Shopper-marketing firm Bridgethorne has called on more retailers to address the needs of single-person households, following the announcement that Tesco is to increase its single-serve range by nearly 40% this year.
According to a recent report in The Guardian, Tesco is to increase its range to include single beefburgers and steak fillets, as well as hand-sized packets of new potatoes and broccoli, which 'demonstrates recognition of this increasingly important demographic', according to Bridgethorne.
According to the latest statistics, just over a third of households in the UK are now single occupancy, with a total of 7.7 million single-occupancy households across Britain, up from 6.6 million in 1996.
Changing Demographics
“Brands and own-label suppliers seem to be beginning to recognise that the changing make-up of British society is something they need to factor into their planning,” said Bridgethorne’s joint managing director, John Nevens.
“Shoppers obviously behave differently according to their circumstances. Somebody living on their own will not necessarily want to buy the same product in the same quantities as others, and this will have an impact on the format and diversity of how products are presented, from packaging to portion size,” added Nevens.
Suppliers need to be able to demonstrate that they can meet the needs of all shoppers, including those who live alone, rather than focus solely on the 'family' as the only household demographic.
“If manufacturers and retailers remain relentlessly focused on the family unit, they could be turning their backs on category growth by ignoring the needs of people who don’t fit into the standard family model,” Nevens added.
Bridgethorne called on manufacturers to identify short- and long-term quantified strategic opportunities for both their brands and the categories in which they operate, which will 'increase expertise and multidimensional levels of influence, leading to brand growth ahead of the category'.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
