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s An annual statistical analysis
2013

2. W
elcome to Retailing Today’s annual Insights issue. This
unique product was created to provide a blended look at the
performance of the nation’s Top 100 retailers and Top 100
mass market product categories in one convenient format. In addition
to offering an abundance of useful statistics, the greater objective was
to put the performance in context by providing analysis of key industry
developments, insights into market moving trends and a thought-
provoking view on where the retail and consumer packaged goods
industry is headed in 2013.
To achieve this goal, we worked with our sister publication Chain Store
Age to compile a definitive ranking of the Top 100 retailers based on sales
and profits across all industry segments. We also partnered with Nielsen
to provide the most up-to-date and comprehensive view possible of the
performance of the Top 100 mass market product categories, which now
includes point-of-sale information from Walmart following the retailer’s
decision last year to resume data sharing. In addition to sharing data
about sales and unit volume, Nielsen provided insights into retail industry
trends, best practices and drivers of future demand.
What emerged from this process is an engaging view of a retail and
CPG industry that is highly resilient and able to cope with tremendous
levels of uncertainty. Many market participants who hunkered down
during the Great Recession by curtailing new store growth and reducing
expenses achieved solid performances during their most recent fiscal
year. This was an impressive feat, considering the significant headwinds
that persisted in the form of a weak job market, limited wage growth, fuel
prices that sapped discretionary spending and an achingly slow recovery
in the housing market.
Some companies weathered the Great Recession while others
thrived because of it due to their value orientation. Either way, those
who have survived are well positioned to see growth accelerate in
the coming year given any abatement in some or all of the forces that
pressured consumer spending last year. Of course, new challenges and
uncertainties always arise. An unprecedented drought in the Midwest
this summer destroyed crops and sent corn and soybean prices to record
levels that ultimately will be passed through to consumers. Any flare up
of the perpetual political turmoil in the Mideast will create energy price
volatility that directly impacts consumer spending. And the prospect
of inflation remains ever present as the Federal Reserve persists with
policies that ensure interest rates remain at record low levels.
There are plenty of unknowns for retailers, their trading partners and
consumers to ponder in the year ahead, but then life is always filled with
some level of uncertainty. Perhaps the most positive development for the
coming year involves the presidential election. It will finally be over and
consumers can stop thinking about whether they are better off today than
they were four years ago. Such introspection against the backdrop of a
weak economy isn’t good for consumer confidence.
Regardless of who occupies the White House come Jan. 1, consumers
and businesses will gain increased visibility into the future, and that is a
good thing. Roughly half the population is bound to be disappointed by
what they see but at least there will be clarity. ■
Where the growth is
Editorial
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By Mike Troy, Editor, Retailing Today
Those [companies] who have survived
[the Great Recession] are well positioned
to see growth accelerate in the coming
year given any abatement in some or all
of the forces that pressured consumer
spending last year.

3. WALMART
With total revenues equivalent to the next six
largest U.S. retailers combined, Walmart domi-
nates the U.S retail landscape like no other.A re-
turn to core operating principles at Walmart U.S.
and increased marketing helped the company
resume same-store sales growth. Comps turned
positive in third quarter 2011, accelerated during
the fourth quarter and again in the first quarter.
Undeterred by a slight deceleration in the sec-
ond quarter, Walmart maintains its U.S. business
is on a growth trajectory and stores are gaining
customer traffic despite dramatic expansion by
the likes of Dollar General and Family Dollar.
Walmart’s U.S. business has room to run. The
company’s smaller-format stores are said to be
generating returns sufficient to warrant an ac-
celerated expansion. And in the e-commerce
arena, the company is making acquisitions and
experimenting with new initiatives and continu-
ing to leverage its multichannel capabilities.
KROGER
Walmart’s growth hasn’t fazed second-ranked
Kroger. In fact, the opposite is true. The nation’s
largest operator of conventional grocery stores is
enjoying a remarkable run of consecutive same-
store sales growth that is approaching nine years.
Kroger is all about consistency and its long-run-
ning loyalty program is its secret sauce. Roughly
90% of the transactions in Kroger stores involve
a loyalty program, and that gives the company
a wealth of shopper insights it can leverage to
more effectively serve shoppers and drive sales.
Don’t look for Kroger to open large numbers of
new stores anytime soon — and why should it?
Kroger has shown it can continue to improve the
productivity of selling space in the company’s
existing 2,435 conventional supermarkets to
drive profitability and keep shareholders happy.
