Sales of branded Cheddar have taken a serious hit as cash-strapped shoppers increasingly look to own-label products to manage price inflation.
Over the past year, volume sales of branded Cheddar have declined 3.2%, to 100,425 tonnes, while own-label sales rose 6.5%, to 126,670 tonnes [Kantar Worldpanel 52w/e 10 July 2011]. Own-label also outperformed brands on value sales, reporting a 5.9% year-on-year rise, to £744.8m, compared with a 1.1% rise, to £620.2m, for brands.
The latest performance represents a remarkable reversal of fortunes for own-label and branded Cheddar. Between 2009 and 2010, own-label volume sales declined 6%, from 126,605 tonnes to 119,024 tonnes, while branded Cheddar rose 21.9%, to 103,219 tonnes [Kantar 52w/e 13 June 2010 vs 14 June 2009].
Matthew Southam, senior retail and consumer insight analyst at DairyCo, said mild and medium Cheddars had driven the slump in branded Cheddar. Value sales of mild fell 21%, to £16.6m, in the past year, with medium down 9% to £10.7m, while volume sales fell by 31% and 8% respectively. "They've had such a severe decline that it's brought the category down. Mature is just about holding up, but the others have slipped," he said.
With consumers becoming increasingly price-conscious, products that were not heavily promoted struggled to sell, he added. "It's the mature Cheddars that are generally on promotion, and these mild and mediums aren't, and that's probably why we've seen the switch."
Although the normal rsp of most branded Cheddars was higher than the price of own-label products, high levels of promotions meant branded Cheddar had, in fact, been selling for the same price or less than own-label, Southam said. "When it's not on promotion, consumers are probably trying own-label," he added.
Overall sales of Cheddar have increased 3.7% in value and 2% in volume over the past 12 months.
Over the past year, volume sales of branded Cheddar have declined 3.2%, to 100,425 tonnes, while own-label sales rose 6.5%, to 126,670 tonnes [Kantar Worldpanel 52w/e 10 July 2011]. Own-label also outperformed brands on value sales, reporting a 5.9% year-on-year rise, to £744.8m, compared with a 1.1% rise, to £620.2m, for brands.
The latest performance represents a remarkable reversal of fortunes for own-label and branded Cheddar. Between 2009 and 2010, own-label volume sales declined 6%, from 126,605 tonnes to 119,024 tonnes, while branded Cheddar rose 21.9%, to 103,219 tonnes [Kantar 52w/e 13 June 2010 vs 14 June 2009].
Matthew Southam, senior retail and consumer insight analyst at DairyCo, said mild and medium Cheddars had driven the slump in branded Cheddar. Value sales of mild fell 21%, to £16.6m, in the past year, with medium down 9% to £10.7m, while volume sales fell by 31% and 8% respectively. "They've had such a severe decline that it's brought the category down. Mature is just about holding up, but the others have slipped," he said.
With consumers becoming increasingly price-conscious, products that were not heavily promoted struggled to sell, he added. "It's the mature Cheddars that are generally on promotion, and these mild and mediums aren't, and that's probably why we've seen the switch."
Although the normal rsp of most branded Cheddars was higher than the price of own-label products, high levels of promotions meant branded Cheddar had, in fact, been selling for the same price or less than own-label, Southam said. "When it's not on promotion, consumers are probably trying own-label," he added.
Overall sales of Cheddar have increased 3.7% in value and 2% in volume over the past 12 months.
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