France

In 2023, skin care in France saw growth in both retail volume and current value terms, and was one of the best performing categories within beauty and personal care. Premium skin care led value growth, but mass skin care also showed a positive…

Despite maintaining a slight retail volume decline in 2023, oral care in France saw solid current value growth, with almost all categories, except mouth fresheners, showing positive performances, due to increasing unit prices. Ongoing inflation in…

During 2020 and into early 2021, supermarkets saw a surge in customer visits and sales in response to pandemic-era lockdowns and driven by the convenience of location, manageable store sizes, and the availability of click-and-collect services.…

The French overall retail market saw modest growth in terms of current value sales in 2023, which, while seemingly robust, was primarily driven by inflation and a return to normalcy following the challenging conditions and lingering effects of the…

The initial phase of the pandemic saw proximity-focused convenience stores and supermarkets thrive as travel curbs encouraged local shopping. With the return of pre-pandemic routines, hypermarket outlets have seen a surge in footfall, benefitting…

Toilet care was one of the few categories to see growth in retail volume terms in 2023. Rim blocks saw a return to growth in 2023 with sales benefiting from the convenience of these products as consumers returned to busy lifestyles away from the…

2023 was a tough year for sales of surface care with volume sales declining while value growth was due to price increases rather than an increase in demand. With consumers’ disposable income being squeezed they were forced to rationalise their…

Consumer foodservice in France once again witnessed dynamic value growth in 2023 building on the recovery seen in 2021-2022. The absence of COVID-19-related restrictions, the return of tourists, and favourable weather conditions all contributed to…

The influence of sustainability is changing the landscape of packaging materials across industries, driving a marked trend towards eco-friendly solutions at the same time as adapting to changing consumer demands. Sustainable packaging materials are…

Sales in nuts manage to remain in positive volume figures, with growth stronger in foodservice and institutional volume than seen in retail volume. This is because consumers have returned to out-of-home lifestyles following the era of the pandemic…

Dog food registered double-digit growth in current value terms in 2023 but this was largely due to the impact of price rises with sales declining in retail volume terms in both dry and wet dog food. A similar pattern has continued into 2024 with…

The quick commerce (q-commerce) sector in France, with its ultra-fast grocery delivery services, expanded rapidly during the COVID-19 pandemic, gaining ground across urban areas. This growth was fuelled by lockdowns that pushed demand for services…

Home insecticides continued to record growth in retail volume terms in 2023, continuing the pattern seen in the previous year. France experienced one of its hottest summers on record with the weather playing a key role in driving the demand for home…

Sales of bleach declined in retail volume terms in 2023 with value growth largely due to price rises rather than an increase in demand. Nonetheless, while volume sales continued to decline in 2023 this was at a slower pace than expected, as rising…

As in 2022, the start of the academic school year in 2023 marked a poor performance for writing instruments with another drop in sales during the most crucial period for this category. Demand for writing instruments was positive in 2020 and 2021,…

The approval of medical cannabis has been postponed again to 2024 according to official sources. However, it is estimated that its full implementation will be further delayed. France began its medical trial in 2021. It was set to be a 2-year pilot…

The performance of pulses tends to vary depending on economic factors. For example, tinned and canned pulses are perceived as offering better value-for-money as they require less cooking time and are more convenience, whilst fresh pulses need more…

Sales in fruits are seeing a mixed performance, as the category finds a balance between value and volume – lower unit prices support volume growth, whereas inflationary pressures mean higher value but lower volume consumption, especially regarding…

Climate factors are influencing fresh food in France in 2023. After the significant heatwave in the summer of 2022, 2023 saw more rain with some hot spells and droughts in certain areas, which affected crops in the agricultural regions in different…

The demand for organic products for babies and children, including those labelled as gluten-free or allergy-free, is on the rise in France. This trend is particularly evident in the strong performance of powder special baby milk, including…

Hypermarkets and commercial centres were back in the game in 2022 and 2023 thanks to the comeback to store-based retailing as COVID-19 fears subsided. This provided an excellent opportunity for the recovery of self-service cafeterias as the wide…

Traditionally, glass jars have been the dominant pack type for chocolate spreads. While they still continue to clearly lead unit packaging volumes, their share has been decreasing in this category. HDPE bottles and squeezable plastic tubes are…

In 2023, home and garden in France registered a decline in current value sales, largely attributed to macroeconomic factors dampening consumer confidence and reducing expenditure on such items. The prevailing high level of inflation in France,…

Sales of cats and dogs in pet shops and superstores and garden centres is now forbidden due to a new law that came into effect on 1 January 2024, but the sale of small mammals, birds, fish and reptiles remains authorised. Nonetheless, in late 2022,…

Men’s grooming in France saw a marginal retail volume decline in 2023, but showed positive current value growth, and surpassed the pre-COVID-19 figure in value terms. This growth was fuelled by significant price growth across categories, driven by…

Volume falls in nappies/diapers/pants in France in 2023 were relatively gentle, with the category’s essential products leaving little room for substantial purchasing declines. The recorded decrease was mainly a result of France’s falling birth rate,…

In 2023, retail e-commerce overall recorded positive current value growth in France, following the category’s decline in 2022. The count of active e-commerce sites remained on an upward trajectory, albeit at a moderated rate in 2023.