COSTCO
Third-ranked Costco’s shareholders are a
happy lot as well because the nation’s favorite
warehouse club keeps executing against a com-
pelling value proposition that drives member
loyalty and record renewal rates. The company
is poised for continued success thanks to a dis-
ciplined growth strategy and unwavering com-
mitment to delivering value to its members.
Don’t look for the company to deviate from its
strategy in the wake of the January retirement of
co-founder and long-time CEO Jim Sinegal. He
was replaced by 28-year Costco veteran Craig
Jelinek, who has held the position of head mer-
chant, COO and president during his career. In
addition, the company’s other co-founder, Jef-
frey Brotman, continues to serve as chairman.
Top 10 market movers
and the best of the rest
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T
here’s never a dull moment in the retail industry. That proved to be the case again this year as
the nation’s top 100 retailers and their trading partners endured economic weakness, political
turmoil and an uncertain spending climate.Through it all, the retail industry soldiered on, serving
customers with products they need and want, and attempting to do so in the most efficient
manner possible to maximize profits. What follows is a look at some of the key moves made by
the nation’s top 10 retailers, along with a look at the best of the rest.

4. WALGREENS
It was a tough year for fourth-rankedWalgreens
as the company’s business suffered due to a long-
running dispute over reimbursement rates with
pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts. It
wasn’t the first time Walgreens publicly squabbled
with a payer over reimbursement rates, but past
disputes typically were resolved before customers
learned Walgreens could no longer fill their pre-
scriptions. Competitors, such as CVS and Walmart,
showed no mercy and were more than eager to
accommodate peeved Walgreens customers.
The matter got resolved after the damage was
done, and now Walgreens faces the daunting
prospect of winning back customers. To that end,
the company recently launched a major initiative
called Balance Rewards, a points-based system
that allows customers to earn unlimited rewards.
HOME DEPOT
More so than any retailer among the top 10,
Home Depot has weathered the roughest patch
in the company’s history, which makes its per-
formance last year rather impressive. Sales
grew roughly 3.7% to $70.4 billion and profits
grew 16.3% to nearly $3.9 billion, making the
company the third most profitable retailer in the
top 10, behind only Walmart and CVS Caremark.
The news got a lot better for Home Depot this
year as the conversation about the state of the
nation’s housing market has shifted to specu-
lation about the arc of the recovery and away
from whether the housing market has hit bottom.
Same-store sale are poised to surge at Home
Depot and rival Lowe’s, if only more people were
able to qualify for record low rates that are sure
to be the envy of future generations.
TARGET
Accelerating improvement of the housing
market may not be enough for Home Depot, and
possibly Walgreens, to avoid being overtaken by
Target. The nation’s sixth-largest retailer is en-
joying solid low- to mid-single digit same-store
sales growth and is poised to resume square
footage expansion of its traditional discount
stores with expanded fresh food offerings in ad-
dition to a new urban format called CityTarget.
A two-year-old loyalty program continues to
gain traction and is boosting average transaction
sizes. However, the biggest boost to sales in 2013
will come from the company’s entry into Canada.
A total of 125 new Target stores are due to open
next year in remodeled former Zellers locations.
The first wave of those stores is due to open in
March, and Canadian expansion is expected to
make a major contribution to the company’s goal
of achieving $100 billion in sales within five years.
CVS CAREMARK
Walgreens’ loss was CVS Caremark’s gain when
it came to the former’s dispute with pharmacy ben-
efit manager Express Scripts.In addition to continu-
ing to execute well against its own strategy and
provide shoppers with compelling offers via its in-
dustry-leading Extra Care loyalty program,CVS was
handed a gift of countless customers by Walgreens.
The company enjoyed a strong performance
in 2011 and repeatedly exceeded its own guid-
ance and analysts’ estimates during 2012. CVS
gained significant market share this year, and
with increased customer traffic in its stores, is
poised for more gains in 2013.
BEST BUY
Among the nation’s 10 largest retailers, no one
experienced more difficulty than Best Buy. Aside
from coping with lost momentum as the housing
crisis and increased online competition pressured
sales of key categories, the company botched a
leadership transition.
After only a few months in the top job, CEO
Brian Dunn was relieved of his duties after it was
revealed he had an inappropriate relationship with
a subordinate. To make matters worse, company
founder and chairman Richard Schulze was aware
of the situation and failed to act, so he too was
relieved of his responsibilities as chairman, even
though he is the company’s largest shareholder.
