Holiday Grocery Shopping Varies by U.S. Region
Which grocery categories will surge in the days leading up to holidays? Leveraging its extensive shopper behavior database, St. Petersburg, Fla.-based Catalina Marketing believes it has the answers.
During the time that consumers busily plan their holiday meals and parties, Catalina’s data showed that seasonal shopping traditions vary widely by region:
- Midwesterners opt for heartier fare, with shredded cheese sales up 93%, substantial dry soups up 85%, cocktail franks up 49% and chili/sauces up 45% over the national average.
- Northeasterners love festive drinks and holiday nibbles, with specialty crackers up 109%, cider up 107% and carbonated cocktail mixes up 77% versus the national average.
- Southerners often extend their evening holiday celebrations into the next morning, with overnight guests getting to partake of breakfasts featuring canned ham, up 123%; biscuit mixes, up 90%; and breakfast sausage, up 49%, compared with the national average.
- Westerners enjoy cozying up by the fireside, with fire log sales up 32%, ready-to-serve soup up 33%, milk modifiers up 21% and eggnog up 10% over the national average.
“It’s always eye-opening to see the differences in what people are buying around the country,” noted Marta Cyhan, Catalina’s chief marketing officer. “Our ability to identify shopping trends and insights for our retail and CPG brand customers during key sales periods provides them with a real competitive advantage as they plan smarter and more strategic marketing programs.”
More insights from Catalina on holiday shopper buying trends are available online.
