Weekly FMCG News Update!

Macroview Weekly News updateYour window on the latest trends in Packaged Groceries

Stephen Hall

Friday 19th August

Copyright © 2015 Information Resources, Inc. (IRI). Confidential and Proprietary. 2

• Supermarket sales record first dip below £100bn in six years• Nisa brings back ‘Bank Holiday Bonanza’• One-hour delivery slots offered at The Fragrance Shop • Sales in Scotland fall in July• John Lewis weekly sales hurt by good weather, Waitrose sales rise• easyFoodstore: store extension and new European suppliers • Kingfisher Q2 growth unhurt by Brexit worries• SPAR offers new weekly deals ahead of Bank Holiday• Asda suffers worst quarterly performance on record • Lidl UK: driving non-food sales with new offer day • Tesco follows Night Tube launch with 24hr stores

Weekly News Summary – 15th August 2016


Supermarket Sales Record First Dip Below £100bn In Six YearsSales at British supermarkets fell below the £100bn mark in the second quarter of the year – the first time they have done so since 2010.

According to The Share Centre’s Profit Watch UK study, food retail revenues were down 3.1% to £99bn. The study attributed the drop to the ongoing price war and the increased popularity of hard discounters.

However, while sales are falling, it is expected that the slump in the pound will improve profits, as around 40% of the sales of British listed companies’ are declared in US dollars. Exporters and companies with a large international presence will also benefit from the drop in the value of the pound.

Despite this, Helal Miah, investment research analyst at The Share Centre, noted that the uncertainty following the Brexit vote will further impact overall economic growth. Miah added: “The implications of the economic slowdown will mean lower demand for sectors such as housebuilders and retailers, while the travel industry is already feeling the effects. Financial services may suffer too, if passporting to the EU falls by the wayside.”

Source: NamNews 15th August 2016


Nisa Brings Back ‘Bank Holiday Bonanza’Nisa has announced that its popular Bank Holiday Bonanza trade event will return for the August bank holiday.

The Bank Holiday Bonanza was launched to enable Nisa retailers to provide market leading offers over the period on a vast range of branded products. It follows on from the two previous Bonanzas, which each generated over £1m in sales.

These offers will be available exclusively on Nisa’s Order Capture System from 15 August 2016 until 17 August 2016, and include deep cut promotions on key convenience lines including Carling 15 packs, Coke 10 packs, Blossom Hill wine, Lynx Body Spray and Persil liquid capsules.

Dan Maltby, head of trade and category planning at Nisa, commented: “We’re determined to offer increased benefits to our members and this is one of a number of initiatives we have launched this year to help them drive sales and profitability. We are delighted with the level of retailer engagement received and believe this is testament to the interest and demand the deals have generated in consumers.”



One-hour delivery slots offered at The Fragrance Shop The Fragrance Shop is offering one-hour delivery slots with online purchases thanks to a new partnership with delivery service Shutl.

The retailer has teamed up with the service in a bid to enhance the customer experience by putting consumers in control of deliveries.

Previously, products on The Fragrance Shop website could be delivered via a standard, next day or nominated day service. But the retailer noticed that its next day and ‘click and collect’ services were the most popular options.

Mark Kelly, Head of e-Commerce at The Fragrance Shop, explained: “Fragrances are typically purchased as a last minute gift, so speed and flexibility of delivery is important. We want to maximise on this by making it easier for customers to make these guilt-free, eleventh-hour purchases.”

Consumers can now choose either immediate delivery or select a one-hour timeslot of their choice. Shutl will then direct a carrier to the nearest The Fragrance Shop to collect the item for delivery.

The Fragrance Shop says that this means their 177 UK stores will effectively act as mini-warehouses.

Kelly added: “Shutl enables us to interact with our customers quickly, and in the manner of their choosing. This doesn’t just give customers greater control over when they receive their purchases, but by keeping the delivery time short, they are less likely to change or cancel their order or contact customer services for delivery updates.”

Source: Cosmetics Business 17th August 2016


Sales In Scotland Fall In JulyRetail sales across Scotland were down in July, even as the rest of the UK recorded growth, according to new estimates by the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC).

The SRC retail sales monitor, produced in association with KPMG, said sales in Scotland were down 1.8%, compared to a 1.9% increase across the UK, a development it attributed to lower prices and poor weather. Some of the worst affected categories were clothing and footwear, although sales of TVs (partly due to the Rio Games) and mobile phones were up.

David Lonsdale, Director of SRC, noted: “Total retail sales in Scotland – once adjusted for falling shop prices – eased down last month which was unfortunate after two successive months of growth. Grocery sales slipped following three consecutive months of improvement, and non-food sales faltered as a result of declines in clothing and footwear despite heavy end of season discounting.”