Best Buy promises to remain a hot topic during
the coming year, regardless of its performance
during the holidays, as Schulze wants to acquire
the company outright but needs the backing of
other investors willing to assume what appears
to be considerable risk.
LOWE’S
Lowe’s faced all the same housing market relat-
ed challenges as Home Depot, but it didn’t fare as
well as its larger rival. Sales grew a meager 2.8%
to $50.7 billion while profits declined to $1.84 bil-
lion from slightly more than $2 billion. This year,
Lowe’s undertook a major remerchandising initia-
tive in stores and introduced a unique loyalty-type
program called My Lowe’s.Reviews are mixed and
the effectiveness of the changes have yet to reveal
themselves. At the midpoint of the year, Lowe’s is
struggling to grow sales and improve profitability.
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5. The company also recently abandoned a bid to ac-
quire a Canadian home improvement chain.
AMAZON
Amazon rounds out the nation’s 10 largest re-
tailers, but not for long. The company grew sales
by 40.5% last year to more than $48 billion and it
has continued to pile on volume during the current
year. Even if sales growth were to slow from the
prior year — a possibility given the gains are com-
ing on top of a larger base — Amazon is poised
to moved up the ranking next year, surpassing
Lowe’s, Best Buy, CVS and threatening Target.
The days of this online retailer enabling its cus-
tomers to avoid paying sales tax are rapidly com-
ing to an end, but that competitive advantage may
not matter any more. Amazon has built a lead in
the e-commerce arena with a best-in-class user
interface soon to be supported with more robust
distribution capabilities due to the addition of 18
new facilities this year.
BEST OF THE REST
One retailer that gets overlooked in the Top
100 ranking is the Sam’s Club division of Wal-
Mart Stores.As a stand-alone entity, Sam’s Club’s
annual sales of $53.8 billion position it as the na-
tion’s eighth-largest retailer. Now the company is
embarking on its most ambitious growth in sever-
al years under the leadership of Rosalind Brewer,
Walmart’s first African-American division chief.
The resumption of new club growth at Sam’s
Club pales in comparison to the rampant expan-
sion of 27th-ranked Dollar General and 51st-
ranked Family Dollar. Dollar General this year
opened its 10,000th store when it entered the
California market, and the company contends
the market can support 20,000 stores. Dollar
General opens an average of nearly two stores
per day and Family Dollar isn’t far behind. These
two companies, combined with single price point
leader Dollar Tree, will open roughly 1,000 new
stores this year, and they show no signs of slow-
ing their breakneck expansion in 2013 or beyond.
While dollar stores are focused on deliver-
ing their brand of value to shoppers focused on
convenience and opening price points, a different
type of drama is unfolding among leading depart-
ment store operators.
The most notable of these is JCPenney, where
CEO Ron Johnson has declared the audacious goal
of transforming the chain into, “America’s favorite
store.”Things haven’t gone well for Johnson since
he unveiled a transformation strategy at a major
event in New York, which was supposed to hinge
on a simplified pricing strategy.After two consecu-
tive quarters of roughly 20% declines in same-
store sales, the pricing strategy was modified
and other course corrections were implemented.
Johnson hasn’t softened his stance, though, and
continues to talk a good game, even if results ap-
pear to be a long way from materializing.
If shoppers are weary of promotional pricing,
someone forgot to tell the throngs of customers
frequenting Macy’s. The nation’s leading depart-
ment store retailer is hyper promotional and serves
customers a mind-numbing offering of discounts,
deals and special coupons.And it works.
Shoppers remain focused on the deal, whether
it be a percentage discount at an upscale retailer
or a special find while combing through the racks
at Ross Stores or one of the off-price formats op-
erated by the TJX Cos. Both retailers continue to
amaze with their mid- to high-single digit same-
store sales growth.
Value players have been big beneficiaries of
the nation’s protracted economic weakness, and
nowhere has this been more evident than in the
growth of the dollar store channel. Dollar General
this year surpassed 10,000 units by opening a
projected 625 new stores, and its shows no sign
of slowing. Neither does rival Family Dollar or sin-
gle price point leader Dollar Tree. All three have
expanded or continue to expand their offering
of food and consumables. Their food initiatives,
combined with Target’s addition of fresh food and
growth from such value players as Aldi, is placing
unprecedented pressure on such conventional
supermarkets as Safeway and Supervalu.
Traditional national food retailers continue to
suffer share losses while the likes of Whole Foods
and such emerging players as The Fresh Market
gain new converts despite premium pricing.
