In spite of the impact of Covid-19 pandemic, ENDSARS protest and recession which Nigeria slipped into in Q4, operators in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), especially the carbonated soft drinks and beer category expect a spike in sales this festive season.
This confidence, based on some market indices, is giving them green light not to slow production of their products without fear of stocking unsold goods.
There are fears that the ugly incidences of this year which laid prostrate a number of businesses and incomes will affect family spending but managers at some fast-moving consumer goods companies told Businessday that demand is picking up as the year winds down.
According to them, they are witnessing gradual increased sales, but it may not be compared to the previous year.
Eze Ekuma, corporate affairs manager at Nigerian Bottling Company, NBC, bottlers of Coca Cola products said there will be many events as Christmas approaches. “The lockdown to check the spread of Covid- 19 forced many people to postpone various events which will be held this festive period. These occasions will require our products for entertainment. We are therefore not slowing production”, he said.
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Ekuma said what makes it exciting is that many of the FMCG products are easily affordable to Nigerians.
Similarly, Sade Morgan, corporate affairs director of Nigerian Breweries, said there are increased sales but it may not be as the previous year. She also linked this to events around the festive season.
As expected, many people look forward to Christmas and end of year period as they save money for foodstuff and celebrations which require spending.
In South Africa, reports says tighter budgets will make 2020 holiday shopping more competitive than ever for retailers, as nearly 90 percent plan to spend the same or less than last year.
A report in Bizcommunity which quoted new research conducted by analytics company SAS says nearly three quarters (74 percent) of South African citizens reported they plan to spend less on the end of year expenditure this year. This included nearly one in four (24 percent) who said they would be spending less than half their usual amount.
“Retailers must listen to customers if they hope to secure not only a profitable season but long-term loyalty: nearly 87 percent of citizens said they would pay more to buy and/or use products and services from businesses that provided them with a good customer experience during the pandemic”.
“This season will be a new experience for retailers and shoppers alike. Customer expectations are forcing retailers to digitally transform faster than many are comfortable with, and this highlights the opportunity in using data analytics to predict customer needs and grow profitability,” commented Andrew Fowkes, Global Retail Practice, SAS in the report.