David McCorquodale, KPMG head of retail, added: “It’s far too early to call the Scottish sales figures for July a barometer of the Brexit vote impact. The consequences, good or bad, will take some time to be negotiated and even longer to be felt in the consumer’s purse. Rather, the weather was, as ever, the driver across the board and deflation was the co-driver in the food segment.”



John Lewis Weekly Sales Hurt By Good Weather, Waitrose RiseThe John Lewis department store chain has reported a drop in its most recent weekly sales, hurt by a bout of warm weather, but sister chain Waitrose reported an increase.

For the week ending 13 August, the overall John Lewis Partnership saw its sales decline by 0.1% to £194.12m, as a 2.3% drop to £71.4m at John Lewis offset a 1.1% increase to £122.7m at Waitrose.

John Lewis said footfall was down during the “challenging” week, as more people headed outdoors or on holidays. Sales of Fashion were down 2.6% year-on-year, despite demand for summer wear. EHT sales were down by 2.2%, while Home reported a 1.4% decrease.

Waitrose saw sales grow by 1.2% when excluding fuel, as the good weather resulted in increased demand for summer-y food & drink. Rosé wines saw sales surge by 26%, barbecue meats and burger buns registered a 20% increase, while ice creams recorded a 17% jump, and salads reported a 10% gain.



easyFoodstore: store extension and new European suppliers easyGroup's grocery venture easyFoodstore is looking to increase the sales space of its debut store in Park Royal as it brings more products to the mix by working with new suppliers.

Trial to continue after store extensionThe initial easyFoodstore proposition continues to be tweaked and tested before the company will make a decision on whether or not to roll the concept out. In an interview with The Grocer, easyGroup's director of communications, Richard Shackleton, has revealed that the company has plans to extend its current 750 sq ft store by knocking through to the easyBus offices next door, which will then be located on the upper floor. There is currently no confirmed timeframe for this work to commence, so it seems unlikely that the concept would begin to roll out before the end of the year if the trial proves successful.

Changes to hours, parking and rangeSince the store's opening in February 2016, some changes have already been made as the company learns about its shoppers. Opening hours have been amended from 9am-6pm to 10am-5pm, however the store remains open Monday to Friday. According to Shackleton, the store's customer demographic is mainly at home during the day and so there is no need to open in the early morning, evenings, or at the weekend. Other significant changes include the addition of customer parking, due to customer difficulty in carrying their purchases home on the bus, and more carbohydrate products. While the company was hoping to add household products, the 25p price point makes it difficult to do so profitably.

Working with European wholesalerseasyFoodstore's main two suppliers so far have been wholesalers Booker and Bestway, however recently it has 'thrown the net a bit wider' and is looking further afield. The retailer has begun working with wholesalers in Europe, suggesting a strategy to introduce lesser-known private-label brands to maintain the low price-point.

Source: IGD 17th August 2016

http://retailanalysis.igd.com/Hub.aspx?id=23&tid=3&nid=14867&app=10


Kingfisher Q2 Growth Unhurt By Brexit WorriesKingfisher has reported a solid set of results for its fiscal second quarter, and said it had not seen any impact from the Brexit vote.

For the three months ending 31 July, sales were up 8.4% to £3bn, with like-for-like sales growing by 3% (although this was down from the 3.6% in the first quarter). LFL sales were up 7.2% the UK and Ireland, with the B&Q banner recording a 5.6% increase and Screwfix seeing a jump of 13.3%.

In France, underlying sales were down 3.2%, hurt by the poor weather and workers’ strikes. However, results were better in Poland, with LFL sales up 7.3%.

CEO Véronique Laury admitted that there was uncertainty following the referendum, but added: “There has been no clear evidence of an impact on demand so far on our businesses.”



SPAR Offers New Weekly Deals Ahead Of Bank HolidaySPAR UK is running a series of weekly promotional deals for shoppers, to help retailers drive sales during key events this year, all supported by a national media programme.

Coming up in August is a burst of weekly deals around the Bank Holiday, which will run from 25 – 31 August. This activity will offer promotions on brands including Stella, Ben & Jerry’s, Coca-Cola, Perlezza Prosecco and Cathedral City.

It will be backed up by SPAR’s Bank HoliYAY media creative, as well as activity on social media, radio and mobile advertising.

Laura McNally, SPAR UK Senior Marketing Manager, said: “This activity focusing on Bank Holidays, Christmas and the New Year, and is set to encourage new shoppers to visit our retailers and existing shoppers to shop with them more often. The Summer Bank HoliYAY campaign also helps amplify our messages and attract shoppers to our stores, including the elusive millennials, who a share of our marketing will target directly”.



