With Christmas once again knocking on our door, retailers are gearing up for the festive bonanza.
Seasonal sandwiches jostle for space on shelves and turkey is once again back in vogue – but what will the Christmas period mean for fresh produce?
Christmas is a celebration of winter vegetables. From the best of roasties to peas, parsnips and carrots, the holidays are a time when shoppers load up on groceries from the fresh produce aisle – and would Christmas even be Christmas without the addition of Brussels sprouts?
So what can we expect from retailers’ promotional strategies in fresh produce this year? Usually a time for deep discounting, will the general retail move away from offers to everyday low pricing translate into the fresh produce aisle?
It seems unlikely. The fresh produce section invariably catches shoppers’ eyes like no other and retailers will want to capitalise on this. Attracting customers with great offers on fruit and veg creates a perception of value and contributes to the celebratory feel of Christmas food shopping as consumers stock their trolleys ahead of the big day.
With enjoyment up 7.2 per cent over the past four years as the primary reason for choosing fruit and veg, retailers also need to think about offering customers a greater variety of premium alternatives and unusual options, be that passionfruit for Christmas morning or Romanesco broccoli to dress up the festive lunch.
In recent years, we’ve seen supermarkets investing more heavily in fresh produce value tiers – economy items now comprise 6.3 per cent of value sales and 9.5 per cent of volume sales compared to 5.1 per cent and 7.8 per cent respectively in 2013.
Budget lines are important and offer great value, but retailers also must respond to shoppers who want to trade up over the festive season. With a captive audience at Christmas, grocers need to cater for customers who may want to save as well as those who are happy to splurge.
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