David Croushore

Did you know that during the last 12 months, Nielsen has reported that 28.6% of grocery sales went through promotion vs. 25% in the previous year - quite the jump! 📈 In the post-pandemic landscape, CPG companies are struggling to hold their market position as private label brands gain ground by offering similar quality at lower prices. Watch this week's Pricing Weekly episode to hear more on our thoughts.

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Like you, James, I have also seen how changing behaviors of frontline associates solves challenges that could not be handled as effectively in any other way. But those behaviors are not going to change just because the organizational strategy identifies key areas of importance. Cameras and advanced surveillance systems may always be needed, but can never replace the power and impact that associates can make on the business when they are unleashed to fix problems and advance big opportunities.

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59% of consumers say retailers' private label/store brands are offering better quality products than ever before. In a new EY article, my colleague Nichole Jones and I discuss how retailers can innovate and meet evolving consumer preferences. Read the article. https://lnkd.in/gimPzcCQ   #PrivateLabel #OwnBrands #Retail #EYParthenon

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Did you know that during the last 12 months, Nielsen has reported that 28.6% of grocery sales went through promotion vs. 25% in the previous year - quite the jump! 📈 In the post-pandemic landscape, CPG companies are struggling to hold their market position as private label brands gain ground by offering similar quality at lower prices. Watch this week's Pricing Weekly episode to hear more on our thoughts.

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Retailers are adopting AI-driven pricing and dynamic models at faster-than-ever rates. This has obvious competitive implications within the retail landscape but, also interesting, it is unmasking less sophisticated approaches by CPG vendors who are now interfacing with more skilled retail pricing teams, faster turnaround expectations, deeper insight, and unified data platforms.

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The momentum behind private brands has never been stronger in the US, with sales now over 20% of the total grocery market and projected to be 24% by 2030. For many grocery retailers today, the lack of a comprehensive private brand strategy means that they’ll get left behind. The top players have opened over 250 stores in the past year, continuing to gain market share and have strong financial performance. They act differently, with total commitment from the C-Suite, marketing programs which elevate their brand portfolio and continuous focus on innovation and improvement. While value is the number one purchase driver cited by consumers, grocers must also have differentiated brand architectures and consistent positioning across categories with scalable processes and innovation capabilities that will ensure their success is repeatable. Our latest piece, co-authored by my colleague Marco Valentini, looks at how the Private Label market is accelerating even amid slower total grocery market growth, and what retailers need to do to gain and maintain success with their private brands.

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There’s a race on to capture value from digital and AI, and consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies are in danger of falling behind both retailers and consumers. What are the six key questions CPG companies need to answer in order to help outcompete with digital and AI? Our latest article explores how CPG companies can make changes at scale.

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46% of all CPG brands have a current price higher than what the average category consumer is willing to pay. pricebeam.com Consumers are becoming less loyal to brands as the options are exponential. It is rare for customers to shop in only one supermarket, often people will shop around and spend time going to multiple stores for the best deals. Therefore, CPGs can see the benefit of using the right promotional mechanism to cannibalize competitors. But also understanding what each segment's willingness to pay is. Not all customers are created equal. Different segments of your market will have different needs and therefore different willingness to pay.  Segmenting your market allows you to customize your offerings and maximize appeal across diverse groups. Here’s how you can do it: 1. Demographic Segmentation: Group your customers by age, gender, income level, education, etc. 2. Psychographic Segmentation: Consider your customers' lifestyles, values, and interests. 3. Behavioral Segmentation: Look at purchasing behaviors, brand loyalty, and product usage rates. 4. What are the Revenue Growth Opportunities? It's important to understand where revenue opportunities lie and what strategies can be used to implement them.  

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Private brands in the U.S. are currently worth $250 billion, and AlixPartners projects an additional $100 billion growth for food retailers in the next 5-10 years. Consumers are increasingly choosing private brands for their quality and value, not just their affordability. This trend offers grocers a significant opportunity to differentiate and build customer loyalty. Manufacturers can support this transition by providing insights, R&D, and innovative product development to address structural challenges in the U.S. market. The bottom line? Innovation and quality are key. Grocers who invest in these areas for their private brands are poised for significant growth. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eVN69PKS

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In the intensely competitive world of retail, how can smaller players create value? We've analyzed over 280 publicly traded retailers and the clear takeaway from our analysis: scale is not destiny. Subsector dynamics notwithstanding, a retailer has ample control over its value creation trajectory. Retailers of any size, if they make bold moves, can become top-tier value creators—even if they’ve historically underperformed. Read our latest article, "Retail’s outperformers: Lessons in value creation," to learn how retail executives can unlock their businesses' full potential, no matter where they begin.

