Promotions account for 45% of grocery store sales in Portugal, according to the latest Nielsen data.
Millennials typically buy more products on promotions (mainly grocery, diary and hygiene products), than seniors (who prefer fresh produce), the study found.
However, Ana Paula Barbosa, retailer services director at Nielsen, points out that other factors besides promotions may make a difference at the time of purchase, as consumers are expanding their interests when it comes to purchases, with 66% prepared to pay more to satisfy them.
As a result of Portugal's aging population, there is growing demand for health-related products. These include organic yogurt, which has seen 136% growth in sales, muesli and granola (+84%) and diet cereals (+72%).
Increased purchasing power associated with a more intense pace of life has also resulted in a higher demand for convenience categories, such as frozen fruits (+30%), refrigerated components (+19%), take away (+18%) and of frozen cod (+16%), while dry cod has seen a drop of 14%.
Smaller store formats are also growing at a higher rate, while online stores (8% penetration in Portugal) still have room to grow, despite having a lower penetration than in Spain (13%), France (35%) or the UK (49%). In addition, 35% of Portuguese consumers intend to go online to use a virtual supermarket in the future.
© 2017 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
