Western Europe

Retail adult incontinence in Belgium witnessed robust growth in both volume and value terms in 2023, largely propelled by the ageing population. The demographic shift has positively influenced demand for retail adult incontinence solutions,…

Nappies/diapers/pants, as a product area, encountered challenges in 2023, marked by high inflation and diminishing volume sales attributed to a declining birth rate in Belgium. Concurrently, private labels and discounters have been gaining market…

Menstrual care in Belgium faces challenges amidst high inflation, resulting in a minor decrease in volume sales in 2023. The ageing population contributes to reduced demand for menstrual care products. Furthermore, the exploration of alternative…

Just like grocery retailers as a whole, hypermarkets saw strong growth in value sales in 2023, although this was almost entirely price driven as inflation remained at unusually high levels for a second consecutive year. Demand itself only showed…

Consumer restraint affected the entire retail sector in 2023, but it was particularly pronounced in home products specialists. Consumers had already invested heavily in their homes during the pandemic, when they were spending much more time at home.…

Driven by significant price increases, overall health and beauty specialists saw strong growth in value sales in Austria in 2023, roughly at the same level as retail offline overall. Consumers' willingness to spend in this category has generally…

General merchandise stores continued to significantly outperform retailing overall in terms of value sales growth due in the main to the continuing expansion and success of variety stores. It was one of the areas least affected by the generally sharp…

Just like grocery retailers as a whole, discounters saw strong growth in value sales in 2023, although this was almost entirely price-driven as inflation remained at unusually high levels for a second consecutive year. Demand itself only showed…

Just like retail as a whole, direct selling saw significant growth in value sales in 2023, but it was entirely price-driven as inflation remained at unusually high levels for a second consecutive year. Given the focus of direct selling in Austria on…

Just like grocery retailers as a whole, convenience retailers saw strong growth in value sales in 2023, although this was almost entirely price driven as inflation remained at unusually high levels for a second consecutive year. Demand itself only…

Away-from-home tissue and hygiene in Belgium faced significant challenges in 2023, primarily due to the sharp increase in energy prices. This surge adversely affected various product areas. In the tissue segment, the hospitality industry experienced…

Consumer restraint affected the entire retail market in 2023, but appliances and electronics specialists was one of the categories most negatively affected.

Although disposable income slowly recovered in 2023 compared to repeatedly high inflation, consumers remained relatively frugal in their spending on apparel and footwear. Many made savings by opting for apparel or footwear and reduced their shopping…

In 2023, vending reached a valuation of EUR2 billion in France. A substantial proportion of that – amounting to EUR1.6 billion, was derived from machine operations. Meanwhile, the remaining EUR600 million stemmed from the procurement of a diverse…

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.…

In a bid to increase brand awareness, several chained players in other categories with consumer foodservice in Spain, including Papa John’s Pizzerias in limited service restaurants and Foster’s Hollywood in full-service restaurants, have begun…

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…

The self-service cafeterias model in Spain is closely linked to high transit locations, such as airports, railway stations and bus stations. In this regard, both inbound and domestic tourism play an important role in the growth of the category, and…

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…

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.