Fragrance News
Issue 2. Spring 2010
Fragrances in 2009: The Commercial Reality
With sales of £624.5m, the UK fragrance market showed a -0.2% decline in Q4 09 against v Q4 08. However, on the unit side the picture was different, with sales up from 24.7m in Q4 08 to 25.9m in Q4 09, a growth of 4.6%. Within this, performance differed month to month, with sales picking up as Christmas drew closer.
Both October and November 2009 showed year on year decline in value terms (-1.7% for October, -0.5% for November), but unit sales were positive throughout the whole of Q4. It was only in December, when unit sales jumped to +6.8% year on year, that there was any value growth, and then only at +0.4%.
Prices declined across the board; the heaviest declines occurred within gift sets, partly driven by a higher number of smaller male gift sets being sold. Prices of female single fragrances were static year on year.
As recorded in 2008, Department Stores and Variety Chains performed most strongly (in relative, not absolute terms) in November, when the former retailers concentrated on driving footfall in the run up to Christmas. However, outside of this the threat from Supermarkets grew: in Dec 08 Supermarkets captured 3.3% of the market, this grew to 4.4% in Dec 09.
The performance of Department Stores and Variety Chains was partly driven by strong sales of gift sets, which were more important to the market when compared to Q4 08. Also of importance were new products. Over the full calendar year, GfK identified 779 new SKUs on the market, which generated sales of £59m, equal to 5.2% of the market.
The importance of these new items reflected the seasonality of the market, with 85% launching in the second half of the year. The peak for new male fragrances was towards the end of Q2, in time for Father’s Day, whilst revenue from new female fragrances grew throughout the year.
For more information please contact please contact GfK:
Paul Mitchell, Account Director.
Email: paul.mitchell@gfk.com
Tel: +44 (0)870 603 8253
Web: www.gfkrt.com/uk
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