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Food retail in Romania could exceed 108 billion RON in 2022 against the background of the advance of consumption, but especially of the increase of inflationary pressures, shows an analysis carried out by KeysFin & RetailZoom.
"The turnover of food retail increased by almost 11.7 pct compared to 2020 and was 48 pct above the level of 2017, at 93 billion RON in 2021. For 2022, analysts estimate the approach to the threshold of 108 billion RON on the background of the advance of consumption, but especially of the accentuation of inflationary pressures," it is shown in the said analysis.
Local trade has registered a numerical decrease in recent years, but has consolidated good representations and significant shares of sales through chains and large, regional independent stores. The contribution of this retail channel brings a significant weight at the national level, of approximately 10 pct of the total national food retail sales, told Agerpres.
Local trade represented by local chains and supermarkets called Local Key Accounts (LKA) are building a proximity retail that competes more and more seriously with international retail chains. Numerically, this universe is represented by over 400 companies at the national level, which manage approximately 2,040 stores. The local trade represented by small, traditional stores is much wider, with 31,600 companies nationwide operating approximately 42,000 sales points, including all types of stores: general food profile, with specialized sales (areas), according to analysts KeysFin & RetailZoom.
According to RetailZoom monitoring, the sales of LKA stores in 2022 recorded a value increase of 11.6 pct compared to 2021, a level below the average value of inflation, an aspect also found in the slight decrease of sales in pieces, of -1.6 pct versus 2021. Even if the performance of local trade sales was lower than international trade in Romania for 2022 (+17.2 pct versus 2021), local chains are consolidating their position in retail through an accentuated profile of proximity, specifically not only through the top of the products from the shopping basket, as well as through the local or regional assortment.
Regarding the food shopping basket in local trade stores, although it is relatively similar to the one in the trade stores organized by international chains, it presents some notable differences in the top categories of products sold, giving it an accentuated profile of proximity.
"Among the similarities in the top 20 product categories we find raw meat (fresh and frozen), beer, soft drinks, coffee, bottled water, milk & yogurts, wine, categories that are at the top of choices in both retail channels. Yet, in the local trade, high on shopping basket priorities are variable weight cold meats and cheese, prepackaged bread, nuts & seeds, chips. In the LKA modern trade differentiator, oil, prepackaged cheese, eggs and sugar are in superior positions, showing the buyers' preference for the offers they find in this channel," the KeysFin & RetailZoom study entitled "Evolution of food retail in Romania, record level in 2022" reads.
For non-food products, after the top 10 similar products in local trade compared to international trade (laundry detergents, toilet paper, deodorant, paper towels, fabric softener, cleaning products, shampoo, intimate hygiene products), buyers' choices show a top selling position for dish detergent and soap, sponges & cloths and insecticides.
The analysis shows that the product types that grew the most in sales in 2022, in independent local chains, are pet food products, grocery products and coffee & coffee drinks.
According to the latest data from the National Institute of Statistics, the consumer price index of food products, which represents approximately 33 pct of the Romanians' consumption basket, increased in March 2023 by 21.6 pct compared to the same month in 2022. The highest annual price increases, of over 30 pct in the food category, were for sugar (61 pct), butter (38 pct), potatoes (36.5 pct) and eggs, with 34 pct above the level of March 2022.
