Kantar: retailer performance in winter remedies
Retailer performance  
  Category value share % growth
Tesco 20.3 -3.5
Sainsbury's 10.8 -2.7
Asda 7.6 -4.3
Morrisons 5 -2.2
Co-op 5 2.7
Waitrose 2.2 4.3
Lidl 1.1 2
Aldi 0.8 -22.1
  • At a total level, winter remedies sales have remained stagnant. The market was worth £373.5m, representing a £100k decrease on last year.
  • “This is no mean feat given that 2018 was a bumper year for the category, as the Beast from the East caused a sales spike in the early part of last year,” says Kantar analyst Andrew Zarb. “This year we’ve seen a significantly warmer winter and this is reflected in performance.”
  • Volumes are down by 0.8%, which means the market has been reliant on increasing prices to drive value performance. Cough liquids, medicated confectionery and decongestants have all seen price rises.
  • “Format changes have been important, with a shift towards sensorial formats such as nasal sprays and inhalants,” says Zarb. “These generally carry a higher average price point – £3.18 versus £1.94 for the total category – and now account for a fifth of sales.”
  • However, the opposite is true of cold treatments. Unlike the rest of the category, they have seen a 2.9% decline in average price. That has negated the 0.8% increase in volumes.
Streetbees: consumer attitudes towards winter remedies
Consumer attitudes towards winter remedies 
20% believe natural cold and flu remedies are more effective than over the counter medication
42% get paranoid that they'll get sick when someone sneezes near them
58% like to have a stock of cold and flu medication in winter "just in case"
69% have some concerns over taking cold and flu tablets
34% worry about putting too many drugs in their body
 
Source: Streetbees poll of 950 consumers