSRP. The bar is available immediately through the brand's direct-to-consumer channel, with retail placement described as forthcoming.
The release marks the latest extension of Spring & Mulberry's nut-forward and everyday-flavor tier, a segment the brand has been building since its founding by Kathryn Shah and Sarah Bell. Like the rest of the portfolio, Salted Almond contains no refined sugar; dates serve as the sole sweetener, positioning the product squarely within the fast-expanding better-for-you confectionery category.
Market Context
The no-added-sugar and whole-food ingredient segment in premium chocolate has drawn sustained consumer interest as shoppers scrutinize ingredient lists and push back against excess sweetness. Date-sweetened and fruit-sweetened formats have gained particular traction among health-oriented consumers who still seek premium confectionery experiences — a cohort that has proven willing to pay a meaningful premium over conventional bar retail prices, which typically range well below the $9.99 MSRP Spring & Mulberry is targeting.
The dark chocolate and almond pairing is one of the category's most durable flavor combinations, giving the brand a low-friction entry point for trial while differentiating on sweetener sourcing and ingredient quality. Co-Founder Kathryn Shah framed the launch as an exercise in refinement rather than novelty: "We weren't chasing a trend with this bar. We wanted to honor a pairing people already treasure and make it the way we believe chocolate should be made, sweetened only with dates."
Retail & Outlook
Spring & Mulberry has not disclosed specific retail partners or a timeline for in-store availability, describing the channel expansion only as "coming soon." The brand's go-to-market cadence — DTC first, then retail — mirrors approaches used by other premium better-for-you confectionery brands seeking to validate demand and build brand equity before committing to the cost structure of wholesale distribution.
The Salted Almond launch is paired with a campaign the brand calls "Timeless Good Taste," emphasizing heritage flavor profiles over trend-driven innovation. That positioning could resonate with specialty and natural grocery buyers, a channel where Spring & Mulberry's ingredient story — global-sourced fruits, florals, nuts, and spices layered into date-sweetened dark chocolate — aligns with category buyer priorities. As the brand scales toward broader retail, pricing discipline at $9.99 will be a key variable to watch against the competitive set of premium and better-for-you bars already occupying shelf space in that price band.
For operators and buyers tracking the better-for-you snack and confectionery segment, Spring & Mulberry's move reflects a broader pattern of premium chocolate brands using clean-label credentials and classic flavor architecture to compete above the mid-market tier without relying on functional-ingredient claims.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