In other notable industry developments,
Autozone surpassed 5,000 units, Bed Bath &
Beyond continued to thrive despite the chal-
lenging housing market while Staples finally
succumbed to the pressures of a weak business
spending climate that already had negatively af-
fected rivals Office Depot and OfficeMax. ■
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TOP 100 RETAILERSRANK COMPANY 2011 REVENUE* 2010 REVENUE* 2011 NET INCOME* 2010 NET INCOME*
1 Wal-Mart Stores1
$443,854,000 $418,952,000 $15,699,000 $16,389,000
2 The Kroger Co.2
90,374,000 82,049,000 602,000 1,116,000
3 Costco3
87,048,000 76,255,000 1,462,000 1,303,000
4 Walgreens4
72,184,000 67,420,000 2,714,000 2,091,000
5 The Home Depot5
70,395,000 67,997,000 3,883,000 3,338,000
6 Target Corp.2
69,865,000 67,390,000 2,929,000 2,920,000
7 CVS Caremark6
59,599,000 57,345,000 4,912,000 4,537,000
8 Best Buy7
50,705,000 49,747,000 [1,231,000] 1,277,000
9 Lowe’s Cos.8
50,208,000 48,815,000 1,839,000 2,010,000
10 Amazon.com6
48,077,000 34,204,000 631,000 1,152,000
11 Safeway6
43,630,200 41,050,000 516,700 589,800
12 Sears Holdings Inc.2
41,567,000 42,664,000 [3,113,000] 122,000
13 Supervalu9
36,100,000 37,534,000 [1,040,000] [1,510,000]
14 Publix Supermarkets6
26,967,389 25,134,054 1,491,966 1,338,147
15 Macy’s2
26,405,000 25,003,000 1,256,000 847,000
16 RiteAid7
26,121,222 25,214,907 [368,571] [555,424]
17 Ahold USA10
25,072,000 23,523,000 NA NA
18 Staples2
25,022,192 24,545,113 984,656 881,948
19 TJX Cos.2
23,191,455 21,942,193 1,496,090 1,343,141
20 Alimentation Couche-Tard11
22,997,500 18,550,400 457,600 369,200
21 7-Eleven (U.S. & Canada)6
20,350,000 16,800,000 NA NA
22 Delhaize America6
19,230,000 18,807,000 NA NA
23 Kohl’s Department Stores2
18,804,000 18,391,000 1,167,000 1,120,000
24 HE Butt Grocery Co.12
18,000,000 15,500,000 NA NA
25 Pilot Flying J13
17,770,000 17,000,000 NA NA
* In thousands
1 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Jan. 31, 2012
2 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Jan. 28, 2012
3 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Aug. 28, 2011
4 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2011
5 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Jan. 29, 2012
6 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2011
7 Company reports for the fiscal year ended March 3, 2012
8 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Feb. 3, 2012
9 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Feb. 25, 2012
10 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Jan. 1, 2012
11 Company reports for the fiscal year ended April 29, 2012
12 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Oct. 30, 2011
13 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2011

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TOP 100 RETAILERSRANK COMPANY 2011 REVENUE* 2010 REVENUE* 2011 NET INCOME* 2010 NET INCOME*
26 JCPenney14
$17,260,000 $17,759,000 $[152,000] $378,000
27 Dollar General15
14,807,200 13,035,000 766,700 627,900
28 Gap Inc.14
14,549,000 14,664,000 833,000 1,204,000
29 Meijer16
14,400,000 14,200,000 NA NA
30 Apple†,17
14,120,000 9,820,800 NA NA
31 Toys‘R’Us14
13,900,000 13,855,000 149,000 168,000
32 Wakefern Food Corp.18
12,800,000 11,800,000 NA NA
33 Dell Computer†,15
11,900,000 12,357,000 NA NA
34 Starbucks19
11,700,400 10,707,400 1,248,000 948,300
35 eBay20
11,651,654 9,156,274 3,229,387 1,800,961
36 Office Depot20
11,489,533 11,633,094 95,691 [46,205]
37 BJs Wholesale Club21
11,300,000 10,632,947 NA 95,036
38 Verizon Wireless†,22
10,997,000 8,021,000 NA NA
39 Quik Trip23
10,770,000 8,770,000 NA NA
40 Nordstrom14
10,497,000 9,310,000 683,000 613,000
41 Limited Brands14
10,364,000 9,613,000 850,000 805,000
42 Army & Airforce Exchange Service14
10,300,000 8,700,000 277,000 428,500
43 Whole Foods Market24
10,107,787 9,005,794 342,612 245,833
44 Liberty Interactive Corp. (QVC)20
9,616,000 8,932,000 965,000 1,937,000
45 GameStop Corp.14
9,550,500 9,473,700 339,900 408,000
46 Bed, Bath & Beyond25
9,499,890 8,758,503 989,537 791,333
47 Giant Eagle26
9,300,000 8,600,000 NA NA
48 Trader Joe’s27
9,000,000 8,500,000 NA NA
49 Sherwin-Williams20
8,766,000 7,776,000 442,000 462,000
