The majority (92%) of consumers buy food and drink as gifts, with confectionery and alcohol the most popular products, according to new consumer research from food and grocery think tank IGD.
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Consumer Watch: Food for Special Occasions, found that confectionery and alcohol are the most popular products to give as gifts: over half of consumers (63%) give boxes of chocolates and 43% give wine.
IGD found that men appreciate alcoholic gifts more than women – 24% of men prefer beer, lagers, cider compared to 5% of women and over a third like to receive spirits compared to less than a quarter of women. Women prefer champagne (18% compared to 15% of men) and wine (31% compared to 16% of men).
IGD found that women appreciate food gifts more than men – twice as many women as men like to receive cakes, and 11% like smoked salmon compared to 5% of men while 17% of women like a mixed food hamper compared to 11% of men. Receiving gifts of food appeals more to older consumers aged 45-64. For example 15% of 45-54 year olds like to receive cheese, 12% of 55-64 year olds appreciate smoked salmon and 18% of 55-54 year olds would like a mixed food hamper.
When it comes to teenagers, chocolate, in any form, is the food and drink gift they most like to receive – almost half of 15-17 year olds appreciate boxes of chocolates, and just under a quarter would like to receive block chocolate. As consumers get older, their tastes for sweet foods turn to cakes and biscuits, with 14% of 18-24 year olds appreciating cake as a gift, and 10% of 55-64 year olds preferring biscuits.
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By GlobalData“The gift market is clearly competitive and open to more than just producers of confectionery and alcohol. Industry must communicate with consumers to build awareness of the breadth of possibilities for food and drink gifts from across categories, and innovation is essential to continually build the gift category as affluence and familiarity grows and gifts that were once a treat become everyday products,” said Joanne Denney-Finch, chief executive of IGD.
Two-thirds of consumers use their usual supermarket for buying gift foods and drinks. Many buy them as part of their weekly shop; however, IGD found that few consumers were prepared to admit this because although they appreciated the convenience, they felt that it showed that not enough thought was given to a gift purchased in this way. 16% would choose a specialist retailer of that product (e.g. Whittards for tea and coffee).
Garden centres and department stores are also popular places to buy gift food and drink. The products there are likely to be different from normal brands and so not things that the recipient would normally buy. They are also more likely to be marketed as gifts, more expensive and wrapped appropriately.
