Firsthand market research

Firsthand market research data’ was the title of Trade Marketing Club’s meeting on 15 April in the BKIK headquarters. Leading experts from GfK, Nielsen and Ipsos analysed the past year and the latest research data. Changed consumer and shopper behaviour and the changes in the FMCG sector were in the limelight. Ákos Kozák, GfK’s managing director informed participants that the overall consumption of Hungarian households shrank by 7 percent and purchasing power fell by 15 percent.

Unemployment rate was 11 percent and the fear of people from losing their jobs holds back consumption and investments. The proportion of money spent on food by households is above 26 percent again, and the willingness to purchase diminished. The level of inflation was different across categories: among alcohol and tobacco products it was at 10 percent, while among food products it was only 4.4 percent.

Basket value is decreasing, but the number of shop visits and the number of shops visited both increased. Buying in promotion now has a 30 percent share. In 2009, the supermarket channel was the winner, gaining 270,000 new shoppers and a HUF 1,000 higher monthly spending. Eszter Melisek, Nielsen’s key account director highlighted that the Consumer Confidence Index has been stagnating since the middle of 2009. FMCG turnover grew by 1.9 percent in terms of value, despite a decrease in terms of volume. Nielsen ShopperTrends revealed that efficiency is the main criteria of choosing a store – ‘I find everything in the same store’ became the number one aspect. Most manufacturer brands were able to hold on to their positions, but private labels were able to grow. Examining sales in ten food categories, Nielsen found that the proportion of buying in promotion grew from 43 percent in 2008 to 46 percent in 2009.

Bíborka Kiss, market research director with Ipsos said that people were tired of news about the crisis and were hopeful about the economic recovery: last year only 7 percent was optimistic about economic prospects, but this proportion grew to 23 percent this year. Research by Ipsos showed that the penetration of private label products doubled during the recession and now 47 percent of the population buys these. When buying food, price and quality are equally important for consumers. Ipsos put consumers in three groups: 24 percent are the most optimistic, these are young, single, well-earning consumers who are loyal to brands; 37 percent are a bit more cautious, they are well-educated people with families who now spend more time at home; 35 percent are radical cost-cutters who come from all layers of society, they expect lower revenues and are not loyal to brands.