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In the intensely competitive world of retail, how can smaller players create value? We've analyzed over 280 publicly traded retailers and the clear takeaway from our analysis: scale is not destiny. Subsector dynamics notwithstanding, a retailer has ample control over its value creation trajectory. Retailers of any size, if they make bold moves, can become top-tier value creators—even if they’ve historically underperformed. Read our latest article, "Retail’s outperformers: Lessons in value creation," to learn how retail executives can unlock their businesses' full potential, no matter where they begin.

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Consulting by Kantar Ernie Tedeschi has written a great report with even better charts on grocery prices in the US. But I suspect that he was never responsible for pricing in retail, which is not an economist position. The drivers of cost do not generate higher prices, competition movement does. Complex to an extreme, grocery pricing reflects permission to raise (competition has generally done so) or reflection on lowering (which means finding a price to raise elsewhere for a blended margin). Love the charts though Simon Johnstone Erik Bergeman Walter Holbrook Steve Dennis https://lnkd.in/gf4bdaz4

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Convenience has always been king in consumer purchasing habits. But times have changed, and so have consumer preferences. In my article with the Forbes Tech Council, I explore how rising #inflation is influencing consumers and how CPG organizations can adapt to drive increased operational efficiency to bring value to their consumers. More so as domestic budgets are being squeezed, ultimately affecting consumer behavior.

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More than 75 percent of the top 25 Fortune 500 #CPGs haven’t yet returned to pre-COVID margin levels—despite spending a lot of time, effort, and resources on the complexity-reduction programs in place. It's time to rethink how to streamline #operations for real results. Jingqi Guo and Wade Jubrey identify 5 pitfalls of complexity reduction and how to simplify them. Check it out via the link below.

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Instacart reported what Chairman CEO Fidji Simo called “strong” Q2 2024 results, including including 10% year-over-year growth in GTV (gross transaction value), its third straight quarter of positive GAAP net income, and considerable gains in adjusted EBITDA and operating cash flow. “Our performance reinforces our leading position as the largest online grocery marketplace in North America and highlights our best-in-class customer experience underpinned by industry-leading delivery speed and order quality,” noted Simo in an Aug. 6 earnings call. CFO Emily Reuter expanded on this topline information, noting that the GTV growth comprised order growth of 7% and average order value growth of 3%. Reuter attributed the quarters higher basket size – the key driver of Instacart’s outperformance – to such factors as new customer cohorts reaching bigger basket sizes faster, existing customers making larger purchases over time, and a higher mix of club orders. | Progressive Grocer https://lnkd.in/gCqAX3Gc #retail #ecommerce #grocery #supermarkets #technology #Instacart

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Provocative piece from EY Consumer / Retail thought leaders, Steven Bailey, Isaac Krakovsky and Tony Guerrero on the importance of retailers rethinking their omnichannel strategies, particularly in light of increasing expectations from consumers and the ability for those same consumers to interact with retailers in numerous ways. Connecting with consumers in real time with the right message to create moments that matter is critical for consumer products companies and retailers alike. When consumers are choosier about who they listen to, brands and retailers must strive to appeal to and engage them in new ways to stay relevant. Steven, Isaac and Tony lay out a number of core foundational imperatives for retailers to consider -- and while many have made strides in some of these areas more work remains. #EY #Consumer #Retail #ConsumerEngagement #BrandStrategy

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The integration of Sales + Marketing: Not necessarily a new issue/opportunity, but one with still so much opportunity to enact appropriate org design, enabling systems and tools to capitalize. Simpactful Marcy Selva

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Together with Jessica Moulton and Warren Teichner, we've recently published our latest perspectives on the consumer goods industry, which was an investor darling for decades. However, over the past ten years, top-line growth has faded away. So, how can CPG companies rekindle growth? In the article below, we dive into the six big moves CPGs can make to restore a reliable formula of growth by rallying around an ambitious change agenda on both portfolio and performance. Read more about the six big moves here : https://lnkd.in/dU4StH89

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