The number of drug stores in the U.S. has declined by more than 2,000 in the last 7 years (to 37,700 outlets), as independent pharmacies close.  And in the last decade, the percent of U.S. households shopping in drug stores has dropped from 89 percent to 81 percent.  But the drug store channel generates more than $43 billion in sales, excluding prescriptions, and the nation’s leading chains are continuing to innovate to grow their share of the consumer’s spend. 
So what are the top selling categories in the drug channel? Six …

American shoppers have a huge range of options when choosing where to shop, from convenience and dollar stores to traditional grocery and drug stores to warehouse clubs and supercenters.  Who shops where? And what are they buying?  These are just a couple of the questions answered by Nielsen’s “U.S. Consumer Dynamics Across Channels & Categories” study released earlier this month.
On a dollar volume basis, grocery stores continue to capture the highest percentage of consumer dollars, with 33.1 percent.  In Grand Rapids, Michigan, groceries …

As consumers work hard to make their money go further, stores are feeling a hit.  But supercenters are actually benefiting.  Nielsen’s analysis of 2008 unit sales shows that nearly every department in supercenters showed growth, including dairy, dry grocery and prescription drugs.  In fact, the supercenter channel was the only retail channel to post overall unit sales growth, albeit a modest one percent.
“Mass merchandisers and grocery stores are feeling the impact of the supercenter,” said Todd Hale, senior vice president, Consumer & Shopper Insights for Nielsen.  “While the grocery channel …

Despite the slowing economy, new product introductions in 2008 remained steady compared to 2007.  According to a new Nielsen report, 122,743 new UPCs were sold through U.S. grocery, drug and mass merchandiser channels, excluding Walmart. Of these, 39 percent were food and beverage items, 29 percent were general merchandise items such as DVDs, 20 percent were health and beauty items with the remaining 12 percent non-food grocery items such as paper products, diapers and detergent.
Of the more than 122,000 items introduced, 3,882 (3.2%) achieved more than $1 million in sales, …

Between 2001 and 2008, more than 35,500 new stores – from warehouse clubs, supercenters and home improvement to convenience and grocery – opened around the U.S.  And while almost all categories of stores showed significant growth (except for drug stores, toy stores and electronics stores, which actually contracted) during the eight years studied, some formats showed greater promise than others.  According to new findings from Nielsen, the economic turmoil of the last year or so has already had a profound effect on the …

Still more data confirming the battered state of the U.S. economy: U.S. consumers are more price conscious than shoppers in other countries — even when their health is on the line.
According to a global survey conducted by Nielsen and the Association of the European Self-Medication Industry (AESGP), U.S. consumers place more importance on price and value when choosing over-the-counter (OTC) medications than consumers in other countries throughout Europe, Asia Pacific, North America, and the Middle East. 
Thirty percent of U.S. consumers consider price to be important when choosing OTC products, while …

This year, U.S. consumers are expected to spend more than $98 billion during the November-December holiday retail season, Nielsen reported Thursday.
Nielsen’s holiday retail forecast predicts a 4.7% gain in dollar sales over 2007.  Unit sales, however, are expected to be virtually flat (-0.8%) versus a year ago.
The forecast includes projected sales at food stores, drug stores, mass merchandisers, and convenience stores, across 125 product categories tracked by Nielsen.
With the economy in turmoil, the 2008 holiday season will be closely watched for indications of declining consumer spending.  Declines in consumer spending were …