The Italian private-label market is set for a recovery in 2016, after three years of declining sales, reports daily Il Sole 24 Ore.
According to the latest IRI data, updated in September, the private-label segment has seen a 1.7% increase in value sales and a 0.2% increase in volume, reaching a market share of 18.5%. Sales in hypermarkets, supermarkets and independent retailers reached €9.76 billion, despite a 1% reduction in household food purchases.
Guido Cristini, scientific coordinator of the Private Brand Observatory, told the publication that the private-label market should end 2017 with sales of €10 billion (excluding discount stores, where it accounts for 50% of sales).
Leading products in the private segment are premium and bio products that together are worth over €1.32 billion. The premium segment has seen 14% growth in value and 12.4% growth in volume, while the bio segment has grown by 16.1% and 14.4%, respectively.
According to Cristini, private label has achieved growth in the higher-value segments, where the retailers are responding to new needs of consumers by offering innovative quality products.
Also growing are mainstream private-label products (+0.8%), approaching €8 billion in sales and a market share of 81.6%. However, sales of entry-level-price-range products have collapsed over the past year, losing 22% in value and one quarter in volume. This segment now has a 2.6% market share, equal to almost €256 million. Lately, the retailers have started reducing the private-label range in this category, replacing it with branded products.
Over the past year, an average of 75 new local and traditional products have been launched, as well as 26 bio and 22 functional foods. Overall, each retailer offers 180 premium local products, 90 bio products and 53 functional products.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
