Most years are dynamic in CPG strategy, but this year has been one of the busiest. If 2020 was defined by ‘stay at home’ orders and a rush to online stores, 2021 was the opportunity for in-store shopping to bounce back.

Considering this, it’s little wonder that VST has conducted 150+ research projects across the globe in the last 12 months, big and small. And throughout them all, we’ve noticed 6 key themes rising to the surface.

These themes reflect back the year that retail has seen: shoppers have retained some price sensitivity, supply chains have been threatened, and health and sustainability have been common concerns for both sides of the market.

If you still have unanswered questions hanging over your retail strategy for early 2022, it’s not too late to test them — just get in touch with the VST team. Or keep reading for our insights summary of 2021’s year in retail insights.

Range rationalization: are shoppers overwhelmed by choice?

Gallup’s ‘Global Emotions Report’, surveying 160,000 people in 16 countries, confirmed what most of us could have assumed: that 2020 was officially the most stressful year for the last 15 years. When asked, 40% of adults agreed that they experienced stress the previous day — a record high.

And while we don’t often think of the supermarket as being a stressful place (unless you’ve got small family members in tow), consumers have long been at risk of ‘choice paralysis’ — overwhelmed by the sheer quantities of options available.

In 2021, we worked with a number of retail and brand owners to combat this complexity. And testing the hypothesis of range rationalization had some very interesting results indeed.

We found that simplifying ranges correlated to an increase in sales and shoppers finding the category a better shopping experience. That was true across categories and markets, but in some areas reducing the number of products by as much as 20% (a significant leap) resulted in a 5+% sales increase.

How could complexity of choice be minimized for your brand in 2022?

Point-of-sale steps up

VST has long been an advocate of in-store signage at the point of purchase. In the UK, the first week of September saw 2021’s highest supermarket footfall outside of the Easter weekend — if people return to grocery aisles as expected, brand owners and retailers need to be vying for their attention.

Get your point-of-sale signage right, and it can have as much as a 12+% increase in sales for your category and a 40+% increase in brand sales. Not sure what the ‘right’ messaging is? We can help test your theories.

Location, location, location

Where a shopper can find your product in-store also plays an important role for standout and implicit comprehension: “Which category should my product sit in? Should we be adjacent to the rest of the brand, or with the specialty-purpose products?”.

Testing is almost certainly the easiest and most accurate way to explore your options. And we’ve seen that either location strategy works well, depending on the product or NPD.

The strength of your brand, the category you’re in, the purpose of a shopper’s trip and their mindset all contribute to the best solution. Do shoppers start their visit knowing they need your product or do they just need something that will serve a purpose? Consumer research exploring this — alongside a real-life shelf test — will usually provide an answer.

The pricing pinch

At the start of 2021, the VST team was busy running multiple pricing tests. Typically, this is an indicator of potential recessions or cost increases based on supply chain issues coming down the line. Sounds about right for the world we’re living in!

Rounding off the year, these cost pressures have now been widely reported on, but our early insight gathering allowed brands to understand where they can pass on cost increases to shoppers, and where they can’t.

Own/private label brands continue to be an appealing proposition for shoppers and price testing is a fantastic way to stem the flow and retain your place in the competitive market.

Value: both in terms of sustainability and price

We wrote earlier in the year about the sustainability trend — one that will shape 2022’s NPD and retail strategies for sure. But we’ve witnessed an increased interest from brand owners regarding on-pack sustainability messaging and reassuring on value.

This comes from the brand-side push to fill “air gaps” in the boxing process: saving both on packaging materials, while also offering up a compelling low-carbon message. But how much do shoppers really need to know about this behind-the-scenes initiative?

VST’s testing indicated that phrases such as “same weight, same value, less plastic” are only needed when shoppers are genuinely concerned about value. And for those instances, we expect to see supporting copy like this across a variety of packaging in 2022 and beyond.

Health and ‘HFSS’

Unsurprisingly, health has been high on the consumer agenda in 2020 and 2021, but perhaps not in the way that some would expect. While in-store we’ve seen a boom of immunity-focused products and packaging claiming immunity-boosting benefits, the testing focus has been on another health opportunity.

In the UK specifically, a new legislature will come into effect in 2022 for products with High Fat, Salt and Sugar (HFSS). And if you’re an affected brand owner, you need to make a plan.

VST has tested the impact of a reduction in promotional space, promotional mechanics and different shelf locations across categories associated with HFSS — and we can help you navigate the coming change.

This legislation is arriving at a time where shoppers are actively avoiding less-healthy items, where better-for-you products are receiving a promotional boost, and are starting to look tastier! The result? We’re expecting one of the most seismic shifts in grocery for the last 50 years. Have you honed your messaging and strategy for HFSS?

There’s still time to test in 2021

If you have 3 to 5 days, then we can get you answers.

VST performs CPG smart-shelf testing, range rationalization, strategic assortment changes, and more. We have access to 22 million consumers across the globe and tests really can be completed in as little as 3 working days.

Get in contact today.