Pet shops and superstores in France remained resilient in 2023 despite economic constraints and squeezed household budgets. With consumers having continued to show dedication to their pets during the pandemic, when they spent substantially increased…

Street stalls/kiosks experienced a strong recovery in 2022, which continued into 2023. The category benefited from the end of the pandemic and the return to relative normalcy in terms of socialising and out-of-home activities. Sales also benefited…

Sales of toys and games in France managed to achieve small positive value growth in 2023, supported by a strong performance in video games offsetting the ongoing slump in traditional toys and games. Traditional toys and games continues to struggle in…

In terms of impact on volume sales, demographic trends supported adult incontinence more than any other category within tissue and hygiene in France in 2023. The country’s elderly population keeps on expanding, increasing the number of potential…

Full-service restaurants saw stronger growth in value and volume terms than limited-service restaurants in 2023, although this was in part due to the former seeing a more significant decline during the pandemic. Limited-service restaurants proved…

Sugar consumption continues to fall in France in retail terms, with sales otherwise supported by foodservice and institutional volume, alongside value being supported by inflationary price hikes. Local production in the 2022/2023 season was…

Sales of fish and seafood have fallen into the expected volume declines in 2023, due to high price rises alongside an ongoing drop in demand. The category is strongly supported by foodservice and institutional volumes, with the concept of fish on…

As France continued to emerge from the pandemic, work-from-home activities, which had been prevalent in 2020, when the pandemic first hit the country, were, to a great extent, coming to an end, with people returning to the office. After the spike in…

Department stores in France has witnessed a significant post-pandemic turnaround over 2021-23, recovering from a particularly challenging 2020, which marked one of the retail market's lowest performances. The strong rebound was driven by an increase…

Although volume sales continued to decline in bath and shower in France in 2023, slow current value growth was seen. This was driven by positive value performances across key categories, including body wash/shower gel, liquid soap, and intimate…

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners launched a new, universal 250ml returnable glass bottle for its Fuze Tea, Tropico, Sprite, Fanta and Minute Maid brands in France as part of its sustainable packaging initiatives. This change in pack size from the…

Tissue and hygiene in France saw continued robust current value growth in 2023, at double the rate of the previous year and marking the second consecutive year of rapid current value rises driven by persistent inflationary pressures. Despite supply…

As the cost of groceries continued to increase in 2023, small independent grocery stores faced intensified competition from chained outlets. Small local grocers suffer from limited bargaining power and struggle to manage rising operational expenses…

Limited-service restaurants saw healthy growth in current value terms in 2023 as well in terms of the number of transactions. Although this growth was not as strong as that seen in cafés/bars and full-service restaurants this was in large part due to…

Cafés/bars continued to show significant improvement in terms of the value and volume sales, with even the number of outlets increasing. Nonetheless, sales results could have been even better without the strikes and the impact of elevated inflation,…

Following on from increasing demand for bags and luggage in 2022 due to improving mobility, the category that had been battered by the impact of the pandemic and various lockdowns has witnessed another year of double-digit current value growth,…

Beauty and personal care in France saw positive current value growth in 2023, mainly driven by rising prices due to ongoing inflation in the country, which pushed up costs and prices, therefore supporting value growth. Although value sales recovered…

Sales of traditional and connected watches in France remain positive in 2023, notably due to the ongoing growth of inbound and domestic tourism, and consumers’ footfall in Paris and the larger cities of France. Luxury brands (EUR3,000-5,000)…

Following a sales slump in 2022, standard vacuum cleaners continued to struggle with a decrease in volumes in 2023. This resulted largely from the fact that 2020 and 2021 had been good years for the category. The era of the pandemic led to consumers…

Sales of staple foods have been negatively impacted by the elevated inflation that hit France in late 2022 and early 2023. As a result, the vast majority of prices went up across staple foods with volume sales either showing minimal growth or even…

Hosiery is another category in negative volume growth, while value is better supported by inflationary factors. Both sheer hosiery and non-sheer hosiery are showing such slumps, with sheer hosiery performing slightly better by a tiny margin. That…

Some trends given impetus during the pandemic remain relevant in France. As health and wellness trends continue to rise among the French population, sports, active lifestyles and the importance of daily movement continue to gain traction. The…

Lodging fared better in 2022 than had been expected and continues to perform well in 2023. 2020 and 2021 were a disaster for the hotel industry, with occupancy rates of 38% and 48% respectively, according to INSEE – French official statistics. The…