More than six in 10 Italian families have visited discount stores at least once in the period between January and May of this year, according to a study by Unimpresa.
The data confirms a trend that shopping at discount outlets, which emerged during the recession, has consolidated in the following years, altering the shopping habits of consumers.
Seeking Value
Italian consumers are purchasing more products on special offer, the research found, with 62.1% of respondents saying they do so in order to save money, with discounts of 30% or more particularly popular.
The study found that Italian consumers have become ‘experts’ in seeking out the best deal, consulting flyers, magazines and websites more and more in search of discounts and low prices, even around major festivities such as Christmas.
The survey also indicates that as a result in the growth of discounters, small shops are increasingly less frequented (-8.5%) while the trend is also negative for supermarkets (-4.1%).
Discounters, meanwhile, are up 6.8%.
Commenting on the results, the president of Unimpresa, Giovanna Ferrara, pointed out that there is still much to be done to bring Italy back on a growth path, adding that there is a "crisis of confidence" on the part of many families, an element has led to a negative spiral for the economy.
Slowdown In Growth
After three years of sustained growth in turnover and volumes of FMCG, the first four months of 2018 showed only marginal growth of +1% in turnover and +0.4% % in volumes compared to the same period in 2017, according to Nielsen data.
The general slowdown in sales can be explained by a decline in pasta, rice, condiments, legumes sales in the South and Sicily.
The growth of private label (+2.8%) and small brand (+4.6%) products continues, while the top 20 brands continue to lose ground (-1.9%), which is leading to increased fragmentation of the FMCG market.
Other factors impacting retail sales are the recovery of the 'away from home' (64% have eaten out of home at least once), the e-commerce channel (8% purchase food online at least once a month) and the openness to new culinary cultures.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
