In the past year, supermarkets have ditched bogof and multibuy offers in favour of round pound and money-off deals.
But no more: new figures produced for The Grocer by promotions tracker Assosia show that bogofs, 3-for-2s and other multibuys are back with a vengeance. This time last year, multibuys, favoured by retailers and manufacturers alike for bumping up total spend and volume sales, had dropped to less than 40% of the promotional mix.
But latest figures show this trend has reversed. Multibuys, including bogofs, now make up a massive 54% of featured-space offers in supermarkets [Assosia 4w/e 18 October].
The shift back to multibuy promos was a sign the recession was drawing to a close, said Assosia MD Kay Staniland. “In the past few weeks, multibuys have started to take over as the preferred mechanic again as consumers become more confident. As the recovery continues, consumer confidence will start prompting retailers and suppliers to push multibuys once again.”
As this recession followed an almost unprecedented run of economic growth, consumers could return quite quickly to small luxuries – giving retailers reason to be cautiously optimistic about Christmas, she added.
The news came as research by the IGD showed bogofs continued to divide consumer opinion. It remained the promotional mechanic most likely to get consumers to sample new products, at 23% , the research showed. Reduced price was second with 17%, and 3-for-2 third with 15%.
But concerns about food waste, which led to Tesco’s launch of the buy-one-get-one-free-later deal last week – remain. Some 26% of shoppers said they wanted multibuys on fresh food banned, while 14% said they did not like multibuys in any area. “Supermarkets can’t win on bogofs,” said IGD senior analyst Michael Freedman. “The word ‘free’ acts as a powerful incentive to try products, but risks alienating other shoppers.”
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