NESTLE Rowntree's new Kit Kat Chunky has got off to a storming start in the shops - even before a big TV ad campaign starts later this week.

The single-finger version of the chocolate snack bar was the top-selling confectionery product during its first week on sale in confectionery and newsagent outlets earlier this month.

Sales were double those of rival Mars bars, and Nestl claims it is the most successful new product launch in recent years, beating Cadbury's big success Fuse, which was launched in September 1997.

And a jubilant spokesman for the firm says the initial indications are that Chunky's success did not come at the expense of sales of the traditional four-finger Kit Kat - something Nestl has strived to avoid.

"It seems to be incremental," said Paul Kirkwood.

"It has been an absolute winner so far."

Now two new TV adverts are set to boost sales further, particularly among the lucrative teen market, as the firm hopes to achieve a permanent big sale.

The ads, which will be shown first tomorrow during Home and Away, the Australian soap opera watched by many teenagers, have a youthful feel to them.

One shows a waitress dreaming of film stardom. The other features a basketball player performing every trick in the book.

In both ads, one bite on the bar prompts a huge red limo to appear, out of which flies a Kit Kat Chunky which catapults the youngsters towards fame and fortune.

The theme for the ads is Have a Big Break, a variation on the traditional Have a Break catchphrase.

"Teenagers often dream of stardom and the big break theme reflects this," said Mr Kirkwood.

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