Growing the success of Irish food & horticulture

Growing the success of Irish food & horticulture

A detailed look at Deferred Grocery Shopping in Ireland

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Research Approach

• 658 households over 2 weeks. • 6,833 individual shopping trips. • Tesco=142, Dunnes=117, SuperValu=115, Lidl=112,

Aldi=153, Centra=219, BWG=218, Forecourts=248

Household Diary

3rd June-20th June 2014

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Setting the Grocery Context

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Current Shopper Climate

Connected Shopper

Mature recession

Dispersed Shopping

Rise of Aldi & Lidl

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Current Climate: Detail

Mature Recession

● Forest of deals and offers at POS in every category

Shoppers navigate by aisle ends and special price signage

● Value of deals scrutinized to avoid:

Poor quality

Wastage (especially fresh fruit and veg)

Being ripped off

“..it was only when I was looking at my receipt when I got home it was two for 3.50. so they were actually 50 cent dearer to buy the two together. And I have found that so many times I do feel you get conned into buying stuff”

Self control strategies to inhibit impulsive swooping on offers

Mental or actual shopping list

● Shops own brand considered / adopted across many categories

Realistic alternative (especially premium own brand)

Note: With a two tier recovery (Dublin vs outside), those outside will hold onto the need to value shop longer.

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Current Climate: Detail

Rise of Aldi & Lidl

● Mainstream acceptance of discounters:-

Key component of grocery shopping in many households

Sense of fitting with the economic climate

● Clear rationale for use recently/frequently updated (NB. Newsworthy and relevant, mind share possibly greater than actual share of shopping):-

Fresh bread (Lidl)

Really cheap veg (Aldi)

Some also buy Irish meat there (Aldi)

● ‘Breadline’ consider use a necessity, others register as part of ‘smart shopping’

nowadays.

● Recent TV ads support sense of ‘coming of age’:-

Brands take on ‘character’ not just price defined

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Evolution of Discounter Shopping

Role of Aldi & Lidl continues to evolve. Actual role varies by region social class and local store repertoire.

NB. Some over claim in usage evidence.

Cautious trial

(Embarrassed to be seen with bag)

Experimentation Intermittent Regular split shopping

Practical non-food

Reading flyers

Selected food areas

‘Fun’ non-food

(Smart shopper discount

chic)

Over time

Discounter is my main

Continue split trips

Not worth hassle (petrol/price benefit queried/time consuming)

Fresh bread Lidl

Deluxe range treats

Key transition point

Fresh fruit & veg jaw drop price

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Current Climate: Detail

Dispersed shopping

● Many now split their main shopping between a number of retailers to avail of better value:

Due to incomplete offer (i.e. some branded items not available)

● Minority claim to have returned to a more simplified one store approach (not worth hassle of visiting several stores).

But most consider dispersed shopping the smart thing to do

● Given that most also conduct regular top up trips this can result in a much wider repertoire of retailers on weekly basis.

● However, online shopping still has many barriers to overcome – not least the ‘smartness’ of spreading the shop over different stores.

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Current Climate: Detail

Informed shopper

● Regular active scanning of supermarket flyers and newspaper ads:-

Welcomed deal information

‘Anchor’ products can drive store selection in very directed way (especially meat and wine). There is a seasonal aspect here.

It’s worth stressing that some products have a bigger anchoring influence, not just because of their perceived price, but because of their perceived significance.

● Meat:

The central part of every meal. We often refer to a meal by its meat constituent, rarely the other elements

Poor quality can be a real problem – not just unpleasant, but dangerous

For Mum, a sense of success can be tied to buying good quality meat at the right price

● Wine:

A symbol of modern Ireland and our connection with European values

A significant part of alcohol consumption at home

An area of experimentation, discovery and delight where trial of new cheaper options is always worthwhile

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Anchors

● Store selection can be motivated by a range of ‘missions’, some of which are quite broad and habitual:

Where much of the selection is based on past behaviour, convenience and a ‘large basket’ trip.

● However, store level missions can have a much more narrowly defined focus where the store is selected based on a specific destination, product or offer for example:

Often resulting from the effective communication of an ‘anchor product’ offer (alcohol, meat, nappies). So much so that in some households there is a weekly routine of checking the flyers and newspaper ads before planning their supermarket trips.

● NB: even where the initial focus is narrowly focused on one category, a store level mission may lead to shopping of other categories.

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Main Weekly Stock-Up

Offer Swooping

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Who are grocery shoppers?

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Profile Of Households Base: All Households – 658

41

0

24

0

73

0

73

52

0

29

0

15

0

23

7

0

13

0

11

0

4

0

21

0 0

7

0

1

0

6

0

Social Class

Household Size

Accommodations Type

Broadband Access

% % % %

ABC1

C2DE

F1F2

1 person

2 people

3 people

4 people

5 people

6+ people

Detached/ semi-detached

Terraced

Apartment/flat

Not stated

Yes

No

N/S

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Grocery Shopping Headlines

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83% normally buy some product on their grocery shopping trip that they

hadn’t planned to. (Rises to 90% among 3-4

people households).

Despite good intentions impulse purchasing is alive and well Base: All households - 658

68% spend more on grocery shopping than

they’d originally planned to. (Higher among those living in the Dublin and

ROL regions)

46% always have a shopping list when doing their main stock-up shop and try to stick to it. (53% among

shoppers from 5+ person households).

41% feel guilty if they go over budget when grocery

shopping. (46% among females, 30% of males).

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A natural desire for brands and quality is evident….however brands have been damaged Base: All households - 658

77% want to choose their preferred brand as long as the price doesn’t

seem too much.

73% believe that quality is more important than price when buying food

or drink (rises 78% among ABC1s)

62% find the quality of private label food and drink products is as good as, if not better than leading brands.

(Rises to 68% among working class).

Only 56% agree that price is the most important thing when buying food and drink for the household – note

53% check the relative prices of brands when in a supermarket

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Shopping is like a military exercise Base: All households - 658

60% plan their shopping for food and drink on-the-go

now and buy in bulk in the supermarket rather than

buying them in a convenience store. (Rises to

72% among larger households).

49% go to a variety of stores to get products at different prices/offers. (58% among C2DE and 66% among

households with 5+ people).

2 in 3 tend to organise top-up shops around

routines - way to / from work, or around children’s extra-curricular activities

(eg classes, sports, etc

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The savvy shopper Base: All households - 658

37% are sceptical about so-called ‘bargains’

(Highest among Dunnes Stores most often shoppers at 49%)

72% always let friends / family know if they come across a good

bargain when grocery shopping

35% regularly compare the advertised offers (e.g. in brochures,

leaflets, ads) between supermarkets

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42% look out for country of origin information when buying food or

drink and always try to buy Irish. (Higher among females, farmers, those

living in Dublin and Supervalu most often

shoppers)

Irishness has a role, most likely deeper than just country the country Base: All households - 658

47

46

42

40

35

34

33

SuperValu /

Superquinn

Centra

Tesco

Dunnes Stores

Spar

Aldi

Lidl

% look out for county of origin x store used most often %

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Reassurance and brand building important Base: All households - 658

59% are always reassured when they see the Bord

Bia quality mark. (Higher among those aged

45+, farmers and also those living in the Dublin

area).

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33% always read the labels for nutritional information (40% of

females, 17% males).

But limited attention, especially if online takes off Base: All households - 658

14% have ordered groceries online and liked the

experience.

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