50 Ross Stores14
8,608,291 7,866,100 657,170 554,797
* In thousands † Retail operations only
14 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Jan. 28, 2012
15 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Feb. 3, 2012
16 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Jan. 27, 2012
17 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Sept. 24, 2011
18 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Oct. 1, 2011
19 Company reports for fiscal year ended Oct. 2, 2011
20 Company reports for fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2011
21 Estimate for fiscal year ended Jan. 31, 2012
22 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2011
23 Company reports for fiscal year ended April 30, 2012
24 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Sept. 25, 2011
25 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Feb. 25, 2012
26 Estimate for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012
27 Estimate for the fiscal year ended July 1, 2012

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TOP 100 RETAILERSRANK COMPANY 2011 REVENUE* 2010 REVENUE* 2011 NET INCOME* 2010 NET INCOME*
51 Family Dollar Stores28
$8,547,835 $7,866,971 $388,445 $358,135
52 The Pantry29
8,138,500 7,265,300 9,800 [165,600]
53 AutoZone28
8,072,973 7,362,618 848,974 738,311
54 Cumberland Farms30
8,020,000 6,570,000 NA NA
55 Aldi31
8,000,000 6,800,000 NA NA
56 Hy-Vee32
7,300,000 6,850,000 NA NA
57 Menard’s33
7,170,000 8,300,000 NA NA
58 Barnes & Noble34
7,129,199 6,998,565 [68,867] [73,920]
59 OfficeMax35
7,121,200 7,150,000 32,800 68,600
60 WaWa31
6,990,000 5,890,000 NA NA
61 Casey’s General Store36
6,987,804 5,635,240 116,791 94,623
62 The GreatAtlantic & PacificTea Co.37
6,700,000 8,078,455 NA [598,575]
63 Dollar Tree38
6,630,500 5,882,400 488,300 397,300
64 AT&T Wireless†,31
6,486,000 4,990,000 NA NA
65 Dillard’s38
6,263,600 6,120,961 463,909 179,620
66 Wegmans Food Markets35
6,200,000 5,600,000 NA NA
67 Advance Auto Parts35
6,170,462 5,925,203 394,682 346,053
68 PetSmart38
6,113,304 5,693,797 290,243 239,867
69 Defense Commissary Agency29
5,900,000 5,800,000 NA NA
70 O’Reilly Automotive35
5,788,816 5,397,525 507,673 419,373
71 Sheetz29
5,775,000 4,525,000 NA NA
72 Racetrac Petroleum31
5,750,000 4,700,000 NA NA
73 FootLocker38
5,623,000 5,049,000 281,000 173,000
74 Dick’s Sporting Goods38
5,211,802 4,871,492 263,906 182,077
75 Big Lots Inc.38
5,202,269 4,952,244 207,064 222,524
* In thousands † Retail operations only
28 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Aug. 27, 2011
29 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011
30 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011
31 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2011
32 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Oct. 2, 2011
33 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Jan. 30, 2012
34 Company reports for the fiscal year ended April 28, 2012
35 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2011
36 Company reports for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2012
37 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Feb. 25, 2012
38 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Jan. 28, 2012

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TOP 100 RETAILERSRANK COMPANY 2011 REVENUE* 2010 REVENUE* 2011 NET INCOME* 2010 NET INCOME*
76 WinCo Foods39
$5,200,000 $4,500,000 NA NA
77 Susser Holdings40
5,194,168 3,930,630 47,500 800
78 IKEA North America°41
5,077,000 4,404,000 NA NA
79 BI-LO Holdings42
4,943,119 6,880,776 NA [70,000]
80 Luxottica Group†
°43
4,880,000 3,900,300 NA NA
81 Coach Inc.44
4,760,000 4,158,507 1,040,000 880,800
82 Save Mart45
4,600,000 4,900,000 NA NA
83 RadioShack43
4,378,000 4,265,800 72,200 206,100
84 Neiman Marcus Group46
4,340,000 4,002,300 NA 31,600
85 Harris Teeter47
4,285,565 4,099,353 91,247 112,041
86 Tractor Supply Co.43
4,232,743 3,638,336 222,740 167,972
87 Michaels Stores48
4,210,000 4,031,000 176,000 103,000
88 Abercrombie & Fitch48
4,158,058 3,468,777 127,658 150,283
89 Burlington Coat Factory48
3,887,531 3,701,089 [6,272] 30,998
90 Roundy’s43
3,841,984 3,766,988 48,048 46,194
