A new study by Market Force Information has revealed the top grocery brands as preferred by US shoppers, with price and value being the top reasons named for the choices.
Of the key decision criteria that drove consumers to choose a grocery store, ‘convenience’ ranked at No. 1 (62% of respondents), followed by ‘value’ (53%), and ‘good sales and promotions’ (44%). According to the study, Trader Joe’s, H-E-B and Woodman’s Markets were the most popular brands as named by shoppers. However, Walmart was the winner in terms of wallet share, followed by Kroger and Aldi, although there is a considerable gap with Walmart leading by a factor of almost 2x over Kroger.
H-E-B shoppers noted that they spent 78% of their grocery dollars with the brand, making the chain a clear leader in terms of their ability to capture wallet share vs. their local competitors. From a value perspective, the winner was Aldi with a top box score of 90%.
The impact of in-store execution
Given relatively similar pricing, grocery customers’ satisfaction and behaviour (in terms of the brands they shop regularly) is dictated by the brand’s ability to facilitate a problem-free experience. This experience is generally characterised by the availability of a large assortment of products, having a clean store, and enabling a fast checkout. The brands that have managed to win customers over with this formula include Trader Joe’s, Smiths, and Wegmans. Large, established brands that have established trust with customers include H-E-B, Publix and Trader Joe’s.
COVID’s waning has corresponded with a slowing in the growth of customers opting for grocery delivery (down from a high of 27% during the height of COVID to about 10% today). Technology is still on the rise with more customers now using an app to order groceries for pick-up at curbside or at a store designated pick-up area. The study sees this fulfillment method increasing from 16% to 23% of grocery customers, with 68% of these customers are very satisfied with this alternate method of shopping for groceries. As technology continues to be applied to the grocery shopping experience, the forecast is for continued growth in these newer shopping and fulfillment channels.
The top performing grocery brands
This year’s top brand on the customer loyalty index (CLI), a blended score combining “satisfaction” with the most recent visit with “likelihood to recommend”, was Trader Joe’s with a CLI of 84%. H-E-B came in second (83%) followed by Woodman’s Market (81%).
Customers also were asked if they perceive their grocer of choice to be “best in class”. Two brands stood out – Wegman’s came in first with 76% agreement, and H-E-B was close behind at 73%.
