Survey: Consumers buying less, opting for value at grocery store

Though rates of inflation have slowed, high prices are still having a major impact on shoppers’ decisions.

More than half (55%) of shoppers said they have switched to buying less-expensive options and 52% said they have switched to lower-priced brands, according to the new Advantage 2024 Shopper Outlook survey of more than 8,000 consumers,

While 41% of respondents said their shopping habits haven’t changed in the past year, 54% said they have reduced how much they buy. One-third have changed where they shop for groceries to save money, and unfortunately, 20% of shoppers surveyed said they are skipping meals to save money on food.

Nearly two-thirds of shoppers (65%) surveyed said they have a few preferred stores, depending on their shopping list. Just over a quarter (27%) are dedicated to one retailer, resuming pre-COVID habits after a significant shift in 2021, when 37% of shoppers reported going to the same store nearly all the time.

“It’s tough out there for consumers. Their new normal is the constant lookout for deals across products and retailers,” said Jill Blanchard, president of enterprise client solutions at Advantage. “Their assessment of their ability to afford everyday essentials has hit a new low — it was close to 60% in 2019, now it’s 40%. And debt is now costing people more to pay off — credit cards, personal loans, auto loans — which exacerbates these daily concerns.”

Other insights from the Advantage 2024 Shopper Outlook include the following:

• Most shoppers remain loyal to their favorite stores. Just 7% say they shop at a number of stores for groceries and do not have one favorite store.
• More than half (53%) of shoppers choose a retailer based on sales and promotions. Two-thirds of shoppers choose their primary retailers based on everyday low prices.
• Half of shoppers will choose their primary retailer based on having the best assortment of products available.