Baking & Snack - May 2020 - 22

E-COMMERCE

How has the CORONAVIRUS affected how often
you shop for groceries online?
COMPARED WITH
How concerned are you about being in public
spaces with the CORONAVIRUS spreading?
I am shopping online for groceries more

34%

56%

I am shopping online for groceries the same amount

20%

53%

20%

I am shopping online for groceries less

39%

23%

Very concerned
Not all concerned

37%
Somewhat concerned
I'm not sure

CivicScience

US CPG sales highlight an unprecedented
change in shopper behavior
Dollar percentage change vs. year-ago period

+91%

Online
In store

+45%

+29%
+9%
Week ending
2/22

Week ending
2/29

Week ending
3/7

Week ending
3/14

Nielsen Ecommerce measurement powered by Rakuten

56% OF YOUNG PEOPLE,
43% OF MIDDLE-AGED
PEOPLE AND EVEN 25% OF
THOSE 55 OR OLDER HAVE
INCREASED THEIR ONLINE
GROCERY SHOPPING

AlixPartners

22 Baking & Snack May 2020 / www.bakingbusiness.com

Despite Nielsen's reported $8.5 billion CPG sales increase - online and in store - COVID-19 is rapidly
changing how Americans live their day-to-day lives, and
that's reflected in sales data for certain categories.
As the pandemic wears on, IRI data suggests that total
store sales may no longer be elevated by the runs on nonedible products such as paper goods and household items.
"It's food and beverage that's now driving sales week
over week," said Jonna Parker, team lead for the IRI
Center of Excellence in an April 16 webinar with IDDBA.
She indicated that at the end of March, IRI data showed
an almost 67% increase in dollar sales for food and beverage e-commerce over the same time the previous year.
"Click-and-collect is the difference maker," she said,
noting that this type of fulfillment directly from the retailer for in-person pickup accounted for 77% of food
and beverage online purchases. About 23%, she noted,
were for local delivery or shipping.
"When we're talking about fresh food, it's retailerdriven," Ms. Parker said. "That's not to say that Instacart
or Amazon Prime aren't important - they are - but in
the grander scheme of things, folks are looking for the
store to fulfill their needs because there's a trust factor,
especially with fresh food."

Popular purchases
The pandemic is not only a health crisis but also an economic one. While the far-reaching financial effects are
yet to be fully realized, early indicators can be seen in
how brand loyalties are shifting across several categories.
AlixPartners, a management consulting firm specializing in go-to-market strategies, recently released
a consumer products pulse survey that included more
than 1,000 consumers 18 years and older. In that study,
17% of respondents indicated they tried different brands
for bread and other baked products, and 20% said they
had tried the private-label versions. While out-of-stock
was the primary driver, 30% said cost was also a factor.
Economic fallout from the stay-at-home orders will likely
drive that number up even further in the weeks ahead.
In IDDBA's April 16 webinar, Ms. Parker noted that
more than a third (34%) of consumers said they plan to
spend part their CARES stimulus money on everyday
essentials including groceries, though it may not be an
immediate boost to the food and beverage sector as people will put that money first and foremost into paying
rent or mortgage and adding it to savings.
Much of the motivation to shop online has come
from COVID-19, but where and how consumers shop
can have multiple factors. For online grocery purchases,
AlixPartners broke down the numbers by income. While
57% of respondents who reported using Amazon had an
annual income of $100,000 or more, those who made less

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Baking & Snack - May 2020

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