Midsummer’s gluttony is coming
Meniga & Wrapp show you the consumption trends with data
Sun is shining, temperature is rising, trees are blooming, spirits are high, barbecues are fuming and tasty sausages fry. We all know this summer scene and it has finally started to repeat itself. This June is predicted to be just as warm and summery as last year’s. This means people will be enjoying picnics in the parks, brunches in the countryside and savoury evening aperitives. As in each past year, the summer season represents a profitable period for the food & drink segment and gains are up for grabs among retailers.
Effective marketing will play a key role in reaping the growth that the summer season entails. What is more, according to the holiday magazine, Vagabond, people in Sweden are predicted to travel less abroad and spend the summer holidays within the national confines [1]. In fact, the number of Swedes travelling abroad started to diminish already in 2018. This means that there will be more demand for food & drinks during what are known to be the “not-so-busy” weeks of the year.
But who are these remaining people? Where do they shop? Where will they go? What will they eat? Not surprisingly, these are questions that every shop owner should ponder. Manly because the answers to these questions could result in unanticipated profits that could be obtained with well-crafted marketing campaigns to attract those hungry and thirsty consumers. The answer to these questions can be found in the data they leave behind through their historical purchases. We at Meniga and Wrapp, specialise in gathering this valuable purchasing data in order to provide shop owners valuable insights so they can improve the performance of their marketing. If knowledge is power, data is then the source of the marketeer’s capacity to mold effective campaigns. We are eager to serve the knowledge retailers wish to have of their customers’ demographics, mobility, and purchasing behaviour. We have already looked at some of our data in the lookout for some interesting facts regarding people’s behaviour during the month of June.
All Swedes know that the biggest event in June is of course midsummer’s eve. This long-lasting tradition might be the most beloved moment in the year for every Swede. So, here’s some fun facts about people’s habits during the week of midsummer visualised through our fantastic transaction-data!
According to tradition, the day of midsummer’s eve should be spent in the countryside together with friends and family. The food, during the festivity’s banquet, should be rigorously home-cooked. Our data shows that Swedes still retain this tradition. These results are derived from the historical data of 2017 and 2018 (2018 has an increased statistical weight being more recent). Historical data gives a good prediction of what will come to be during this summer
Below we can see a chart displaying daily transaction counts by age groups within the grocery & alcohol category relative to the average daily transaction-count 17 days before midsummer up to 4 days after (day 0 is midsummer’s eve). Supermarkets, convenience stores, bakeries, fruit & vegetables, liquor stores, and meat & fish stores are included in the analysis. The graph shows that the senior portion of the population are the most restless cooks. We all have seen those operose grandparents that cook the day away to offer the whole extended family an enormous and delicious meal. The data shows that consumers that are 65+ start shopping for midsummer already three days before. On the other end of the spectrum, the younger consumers (18–24) do not have a as clear shopping pattern before midsummer compared to how much they usually shop. In general, the younger segments seem to not plan ahead and rather do their shopping the day before. On the other hand, the two older segments of the population shop earlier than the rest, even 4 days before midsummer. Maybe due to their wisdom, they know better and avoid the crazy queues that happen the day before midsummer’s eve. Furthermore, the younger ones don’t go shopping as much. Many of them will probably be the ones feasting on grandmas västerbottensost-pie on midsummer’s eve!
The next graphs show us the daily transaction counts of “eating out”. The data includes these spend categories: take-away, catering & food delivery, pizza, sushi, and restaurants. Seems like Swedes stay true to their tradition and definitely prefer to cook for themselves during midsummer. However, our data shows that the day after midsummer people start ordering prepared food again. It is clear that the younger segments of the population definitely go back to ordering food the most after midsummer’s eve. They might not feel inspired to do more cooking, but rather prefer spending the day after midsummer on the couch with a greasy pizza recovering from a violent hangover.
The next graph confirms that Swedes stay at home or in the countryside during midsummer. The chart displays daily transaction counts of café & restaurant spending. The spend categories used in the “at home”-index are the following: cinemas, pubs, pizza, bars, sushi, restaurants, fast food and coffee shops. The chart displays several valleys which are the Sundays of the weeks. Though, the deepest valley in the chart is, in fact, midsummer, with a decrease in spending from the daily average of 70%.
As expected, Swedes still love their traditional midsummer food. Many still choose to devour lots of delicious herring carefully pickled in different spices by their loving grandparents. The next graph displays daily transaction counts at meat & fish stores. We see recurring spikes of consumption that occur every Friday. But the most distinguishable spike in consumption happens 1–2 days before midsummer’s eve which sees an increase of 215% compared to the average daily spend.
Well, no midsummer would be fully traditional without some good ol’ snaps (spiced vodka) and loads of beer and wine on the table! We all know how drunk guests can get around the midsummer table. Not surprisingly the most alcohol-thirsty segment of the consumer population is the youngest. As seen in the graph below, which displays the daily transaction counts at liquor stores. During the day before midsummer, the transaction count for 25–34-year-olds was almost 4 times higher than their daily average. Interestingly, the older segment of the population go less to the liquor store before midsummer compared to youngsters. Maybe the younger generations are responsible for providing the alcoholic stash at midsummer while grandma takes care of the food. Or might it be that that with age comes the wisdom to avoid the traditional excessive drinking?
This has been just a little taste of our data. There’s a world of data analytics for you to explore at Meniga and Wrapp! Check out for free your market’s data with our brand new consumer index. We display real-time data for you to draw conclusions from on current trends.
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SOURCES:
[1] ” Resebarometern 2019: Därför reser vi mindre”. Forbes. 2019–04–09. Retrieved 2019–06–04.
