Western Europe

To help companies understand which categories are most primed for sustained e-commerce growth post-pandemic, Euromonitor developed the E-Commerce Readiness Model. This tool uses analytic modelling to determine which countries and categories have the…

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered the most severe global recession in nearly a century. Businesses are operating in a world of anxieties and uncertainties, not knowing what will be the new normal or when output and consumer spending…

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered the most severe global recession since World War II. In Q4 2020, the end of the pandemic started as countries began administering effective vaccines among the population; however, vaccine distribution…

Chocolate confectionery was hit by the loss of impulse/on-the-go sales, fewer gifting occasions and a disrupted Easter period in 2020 due to Coronavirus (COVID-19), significantly affecting categories such as boxed assortments and seasonal chocolate.…

With much-reduced impulse and on-the-go consumption occasions in 2020 due to Coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdowns, closures and travel restrictions, impulse and unpackaged ice cream sales declined, resulting in a negative performance by the overall…

The digital revolution has been rewiring retail for years, leading to new business models, commerce ecosystems and channels for reaching and engaging consumers. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this transition, as e-commerce became the default…

The global outlook has improved as of Q1 2021, thanks to vaccination progress in many developed countries. Nevertheless, the recovery prospects remain distant for most economies in the face of the spread of new, more infectious variants of the virus.…

In Western Europe, the preventative health trend was accelerated by consumers’ rising health concerns due to the 2020 global pandemic. This resulted in several product launches positioned under the immune boost and/or wellbeing umbrellas. This report…

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about significant changes in business models and consumer behaviour, as well as altering the ways and the geography many of us live, work, study and play. Understanding what changes will stick after the pandemic…

As consumers prepare fewer meals overall, while demanding more assistance for the ones they do, spending and brand equity will accrue to those companies providing fresh prepared meals on demand, from delivery aggregators to retailers, restaurant…

Retail sales of savoury snacks increased strongly in 2020, with people snacking more in the extra time spent at home due to Coronavirus (COVID-19). While growth slowed markedly in 2021, sales were still at much higher levels than prior to the…

The report examines inflation level and drivers globally and in the key countries. Global inflation is forecast to accelerate due to higher energy and commodity prices, disruptions in supply chains and weaker business confidence. Impact varies…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries. Global inflation is reaching a peak, although geopolitical risks and uncertainty in the energy market remain key risks. The impact varies between countries, with…

After seeing dynamic pandemic-related growth in 2020 due to home seclusion, minimal changes in value sales were seen in 2021 and 2022, despite restrictions easing. With rising health-consciousness, a move towards snack bars and fruit snacks is being…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries. Global inflation is reaching a peak, although geopolitical risks and uncertainty in the energy market remain key risks. The impact varies between countries, with…

Now in its seventh edition, this report explores the top digital shopper trends that will redefine commerce the most in the year ahead. Some of the trends included in this edition touch on topics such as second-hand shopping, community group buying,…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries. In 2023, global inflation is expected to ease from its peak in 2022, but remaining significantly above-trend. Geopolitical risks and uncertainty in the energy market are…

In the upcoming years, consumers and businesses face an array of challenges, with income inequality, mass migration and rising uncertainty about another crisis being among the major ones. Nevertheless, within this lie untapped opportunities. This…

Private label – retailers’ alternatives to brands – tend to benefit from inflation. However, despite record inflation in France, Germany and the UK, the market share of private label in the three countries remained broadly stable across FMCGs in…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries in Q4 2023 and 2024. Global inflation is moderating, although divergence remains among the key economies. Higher volatility in the energy markets and disruption of…

Western European snacks sales were relatively unaffected by the pandemic, other than showing a slight demand spike in retail value terms when COVID-19 hit the region in 2020. However, high inflation in the post-pandemic period negatively impacted the…

Technological advances in 2024 will continue to reshape consumer behaviour. This annual report explores the top five digital shopper trends that will redefine commerce the most in the year ahead. Some of the trends included in this report’s edition…

Sales of chocolate confectionery struggled in 2023, as the cost of key ingredients including sugar and cocoa hit the manufacturers hard, with players forced to pass on the increase in production costs to the consumer. Indulgence has long maintained…

Chocolate confectionery in Italy in 2024 is following the general trend of value being supported over volume due to lingering inflationary pressures. However, any volume challenges in subcategories are being balanced by the popularity of seasonal…

Gum saw strong growth in 2023 in retail volume and current value terms as the category continued to recover from the huge decline in sales seen during the height of the pandemic. However, while the category has continued to see healthy growth in 2024…

Gum in Italy continues to achieve positive value and volume sales in 2024. Notably, gum consumption is strongly related to an out-and-about, sociable lifestyle, whereas such activities were curbed during the era of the pandemic restrictions and…