91 Bass Pro Shops45
3,830,000 3,650,000 NA NA
92 Signet Jewelers48
3,749,200 3,437,400 324,400 200,400
93 Williams-Sonoma48
3,720,895 3,504,158 236,931 200,227
94 Stater Bros. Markets49
3,700,000 3,600,000 NA NA
95 Belk48
3,699,592 3,513,275 183,148 127,628
96 Systemax43
3,682,039 3,589,989 54,400 42,600
97 Tiffany & Co.50
3,642,937 3,085,290 439,190 368,403
98 Price Chopper/Golub Corp.51
3,600,000 3,500,000 NA NA
99 Ingles Markets49
3,559,921 3,390,051 39,060 30,842
100 Collective Brands48
3,461,700 3,375,700 [149,800] 122,600
* In thousands † Retail operations only
° Currency reported converted to U.S. dollars based on
exchange rate as of date of company’s fiscal year end
39 Estimate for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012
40 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Jan. 1, 2012
41 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2011
42 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2011
43 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2011
44 Company reports for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012
45 Estimate for the fiscal year ended Dec. 25, 2011
46 Estimate for the fiscal year ended July 28, 2012
47 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Oct. 2, 2011
48 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Jan. 28, 2012
49 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Sept. 25, 2011
50 Company reports for the fiscal year ended Jan. 31, 2012
51 Estimate for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2012

11. R
obust databases filled with petabytes of point of sale information,
gleaned from an expanded universe of retail companies, provide
Nielsen with an unrivaled view of category sales trends. However,
the true value of the company’s vast data repository lies in the insights
that are generated when combined with economic trends, demographic
variables and other societal factors to more fully understand shopper
behavior and develop actionable strategies to drive category growth.
What follows are some of the key findings from Todd Hale, Nielsen’s
SVP consumer and shopper insights, and the most recent version of a
report titled “Retail 2016”:
• Current economic conditions have produced a wide range of im-
pacts on consumer spending. More people are renting homes and
that has an influence on what people buy, but they have to be will-
ing to spend in the first place. Nielsen research showed that saving
and paying off debt are top priorities for most Americans who were
asked what they do with spare cash after they cover essential living
expenses. The bad news is nearly one-third of those surveyed said
they don’t have any spare cash.
• Energy price volatility has made it challenging for retailers and CPG
companies to forecast sales. Gasoline prices back in April were ap-
proaching a national average of $4 a gallon before falling to a low
around $3.36 in July and then roaring back more recently. Who
knows where they are headed next? But if they head higher, retail-
ers can know with a high degree of certainty that shopper behavior
will fall into a familiar pattern of trip consolidation, less eating out,
a greater focus on value and increased coupon usage. Supermarket
retailers — those that sell gas, anyway — are able to capitalize on
the trend by linking their reward programs to gas incentives. The
number of shoppers who said they are buying more gas where they
buy food has risen to 32% from 19% in 2007.
• There has been plenty of talk about the plight of the middle class
during the presidential election, and for good reason. There is a
growing disparity between upper and lower income levels, with
1-in-7 Americans relying on supplemental nutrition assistance pro-
grams, and 15% of U.S. households earning less than $15,000 per
year.As of June 2012, there were 46.7 million people receiving food
assistance benefits, compared with 30.8 million in October 2008.
Retailers, such as Dollar General and Family Dollar, that appeal to
lower-income shoppers can’t open stores fast enough. Meanwhile,
retailers at the other end of the spectrum — Nordstrom, Whole
Foods and Macy’s, to name a few — also are enjoying success.
