The changes in spending patterns on food often occur with the birth of the first child in a young family, according to new research.
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Following the birth of a first child, explains market analysts Datamonitor, the opposing forces of both increasing time pressure and health concerns lead to greater spend on fresh, organic and convenience foods.
“There has been a great deal of research into marketing to children and the needs of parents but very little is known about how consumers react to the transition to parenthood,” said Neil Broome, consumer markets analyst and author of the “Young Families” report: “The birth of one’s first child represents a massive life change. There are new practical issues and the necessity of conducting normal housekeeping chores under increased time-pressure.
“There are also changing attitudes, such as an increasing focus on safety and health issues.”
There were approximately young families, defined as those with one child under the age of two, in 2001 across Europe. The young family group is forecast to decline by an average
of 0.4% per annum between 2001 and 2006 – due to falling fertility rates and a sharp decline in the 20-25 year old population. Despite this, increasing economic welfare and changing attitudes towards children and child rearing will continue to cause changes in the value of the young family market:
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By GlobalData*More mothers are working; increasing household income and the need for childcare services. This also drives demand for time saving services as, on average, full time working women with children report having only 13.5 hours of free time per week.
*The gender gap in parenting is narrowing too as men become more active in childcare. Datamonitor found that male respondents spend about nine hours per week on lone childcare, compared to an average of 13 hours per week for women.
*As fertility rates fall, there is a tendency to delay childbirth until later in life. This not only means that parents will tend to be wealthier when they have their first child, but also implies that their additional years provide a more mature attitude, which is likely to mean that the transition into parenthood is less dramatic than currently
observed.
*Parents are becoming increasingly conscious of the threats that modern society presents to children. Although risks such as teenage pregnancy, crime, drug use, eating disorders, violence, bullying and low educational attainment do not directly impact on the under 2s, media attention on these subjects heightens parental awareness of these threats. This is likely to impact on the amount parents spend on services such as education, and also, through changing attitudes, affect issues as simple as children’s diets.
Demand for organic and convenience foods increases
Datamonitor examined the shopping habits across low, medium, and high income young families. Consumers with high incomes are most likely to use Internet shopping services and to demand greater convenience. They also show the greatest concern about health. Low income consumers do not spend as much on health products as their expenditure is limited. They do, however, spend more on convenience food after the birth of their first child.
Across all income groups, the largest change in expenditure is on restaurant meals and drinks in bars and pubs, showing an overall decline of 26% and 28% respectively. Survey results also revealed an overall increase in fresh fruit and vegetables and organic food and drinks of 18% and 11% respectively. Chilled ready meals and frozen convenience food showed little significant overall change, but a sharp increase amongst low income families. Likewise, an increase in take-away food consumption by medium income consumers was offset by a decrease in consumption by low income consumers.
Differing incomes but common concerns
Despite differences in income, there are several facets of young families which remain true across the income spectrum:
Security/health: parents are increasingly concerned about all aspects of their children’s welfare. This is especially true of first time parents who adopt a ‘better safe than sorry’ attitude, especially in the area of child nutrition. Many interviewees in Datamonitor’s focus groups also reported a significant change in outlook on life with the birth of their first child, taking a more holistic and philosophical view on the world, and becoming more concerned with issues of welfare for themselves and their child.
Convenience/speed: time pressure is a feature of child rearing regardless of income and this is a profound impact on lifestyles and purchasing habits. What does vary between income groups is the response to this demand – low income families buy more frozen and chilled ready meals, higher income families use take-away and other higher quality convenience solutions (such as retailer take-away services).
Easing the shopping experience: there are two aspects to this. First, the demand for speedier, more convenient solutions drives new parents to change their shopping habits. Some become more organized and do more weekly bulk shopping, some make greater use of Internet and home delivery services, and others use nearby convenience stores to a greater extent. The second aspect is that parents often have to take their children with them whilst shopping, and many interviewees complained about lack of retailer services to aid the process of shopping with children. Issues such as narrow checkout aisles, dirty or substandard trolleys, incorrectly sized baby seats, insufficient policing of parent and child parking spaces and lack of crèche facilities were amongst the issues mentioned.
Broome added: “Young families cannot be treated by marketers and manufacturers in the same way as families in general. Likewise, they cannot be treated as a homogenous group.
“The period of adjustment and learning of a new lifestyle presents opportunities for manufacturers and retailers to provide for the specific needs for products (such as high quality, healthy convenience foods) and services (such as assisted shopping or eCommerce) these consumers have, and take advantage of this group’s higher propensity to brand and retailer loyalty.
“A successful strategy targeting new young families will not only reap rewards in terms of direct sales to this group, but will also have positive effects on the ability to target these consumers through their years of parenthood.”
This report can be viewed and purchased here.
