The FMCG Demand Signals report by the consumer analysis firm IRI, which has studied the evolution of purchasing habits of high turnover products in the first seven months of the year, points out that the deterioration in disposable income is affecting low- and middle-income consumers in countries such as Spain, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands.
71% of them are adapting the way they buy and the way they use things to the current inflationary context. Consumers are filling their baskets with everyday essentials, prioritizing essential products such as milk, butter, or pasta. They are leaving what's not essential, such as household products or alcohol.
The report also concludes that 29% of Europeans have altered the places where they eat or drink (whether at home, choosing on the go, or outside).
The effort also leads to savings; in fact, 58% of people have opted to reduce their purchases of basic products, skip meals, or turn off their heating.
Likewise, consumers are taking control of their spending, choosing where to buy to moderate the effects of the crisis. The report states that 30% change stores if they are going to find better prices, and 26% will go to a second store if what they are looking for is not in the first one.
As a result, sellers have also changed their strategies, betting on keeping prices 'artificially' low over time to retain buyers.
The conclusion of the study is clear and shows that consumption habits are imitating those of 1970 and 1980 when the economy was in crisis and prices were very high. "Inflation fatigue is deepening," the IRI stated.
Source: eleconomista.es