Accenture Report Details on ‘New Normal’ of Grocery Shopping

According to a new report from Accenture the grocery shopping experience is “overwhelming the customer”.

Report author – Retail Lead, EMEA, Laurent Thoumine – says one common pain point is that high food prices are forcing consumers to make difficult decisions.

He says that, in the US alone, grocery prices have increased by up to 21% since 2021 and that they are continuing to rise in 2024, albeit at a slower pace.

“On top of that, government subsidies from the pandemic have stopped and supply chain challenges have run rampant”, he adds.

Laurent adds that: “while consumers have historically gravitated toward national brands, now, many people simply can’t afford them.”

Laurent discusses what is causing stress to grocery shoppers, how this is affecting the food sector and what it can do to tackle these challenges.

What is causing grocery shopping stress for customers?

Accenture says its EMEAs 2024 Consumer Pulse research shows 41% of customers find decision-making harder than it was three years ago, and that 56% feel it is more important to make the “right” decision now.”

Laurent added “Recent data shows customers bought groceries from an average of 20.7 different retailers between March 2023 and February 2024.

“This is up 23% from the same time frame between 2019 and 2020.

“Analysis of grocery shopper data from our Consumer Pulse research across 12 countries reveals key areas that cause stress in the decision-making process”, he says, which are “present across the three phases of the purchase journey: awareness, consideration and evaluation.”