Asda suffers worst quarterly performance on record Asda has recorded a 7.5% drop in LFL sales on last year.

Underperformance is being addressed "with urgency"Walmart's financial presentation confirms that falling footfall has been the most significant driver of Asda's 7.5% decline in the three months ending 30th June; contributing 80%. The remaining 20% is due to reduced spend from existing shoppers.This underlines the size of the task at hand for Asda. Shifting lapsed shoppers' perceptions sufficiently to encourage them back into store can be a lengthy process, particularly if they are satisfied with the retail experience available elsewhere and are not consciously looking to alter their shopping behaviour. Asda's determination not to participate in what it perceives as the excessive use of margin eroding, tactical price cuts to drive short-term traffic is a further challenge to overcome. Indeed Walmart Chief Executive Doug McMillon has asserted that whilst he is "confident in the new leadership team" which is addressing Asda's sustained decline "with urgency", the turnaround "will take time.“

Marketing Communications will be more important than everMr McMillon confirmed that Asda's strategy to turn things round remains grounded in "simplifying and strengthening" the offer and "improving the retail basics"; improved availability, assortment discipline, lowering costs and strategic price investments. Whilst loyal customers will experience and benefit from these improvements first hand, Asda's challenge will be to communicate these improvements more effectively and compellingly to shoppers outside of its current customer base and encourage them in store.The appointment of Andy Murray in the early months of 2016 as CMO has been an important step in this direction, whilst Asda's fledgling partnership with celebrity chef James Martin has ushered in a new marketing identity based around value as opposed to low prices. Nevertheless today's results are a reminder that there will be no quick fixes; consistency in message and subsequent shopper experience are crucial to building momentum over a period of time.

What's next?New Asda CEO Sean Clarke has spoken of the work ahead as "one of the biggest journeys of reinvention in our history." The coming weeks and months will reveal Mr Clarke's specific plans for reversing this performance, with the industry taking significant interest in Walmart International CEO David Cheesewright's recent comments that Asda would "shift the balance from protecting profit to protecting share".With Asda having already committed to a £1.5 billion investment in lowering the price differential to the discounters to within 5%, we await to see how Asda's prioritisation of "protecting share" translates into its ongoing trading strategy.



Lidl UK: driving non-food sales with new offer day Lidl is making a change to its Lidl Offer days in a move to drive more sales, after research revealed an interesting shopper trend.

Lidl Offers move from Monday to Sunday Recent shopper research by YouGov for Lidl has revealed that there is a 'clear trend' of shoppers buying more non-food items on a Sunday. As a result, Lidl will be changing its Lidl Offer days from Monday and Thursday to Sunday and Thursday. The move will commence as of Sunday 4 September, with Lidl it kicking off with seasonal DIY products at prices up to £60.

"Key area of the business"Talking about the promotional change, Lidl UK purchasing director, Matthew Nobbs, has said 'Our non-food products, which range from fashion to DIY, are a key area of the business and the 'middle of Lidl' has historically been extremely popular with shoppers.'

Focus on insight with new robust data and blogLidl's focus on understanding its customers is further highlighted by the recent news that Lidl is building a new data hub that will allow it to produce more insight than ever. Locally in the UK, Lidl has set up a blog for its fans, or 'Lidlers', where they can post product reviews, comments, and generally feel part of a Lidl community. By becoming increasingly shopper-centric, we can expect Lidl to win new shoppers and drive more sales across its expanding estate.


http://retailanalysis.igd.com/Hub.aspx?id=13&tid=1&rid=65&nid=15644


Tesco follows Night Tube launch with 24hr storesTesco has announced that a number of its stores across London will open 24 hours in line with the new Night Tube schedule as it looks to benefit from trade from late night and early morning travellers.

From Friday 19 August Tesco will trial opening seven additional stores for 24 hours on Friday and Saturdays along the Victoria and Central lines.

Martin Smith, Tesco's London convenience director, said: "London is such a vibrant and exciting place to live, work and visit and the Night Tube provides people with a great way to experience the city at a time that suits them best.

“At Tesco we're always looking for new ways to serve London's customers whenever it is most convenient to them. That's why we're delighted to announce these new opening hours at select store, helping to make life easier for those either working late or enjoying London’s nightlife.”

To mark the launch of the extended hours, Tesco will set up ‘Hydration Stations’ at the front of stores running from 3am-7am on 19 and 20 August where store staff will hand out free Tesco’s Finest freshly squeezed orange juice and cold bottled water to customers.

Source: Retail Bulletin 19th August 2016

Macroview Weekly News updateYour window on the latest trends in Packaged Groceries

Stephen Hall

Friday 19th August

Weekly FMCG News Update!

Food

Transcript of Weekly FMCG News Update!