Sales of ice cream declined sharply in retail volume terms in 2023, with France experiencing lower temperatures and greater instability in the weather than in 2022. Whilst value sales grew this was due to price rises, with volume sales fell across…

Ice cream remains in a small negative volume slump in Italy in 2024, albeit with sales improved from 2023. Meanwhile, value is better supported by inflated prices. The overall negative performance is being affected by a slump in take-home ice cream,…

Savoury snacks is having another good year in 2024 although certain categories are seeing a much stronger performance than others in terms of volume growth. Potato chips, for instance, is seeing solid growth in volume terms while the category’s value…

Savoury snacks are seeing a positive performance in Italy in 2024, in both volume and value terms. This is strongly supported by the “snackification” trend, whereby consumers eat fewer, full, sit-down meals and, instead, snack more often during the…

Snacks continues to see strong growth in current value terms in 2024, largely boosted by inflation and price rises. However, snacks also looks set to deliver volume growth, albeit with sales of with certain products declining as consumers switched to…

Sales in snacks in Italy in 2024 are being characterised by growth in terms of value, while volume tends to be a little lower due to lingering inflationary pressures. That said, inflation is notably easing in 2024, thus heralding a gradual return to…

Sales of sugar confectionery saw further progress in 2023, with retail volume sales exceeding pre-pandemic levels. The category has continued to see positive growth in retail volume terms in 2024 boosted by the revival of children’s birthday parties…

Sugar confectionery is achieving positive sales in both value and volume terms in Italy in 2024. However, performance differs between categories, with boiled sweets and pastilles, gummies, jellies and chews seeing good growth in both value and volume…

Sweet biscuits, snack bars and fruit snacks looks set to see a return to growth in retail volume terms in 2024 after a challenging couple of years in which sales declined. Growing health concerns played a role in dampening demand in 2022/2023, with…

Sales of biscuits, snack bars, and fruit snacks in Italy in 2024 are being supported by a particular emphasis on protein/energy bars. This phenomenon can be attributed to several reasons. Firstly, there is a growing awareness of the importance of…

In 2024, chocolate confectionery in Ireland remains impacted by the global cocoa and sugar shortages, which continue to drive strong price increases. High single-digit price hikes follow on from the previous year’s double-digit rises. The…

Chocolate confectionery is seeing healthy growth in current value terms in 2024, although sales are stagnating in volume terms. Fluctuations in cocoa prices in 2024 have contributed to the positive value growth with manufacturers being forced to…

Chocolate confectionery in the Netherlands is recording robust retail current value growth in 2024, though retail volume sales are falling, and a faster rate than was recorded for the previous year. For the second consecutive year, average unit…

Following a period where inflation reached an historic 40-year high in 2023, the average unit price of chocolate confectionery in the UK increased by double digits. The heightened costs across the supply chain, including transportation, energy,…

Gum in Ireland is recording marginally positive retail volume sales growth in Ireland in 2024, following on from a pattern set in 2023 when inflation impacted consumer spending. Pressures remain in 2024 even though inflation has slowed somewhat.…

Gum sales exceeded expectations and had already reached pre-pandemic volume sales levels by the end of 2023. In 2024, the category continues to grow albeit at a slower pace compared to the previous two years when the category was recovering from the…

Gum is among the snacks categories losing significant volume sales in the Netherlands in 2024, thanks largely to persistent unit price hikes continuing on from 2023. Consumers are opting to purchase gum less frequently, resulting in further volume…

Maintaining its positive performance from 2022 and 2023, gum in the UK continues to enjoy positive growth in both volume and value terms in 2024. The category, which suffered significant losses during the pandemic due to limited time spent outside of…

Ice cream in Ireland in 2024 is recovering, having been one of the snacks categories most severely impacted by inflationary pressures. The heightened cost of milk, sugar and cocoa, key ingredients in ice cream production, led to high single0digit…

In 2024, ice cream sales have seen steady volume growth, thanks in part to the strong performance of impulse ice cream and the solid performance of multi-pack ice cream. While large retail chains typically do not offer impulse ice cream for on-the-go…

Ice cream in the Netherlands is suffering volume sales declines in 2024. Amid a shift from retail to foodservice, the increase in the latter is not enough to offset the losses in the former in terms of total volume sales. Persistent price rises are…

2023 witnessed another year of double-digit price increases for ice cream in the UK due to persistent cost pressures in raw materials, such as milk, sugar, edible oils and cocoa beans, key ingredients in the category’s production, combined with the…

Savoury snacks in Ireland is seeing sustained demand though a fairly flat performance in 2024. The category suffered from steep price increases in 2023, resulting from rising costs of raw materials oil, wheat and potatoes. In retail volume terms,…

Savoury snacks has seen healthy volume growth in 2024, with the difference between value and volume growth diminishing after two years of high inflation. An increase in socialising and a rise in inbound and domestic tourism is contributing positively…