SPECIALTY FOODS PAY OFF FOR RETAILERS: STUDY

STEPHANIE FAGNANI

CHICAGO -- New market research data from the ACNielsen HomeScan panel points to a direct link between the specialty food consumer and retailer profits, particularly within the grocery channel.

The new research has found that 10% of the 55,000 households studied purchase the most specialty foods annually, spending between $500 and $1,000 per year, and the majority of these purchases were made at supermarkets.

The study also revealed that the top 10% of consumers produce 41% of a store's gross profit.

During the annual Food Marketing Institute trade show here last week, John Roberts, president of the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade, New York, and Bill Skura, managing director of WASA North America, Saddle Brook, N.J., told retailers that, based on these new findings, they need to be cautious of de-listing specialty food stockkeeping units.

"Specialty foods will help you attract and retain the most profitable customers," Skura said during the "Consumers of Specialty Foods" session that he co-presented with Roberts.