Analysis
NAICS 42445 is the 2022 NAICS industry for confectionery merchant wholesalers, part of 4244 (Grocery and Related Product Merchant Wholesalers).
It has only one more detailed code, 424450, which covers exactly the same activities; the definition, index entries and statistics are on that page.
Between 2018 and 2023 the number of establishments fell 16% and employment fell 1%. The 2018 count used NAICS 2017, so part of a large move can come from codes being redefined rather than from businesses opening or closing.
County Business Patterns counts 2,245 US establishments in this code in 2023, employing 42,754 people at an average annual payroll of $73,451 per employee (59th percentile of national industries). 58% of the establishments have fewer than five employees, which is close to the national mix.
By establishments it ranks 5th of the 9 codes at this level within Grocery and Related Product Merchant Wholesalers, with 6.4% of them.
Official definition
See industry description for 424450.
Source: US Census Bureau, NAICS 2022 Manual.