Western Europe

Retail e-commerce continued to stabilise in Ireland in 2023, following the significant boom seen during the era of the pandemic, when both consumers and retailers alike were forced to embrace the online channel. Whilst footfall has returned to…

The stigma surrounding adult incontinence is gradually subsiding in Switzerland, with adults becoming more confident to purchase retail adult incontinence products. Growing demand for light adult incontinence products is underpinned by the…

Retail adult incontinence in Austria recorded strong growth in current value terms in 2023. While this was partly due to inflationary pressures, such products also experienced a heightened demand, due to the growing number of consumers suffering from…

The interest and demand for personal accessories in Switzerland, encompassing bags and luggage, jewellery, traditional and connected watches, and writing instruments, were poised to remain robust in 2023. However, following two years of robust growth…

Demand for nappies/diapers/pants in Switzerland continued declining at a steady pace in 2023. Significantly fewer babies were born in 2022 and 2023, following the baby boom observed in 2021. The rising cost of living and fears about the future have…

Demand for nappies, diapers and pants in Austria increased in 2023. While many women postponed their plans to start a family during the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of babies aged 0-1 years in the population rose in 2022 and remained at a stable…

Demand for menstrual care in Switzerland continues to normalise in the post-pandemic era. Retail volume and value sales posted solid growth in 2023, with the latter fuelled in part by inflation and higher costs of raw materials and production. Since…

Menstrual care in Austria saw only modest growth in current value terms in 2023. Moreover, this increase was entirely attributable to inflationary pressures, as rising raw material and supply chain costs led to an increase in unit prices. The cost of…

Building on the positive momentum from the previous year, jewellery in Switzerland witnessed dynamic growth in 2023, led by the growing demand for costume jewellery. This trend, reminiscent of 2022, underscored shifting consumer preferences towards…

Hypermarkets struggled in Ireland in 2023, due to a variety of factors. One such is the fact such stores, being large in size, were strongly affected by the hikes in energy bills and associated utilities. This made it challenging for hypermarket…

Home products specialists saw stagnant growth in Ireland in 2023. This is attributed to the boom in home improvements over the pandemic lockdowns, which has since eased off. Added to which, inflationary pressures and the cost-of-living crisis are…

Sales in health and beauty specialists slumped into a negative performance in Ireland in 2023, following a positive pattern in 2022. We note that the 2022 growth was primarily driven by the growing health and wellbeing and preventative health trends,…

The performance of general merchandise stores in Ireland in 2023 was being supported by the positive trajectory of department stores. There was a strong rebound in department stores in 2022, following the disruptions seen during the era of the…

Discounters maintained growth in Ireland in 2023, thanks to offering affordable goods to price-sensitive consumers. Indeed, discounters continue to expand their ranges of products, thus, to appeal to a wider range of consumers who are seeking…

Direct selling remained in a relatively steep slump in Ireland in 2023, due to strong competition from a variety of other shopping channels which offer wider ranges of goods at lower prices – both online and offline. Added to which, inflationary…

Inflationary pressures, notably in food, drove value growth in convenience retailers in 2023. Here we note the cost of everyday essentials, such as butter, milk, flour, and eggs. While this supports value sales due to the higher prices, retailers in…

In 2023, bags and luggage witnessed a stagnant performance in terms of value sales growth in Switzerland, coupled with a slight decline in demand. Although demand remained robust compared to pre-pandemic levels, there was a slight dip from the…

Away-from-home tissue and hygiene in Switzerland registered strong growth in 2023 with demand rising in both the public and private sectors. Many individuals are back to working in an office, even if only part-time, which contributed to the growth in…

Away-from-home tissue and hygiene in Austria registered a positive performance in current value terms in 2023, following the significant growth of the previous year. However, this was mainly due to prevailing inflationary pressures, as rising raw…

Appliances and electronics specialists saw sales plummet in Ireland in 2023, following positive growth in 2022. This slump is attributed to consumers seeing lower spending power due to inflationary pressures and the cost-of-living crisis, whereas in…