Food retail achieves the highest revenue growth in a year

Deceleration of inflation, decline in unemployment, and growth in average income were key factors for the increase in consumer purchasing power.

São Paulo, April 2024 – The improvement of the economy, which closed 2023 with a 2.9% GDP growth, along with the deceleration of unemployment and prices, including deflation in food at home, has positively impacted consumption. This movement is reflected in the constant increase in unit sales in supermarkets and wholesale clubs, driving the sector’s revenue. According to Scanntech, a leading data intelligence company for the food retail sector, revenue growth jumped from 4.2% in January to 6.6% in February, reaching 9.9% in March, the highest growth since April 2023.

In terms of units sold, which recorded a 3.4% growth in March, there was an acceleration compared to the average growth of 2.2% in the first two months of the year. In March, the growth in unit sales, combined with a 5.5% increase in prices, resulted in this strong revenue growth.

Priscila Ariani, Scanntech’s Marketing Director, attributes this growth in food retail to several factors, including the reduction in the unemployment rate and the deceleration of inflation, as previously mentioned, which directly impact the increase in the population’s purchasing power. “In this scenario, consumption benefits, positively impacting an important sector of the Brazilian economy,” she says.

Scanntech’s analysis of different retail channels also observed growth in establishments with more than 10 checkouts, which registered a 2.2% increase in unit sales. Moreover, it’s not just these retailers that are seeing advances. Except for the smallest retailers (with up to 2 checkouts), which saw a 0.1% decline, those with 5 to 9 checkouts and wholesale clubs saw a 2.5% increase in unit sales.