By: Steve Markenson, Director, Research and Insights, FMI
Our recent U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends: Holiday Season report finds when it comes to holiday plans, many shoppers
are concerned about the price of holiday meals (45%) more than travel or gifts. Still, most shoppers feel they are in control of their grocery shopping budgets and are adjusting their holiday meal shopping (71%) to address rising food prices. These adjustments include:
- Consulting a grocer’s loyalty app or digital channels for ways to save.
- Buying more store brands.
- Substituting ingredients for more affordable options.
- Sharing responsibilities for the menu, such as encouraging potluck.
We know food retailers are doing the best they can to ensure people can enjoy their traditional holiday meals. But is there more they can do? To find out, we turned to the Center for Food Integrity and MotivBase to dive deeper with a digital enthnography analysis of long-form online content (think chat room discussions instead of social media posts). The complete findings from this analysis will be shared on an online seminar October 21 at 10:00 AM EST and I highly recommend you tune in. Allow me to preview one insight that was particularly compelling to me regarding balancing time and budgets.
Time is Money and Money Is Time
MotivBase found consumers believe they can, “outwit inflation over the holidays by weighing when it’s more cost-efficient to pay for food delivery (to save time and money) or shop in person (to cut back on fees).” Even during this inflationary
environment, consumers are weighing the convenience of online shopping versus the potential cost-savings of the in-store experience. For example, some consumers, indicate utilizing subscription services to save on time and money.
What does this all mean for the food industry? Well, during this holiday season, when we know money will be tight, there is an opportunity to be supportive of the shopper with time saving solutions. Yes, shoppers are focused on savings at the checkout,
but they’re willing to invest in options that also save them time in the long run. Something for us all to consider as we move into the busiest – I mean, most wonderful – time of the year.
Tune in as we explore all five major insights from our digital enthnography on inflation and the holiday season.
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