Knowing Your Shopper

PG’s 2013 Category Captains winners leverage insights to deliver sustainable growth across the store.

Selling groceries isn’t getting any easier, with new products competing for shelf space and alternate channels expanding their food offerings, further splintering the public’s grocery dollar.

And with prices on the rise, it’s all the more important for retailers and their trading partners to work together on ways to emphasize the values that can be found at the shelf. According to a new Nielsen study released last month, 85 percent of global consumers participating in an online survey said rising food prices would impact their choice of grocery products.

“With the global middle class growing by 70 million each year and food prices expected to more than double within 20 years, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies in many markets are preparing for an unprecedented period of rising demand, economic pressures and aspirationally driven buying behavior,” says James Russo, SVP for global consumer insights at Schaumburg, Ill.-based Nielsen. “FMCG companies focusing solely on consumer income as a barometer of spending habits, however, are unlikely to fulfill their business growth expectations, because this is not a middle-class-only trend. Food inflation impacts all consumer incomes. By looking instead at consumer diversity, spending flexibility and the consumer demand landscape, FMCG companies can better understand real-world buying potential and more accurately scale goods and services to meet the needs of consumers in both developed and developing markets around the world.”

All the more reason consumers need to feel comfortable that the products they’re buying at the grocery store are delivering on their promises. To that end, savvy category managers are employing all of the merchandising and shopper insight tools at their disposal to drive sales across the store, boost basket rings and ensure return visits.

In their 17th year, Progressive Grocer’s Category Captains awards honor CPG companies for their category management prowess, demonstrated through their partnerships with grocery retailers. This year, there were 99 total winners: 58 Category Captains and 41 Category Advisors.

From perimeter to center store, suppliers continue to demonstrate their understanding of retailers’ goals and offer innovative ways to achieve them, elevating the visibility and relevance not only of their own brands, but also of their categories as a whole. Historically, our winners know category sustainability is less about whose name is on a package and more about what’s inside and how it can deliver solutions to consumers.

Top category managers also understand how shoppers think. Case in point: Faced with a new generation of web-centric consumers, E&J Gallo launched an initiative to better understand these shoppers and the barriers to wine consumption. Based on the results, Gallo created a new wine navigation platform, tailoring the section based on retailers’ respective goals, shopper preferences and priority segments. Retail partners reported significant increases in category sales and item velocity.

Other standouts this year: Kraft’s “Be Your Own Barista” coffee program, Coca-Cola’s Sustaining Snack Rack, Hormel’s efforts to broaden chili’s seasonality, Progresso’s “Soup’s On” initiative from General Mills, the Bird’s Eye meal solution matrix from Pinnacle Foods, Freshpet driving grocery pet care traffic, CSM’s in-store bakery gains, Tyson Deli’s prepared food solutions, and companies like Green Giant Fresh, Dole, Frieda’s and TotalFloral boosting excitement and traffic throughout the perimeter.

Only by working together to understand consumer behavior can retailers and manufacturers deliver sustainable, brand-blind category growth, and as you’ll see on the following pages, plenty of these partnerships are getting it right.