DIpil Das
US CPG Sales Tracker: Coresight Research x IRI Analysis
The Coresight Research and IRI monthly US CPG Sales Tracker presents data-driven insights into online sales trends in the US CPG industry—covering the product categories of food & beverage, health & beauty and general merchandise & homecare. In this report, we present five key insights for the four weeks ended May 15, 2022. 1. Online CPG Growth Drops to Mid-Teens CPG e-commerce year-over-year growth for the four weeks ended May 15, 2022, declined to 16.0% from 20.0% in April, returning to the mid-teens growth seen in the first two months of 2022. We expect e-commerce year-over-year growth rates to slow in June 2022 due to stronger comparatives. The two-year stack for e-commerce stands at 23.3% in May 2022—down from a 26.1% two-year stack in April—but still retaining strong growth overall. Total CPG sales growth declined slightly this period but remained stable—down to 7.6% year over year from 7.9% in April.Figure 1. CPG E-Commerce and Total Sales Growth (YoY % Change) [caption id="attachment_150560" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
Historical data have been revised for the latest period Source: IRI E-Market Insights™/Coresight Research [/caption]
2. All Three CPG Categories Maintain Stable E-Commerce Growth
We break down the online CPG market into three major categories: food & beverage, health & beauty and general merchandise & homecare. All the categories retained stable double-digit year-over-year e-commerce growth this period, at 13.2%, 16.7% and 18.6%, respectively. Of the categories, food & beverage growth saw a 1.8 percentage point increase from 11.4% in April. Meanwhile, health & beauty and general merchandise & homecare growth declined by 11.6 and 2.7 percentage points, respectively.
Figure 2. E-Commerce CPG Sales Growth by Category Type (YoY % Change) [caption id="attachment_150561" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
Historical data have been revised in the latest period Source: IRI E-Market Insights™/Coresight Research [/caption] 3. Breakdown of Online CPG Sales: Health & Beauty Share Decreases for the Third Time This Year Below, Figure 3 shows a breakdown of online sales by CPG category. In the four weeks ended May 15, 2022, the health & beauty category’s market share declined by 0.9 percentage points to 34.7%, the third decline for the category’s share this year. Meanwhile, general merchandise & homecare and food & beverage rose by 0.6 and 0.4 percentage points to 31.3% and 34.1%, respectively.
Figure 3. CPG E-Commerce: Breakdown of Sales Share by Category (%) [caption id="attachment_150562" align="aligncenter" width="701"]
Source: IRI E-Market Insights™/Coresight Research [/caption]
4. Beverages Outpace Other Food Departments in Online and Total Sales
Of food & beverage departments, beverages reported the highest year-over-year online and total sales growth rate this period, at 21.2% and 11.1%, respectively. The general foods department also reported high year-over-year growth in online sales, at 17.1%. Year-over-year online sales growth for beverages was driven by increases in the sales of milk flavoring/cocoa mixes (up 48.5%), coffee (up 32.1%), and instant tea mixes (up 31.1%). Meanwhile, year-over-year total sales growth for beverages was driven by powdered milk (up 30.7%) and aseptic juices (15.0%). For the general foods department, online sales growth was primarily driven by increased sales of baby formula (up 80.8%) and egg substitutes (up 50.6%).
Figure 4. Food & Beverage Departments: E-Commerce and Total Sales Growth, Four Weeks Ended May 15, 2022 (YoY % Change) [caption id="attachment_150563" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
Source: IRI E-Market Insights™/Coresight Research [/caption]
5. Health Continues to Lead Online Growth Among Nonfood Departments
The health department saw the highest year-over-year online and total sales growth among nonfood departments in the four weeks ended May 15, 2022, reaching 22.7% and 10.4% year-over-year growth, respectively. Growth in health e-commerce was driven by hemorrhoidal remedies (up 56.9%) and upper respiratory products (up 43.8%).
Figure 5. Nonfood Departments: E-Commerce and Total Sales Growth, Four Weeks Ended May 15, 2022 (YoY % Change) [caption id="attachment_150564" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
Source: IRI E-Market Insights™/Coresight Research [/caption]
What We Think
We expect e-commerce CPG growth to slow in the coming months due to stronger comparatives in June 2021. In the coming months, with food retailers raising retail prices and doing away with promotions to offset increased input costs due to inflation pressures, consumers are likely to marginally reduce their CPG spending.IRI Disclaimer: The information contained herein is based in part on data reported by the IRI E-Market Insights™ solution and as interpreted solely by Coresight Research. The information is believed to be reliable at the time supplied by IRI but is neither all-inclusive nor guaranteed by IRI or Coresight Research, Inc. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, specific data points may vary considerably from other information sources. Any opinions expressed herein reflect the judgement of Coresight Research, Inc. and are subject to change. IRI disclaims liability of any kind arising from the use of this information.