• Sales may be growing but consumption of key categories isn’t nec-
essarily increasing due to price inflation that creates the appear-
New dynamics affect category growth
Powered by
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insights
hts Identifying the most successful consumer packaged goods com-
panies isn’t hard to do, but determining why they are successful is
another matter. Leading CPG companies rely on a common set of
traits and business practices to deliver growth in a changing busi-
ness climate, and it was the goal of the 2012 Customer and Chan-
nel Management Survey to identify the best practices. The major
research undertaking, conducted by the Grocery Manufacturers As-
sociation, Nielsen and McKinsey & Co., involved participation from
220 executives at 50 major CPG companies with total U.S. sales
of roughly $160 billion across a broad range of product categories.
With the objective of identifying winning practices of top-perform-
ing companies, the common theme that emerged was a high level of
focus in the following areas:
• Placing forward-looking strategic bets;
• Leveraging data and advanced analytics to drive decision-making;
• Collaborating more effectively with top retail customers; and
• Building industry-shaping capabilities.
The study’s authors are the first to admit these broad practices
are straightforward and already in place at many companies; how-
ever, winning CPG companies have a tendency to deploy such prac-
tices throughout their organizations with greater consistency and
magnitude.
For example, with regard to placing strategic bets, the research
determined CPG leaders were more likely to invest in emerging retail
channels, Amazon, the Hispanic market and sales technology.
In terms of analytics and decision-making, CPG leaders are more
likely to use pricing diagnostic, optimization and trade promotion
management tools that help analyze total category performance as
well as their own sales.
With respect to collaboration, definitions can vary widely. Those
who do so effectively view it as a strategic priority and are more likely
to share new product details with partners 18 months prior to launch.
As for building industry-shaping capabilities, talent development is
the key area of focus for CPG leaders. Sales leadership at top-per-
forming companies spend twice as much time as their peers at lower-
performing companies on talent development and talent management.
These winning practices enable leading CPG companies to opti-
mize their current performance while looking ahead and planning for
future growth, according to the study’s authors. ■
Habits of successful CPG cos.

12. ance of growth even though unit volumes are down. Inflation trends
of late have begun to moderate somewhat from the mid-single digit
levels seen in 2011, but unit volumes still are negatively affected and
have declined for three consecutive quarters. Price increases have
been the highest in fresh meat, dairy, fresh produce and packaged
meat. In most of those departments, increased pricing is leading to
dollar sales gains. As for the recent drought, concerns about the im-
pact of weak crop yields on food prices are overblown. In fact, com-
modities make up about 14% of the average retail food purchase with
such factors such energy and transportation costs, labor costs, pro-
cessing and marketing costs all playing a more significant role.
• Economic weakness and price-sensitive shoppers fueled a private-la-
bel boom, but even so the sky hasn’t fallen on brands. Since the end of
2008, store-brand share growth has been fairly flat as brands stepped
up their promotion support and innovation efforts. That said, private
brands are significant as sales reached $107.5 billion for the 52-week
period ended Aug. 4, more than 14% greater than $94 billion in calen-
dar 2009. Brand sales during the same period reached $518.6 billion
and grew 5.7% since calendar 2009. In terms of unit volumes, brands
captured 78.9% of consumer packaged goods unit sales and 82.8%
of dollar sales for UPC-coded product categories tracked by Nielsen.
Private brands captured 21.1% of unit sales and 17.2% of dollar sales.
• Shoppers looking for deals continue to rely on the trusty weekly ad pub-
lished by many retailers. Traditional print circulars remain influential in
helping shoppers choose where to shop, and this is true across young
and old generations. Most consumers would like access to paper cir-
culars in the future, and they are leveraged primarily by deal seekers
to find sales on the items they prefer to buy. On the digital front, cur-
rent methods have rather low reach, but high weekly conversion or use
among those who use them. Predictably, younger consumers, particu-
larly Millennials, are big fans. Because consumers go to sites they are
familiar with, digital circular users have loyal shopper tendencies.
• Demographic factors are fueling change and the growth of Hispanic
shoppers and aging Baby Boomers are well-established trends. Less
noticeable is the impact an increasingly diverse U.S. population is
having on new product introductions and mainstream access to more
exotic flavor profiles. While increased diversity brings expanded prod-
uct offers, growth of older population segments is causing a shift in
pack sizes and packaging. Pack sizes are shrinking and print is getting
larger on products geared toward older Americans. Meanwhile, CPG
companies remain on a never-ending quest to shift food preparation
upstream to deliver time-starved shoppers the increased convenience
of fully cooked and ready-to-consume offerings.
