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Summer technically isn’t over yet, but already we’re being bombarded with Christmas content.

While many people won’t want to think about December 25 until Halloween has come and gone, others have already started stocking up for the holidays.

And there’s one festive item shoppers are keen to get their hands on now to avoid missing out closer to the time.

The Big Mix at Marks & Spencer went viral last year, after people claimed the chocolate tin was ‘better than Quality Street’ and it looks set to be just as popular in 2026.

What is The Big Mix?

British families tend to have a strong allegiance to their Christmas chocolate tin. Your family might be a Quality Street household, a Roses household or a Heroes household. 

However, in recent years, changes to the Cadbury and Nestlé tubs have caused a stir, with shrinkflation hitting the tins hard and some popular chocolates being removed.

As such, people have been looking for alternatives, and an own-brand product from M&S is leading the charge, with people claiming it feels more ‘magical’ than some of the other options out there.

The Big Mix from M&S costs £7 for a 650g carton or £12 for a 1.2kg tin and features a mix of 10 different sweets in colourful wrappers, suitable for vegetarians.

The selection includes Salted Caramel, Coffee Truffle, Hazelnut in Caramel, Cream Toffee, Milk Crème, Caramel Fudge, Strawberry Crème, Orange Crème, Biscuit in Caramel and a Butterscotch Éclair.

Both the box and tin are available to buy now on Ocado, and shoppers have been raving about the products on social media. 

What do people think of the chocolate?

Taking to Threads, @harriethatpeg shared snaps of the tin, writing: ‘Will be buying these now for Christmas instead of Quality Street which are absolutely dreadful.’

And @jenlozhon confessed she’d stocked up to avoid missing out, sharing: ‘My daughter picked [a tin] up for me last week (they ran out quickly last time).’

While @mistressmarple said: ‘These are ace!!’

Reviews online are also incredibly strong, with a shopper known only as littlepieces giving them a 5/5 rating and saying: ‘Best chocolate box for Christmas!

‘These are our favourite chocolate box at Christmas time for sharing with the family – the chocolate is nice and thick and lovely fillings. I’ve been buying these for a few years now instead of the other popular brands.’

POLL
Poll

Which chocolate tub do you normally go for at Christmas?

  • Quality StreetCheck

  • RosesCheck

  • HeroesCheck

  • OtherCheck

Whirley Shirley agreed, saying: ‘Absolutely love this new mix of chocs with some different flavours to the norm. Coffee one a real joy, a nice milk chocolate covering too.’

And fussyshopper1 commented: ‘Great selection, better than the leading brands of chocolates that come in plastic tubs and tins.’

Others were quick to say they’d buy them over other chocolate brands ‘purely because they still have shiny wrappers’ on the sweets.

On X (formerly Twitter), the packaging was also a big selling point, and @chatswithem did not hold back her thoughts in a dramatic post.

She shared: ‘Nestlé and Cadbury’s, quick note… Everyone hates your new Roses and Quality Street plastic tubs and basic, plain, soul-destroying wrappers. Meanwhile M&S are seeing their Christmas chocolate tins literally fly off the shelves because they’ve stuck to the traditional metal tin and beautiful shiny wrappers that bring awe to little faces.

‘Those wonderful old tins of beautiful, bejewelled treats are literally part of so many childhood memories. And you’ve taken that wonder away from today’s little kids. Do us all a favour and put the magic back in the tin.’

Similarly, @Ajcts said: ‘Bought the M&S £12 alternative yesterday. At Christmas, I want sparkle and tins filled to the brim, not a half-filled plastic tub of paper drab wrappers.’

Quality Street famously ditched its iconic sweet wrappers for a paper version in 2023 to reduce plastic.

Not everyone is a big fan of the M&S chocolates, though, with some saying the flavour was ‘very sweet’, ‘sickly’ and just ‘ok’.

A few shoppers have also criticised the inclusion of palm oil in the Big Mix ingredients list.

POLL
Poll

Which is your favourite Christmas chocolate box?

  • Quality StreetCheck

  • RosesCheck

  • CelebrationsCheck

  • HeroesCheck

  • The Big MixCheck

  • OtherCheck

This comes after M&S added several new items to its bakery section – including a product to rival Greggs.

Six new savoury treats have hit shops, and the list features a sausage roll, a spinach & feta roll, a tomato & cheddar knot, and breadsticks.

The high street retailer also unveiled several other new Christmas products, with a big focus on pistachio.

The lineup features all sorts of iterations of the nut, from Pistachio Star Chocolate (£3) and Pistachio Muddles (£10), to Choc Marks Salted Blond Chocolate Pistachios, Shortbread and Cornflakes Minis (£12).

There’s also the Big Daddy Pistachio Bites in The Big Daddy Advent Calendar (£12) and a Pistachio and Single Origin Chocolate Bombe (£12).

Also available are Percy Pig Festive Fun (£2), a Malt Balls Selection Box (£8), and a selection of Christmas biscuits and cookies in decorative tins.

A version of this story was first published on September 18, 2025.

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