What Does It Look Like When Grocery Trends Intersect?

<p>By: Angelyn Pinter, Senior Manager, Education Development, Food Marketing Institute&nbsp;</p>
<p><img src="https://www.fmi.org/images/default-source/photos-for-staff-use/produce/picture37.tmb-large-350-.jpg?sfvrsn=a29e406e_3" data-displaymode="Thumbnail" alt="Picture37" title="Picture37" style="float: right; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px;" />One of the most fascinating parts of analyzing data is when you start to notice an intersection point. According to&nbsp;<em><a href="http://www.fmi.org/grocerytrends">2019 U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends</a></em>, 84% of households with kids want to eat more meals at home together or prepare more meals at home.&nbsp;<em>Trends&nbsp;</em>also reports shoppers focus on the needs and desires of individuals who make up the family.&nbsp;&nbsp;As we’ve learned, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fmi.org/blog/view/fmi-blog/2019/07/12/how-many-grocery-stores-did-you-shop-at-last-month">average shopper shops 3.1 channels and 4.4 banners</a>&nbsp;in a given month.&nbsp;</p>
<p>What does it look like when all of these trends intersect? It looks like a month in the life of FMI&rsquo;s Carol Abel, who manages a single-shopper household with a varying grocery list.&nbsp;In one month, Carol shopped at five different grocery stores with four different shopping scenarios involving her college-student daughter, Gen Z and Millennial sons, and extended family. She provides her insights below:&nbsp;</p>
<h4><strong>When it&rsquo;s just me:</strong></h4>
<p>&ldquo;As an empty nester, I don&rsquo;t shop on price anymore, because I don&rsquo;t buy that much.&nbsp;&nbsp;I value convenience above all else. Now that I&rsquo;m not feeding so many mouths, I like limited assortment stores to find food treasures.&nbsp;&nbsp;It&rsquo;s also easier to get in and out,&rdquo; said Abel. &ldquo;I like the produce prices and that it&rsquo;s a little bit of a discovery shopping mission.&nbsp;&nbsp;One of the local supermarkets has a great cheese counter, so I&rsquo;ll visit for that.&nbsp;&nbsp;I like the experience, there is usually a person who will answer your questions. They also have a good seafood counter, very clean.&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Overall, when it&rsquo;s just me, I totally wing it.&rdquo;</p>
<h4><strong>But, when it&rsquo;s me, my daughter and sons:</strong></h4>
<p>&ldquo;When my sons are home, I buy for a family.&nbsp;&nbsp;I buy snacks and meats and plenty of other items. When the kids are home, I need to buy more, so I become more cost-conscious. I might combine limited assortment and supermarkets, because I can&rsquo;t get everything at a limited assortment store," explained Abel. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p>
<p>"When they were younger, I would plan for the week, shop on price and plan ahead of time.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>
<h4><strong>When it&rsquo;s me and my daughter:</strong></h4>
<p>Abel said, &ldquo;My daughter doesn&rsquo;t eat meat, so I buy more fruits, vegetables and cheese. When it&rsquo;s just me and my daughter, I text her to see what she&rsquo;s hungry for and stop on the way home to get it. I shop at multiple places based on conveniences, specialty ingredients or if we&rsquo;re looking for a new culinary adventure."&nbsp;</p>
<p>"When I shop for one or two people, price is much less relevant."&nbsp;</p>
<h4><strong>When it&rsquo;s extended family and family gatherings:</strong></h4>
<p>&ldquo;For entertaining or family celebrations, I will go out of my way to purchase food at a large specialty retail store. I can go end to end to find natural foods and the regular brands I&rsquo;m seeking,&rdquo; Abel shared. &ldquo;If I&rsquo;m going to create a food experience for my family, I will drive out of my way to find the ingredients needed to create the perfect experience for my guests.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p>
<a href="https://www.fmi.org/our-research/research-reports/u-s-grocery-shopper-trends" class="button-secondary">Download 2019 U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends&nbsp;</a>

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