• The growth of online retail remains on an upward trajectory with no
limit in sight. Online sales currently account for only about 5% of total
retail sales, so pure-play companies, as well as conventional retailers,
have ample digital growth ahead. Even so, physical store expansion
also remains intact for many retailers,with such sectors as warehouse
clubs, supercenters, dollar stores and c-stores adding the most units
since 2005. Lately the look of expansion has changed, with more ex-
perimentation occurring with such small formats as Petco Unleashed,
Cabela’s Outpost, CityTarget, Walmart Express and Sports Authority
Elite, just to name a few.
• Looking forward, the days are long gone when retailers and CPG
companies need only concern themselves with direct competitors.
Now it is equally important, if not more so, for retailers and CPG com-
panies to understand how companies founded or led by folks with
such recognizable last names as Jobs, Zuckerberg, Brin and Bezos
are enhancing or disrupting the future of the retail industry and alter-
ing the way companies engage with shoppers. ■
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hts
Sorry baseball, America’s new national pas-
time is searching for deals.
This is especially true online,where Nielsen’s
exhaustive “Global Survey of Digital’s Influence
on Grocery Shopping” showed the top monthly
activities for U.S. shoppers included looking for
deals and coupons (43%) and price checking/
consumer reviews (37%). The highest-ranked
daily activities were using digital shopping lists
(39%) and looking for deals online (31%).
“Connected consumers and their devices
are providing consumer packaged goods mak-
ers and retailers with options to differentiate
their brands and stay relevant,” said Todd Hale,
Nielsen’s SVP consumer and shopper insights.
“Those who can keep up with what matters
most to digital shoppers will be well positioned
for the short and long term.”
The top weekly U.S.activities related to gro-
cery shopping on a connected device (PC, mo-
bile phone, tablet, etc.) included reading online
grocery circulars (62%), looking for coupons
online (55%) and browsing a manufacturer’s
website for a grocery category (55%).
When asked which factors influenced their
grocery purchase decisions compared with a
year ago,U.S.respondents identified rising food
prices (49%), such health factors as heart/cho-
lesterol/weight (28%) and increased transpor-
tation costs (28%) as having a “major impact”
on their decisions. Food labeling (25%) and re-
tailer loyalty programs (24%) rounded out the
top five U.S.“major impact” categories.
Nielsen surveyed more than 28,000 shoppers
in 56 countries in North America, Asia, Europe,
Latin America,Africa and the Middle East. ■
Hunting for deals dominates online grocery activity

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TOP 100 PRODUCT CATEGORIES
RANK CATEGORY
SALES* UNITS*
2012†
2011° % CHG 2012†
2011° % CHG
1 FRESH PRODUCE $21,889.4 $20,951.6 4.5% 8,548.7 8,314.0 2.8%
2 CARBONATED BEVERAGES 21,459.2 21,307.6 0.7 10,086.6 10,633.5 -5.1
3 SNACKS 20,930.7 19,508.4 7.3 8,469.1 8,335.3 1.6
4 PAPER PRODUCTS 20,923.0 20,428.5 2.4 5,411.6 5,507.1 -1.7
5 BREAD & BAKED GOODS 20,913.2 20,368.9 2.7 8,808.7 8,934.2 -1.4
6 PACKAGED MEAT 17,201.8 16,736.6 2.8 5,332.1 5,363.7 -0.6
7 CHEESE 15,816.7 14,806.1 6.8 4,962.3 4,969.9 -0.2
8 CANDY 15,074.1 14,294.3 5.5 8,449.1 8,607.2 -1.8
9 PREPARED FOODS-FROZEN 14,012.8 13,809.2 1.5 4,367.7 4,485.4 -2.6
10 PET FOOD 13,576.2 13,203.3 2.8 4,862.7 4,871.5 -0.2
11 BEER 13,010.7 12,522.6 3.9 1,401.2 1,362.3 2.9
12 MEDICATIONS/REMEDIES 12,657.7 12,299.8 2.9 1,878.3 1,819.9 3.2
13 JUICES DRINKS-SHELF STABLE 11,232.9 11,417.0 -1.6 5,278.7 5,430.3 -2.8
14 CEREAL 10,823.4 10,704.7 1.1 3,479.5 3,595.8 -3.2
15 TOBACCO & ACCESSORIES 10,482.2 10,525.3 -0.4 1,650.6 1,636.4 0.9
16 DETERGENTS 9,762.4 9,604.2 1.6 1,817.0 1,843.5 -1.4
17
DRESSNG/SALAD/
PREPARED FOOD-DELI
9,351.8 9,152.5 2.2 2,749.2 2,766.6 -0.6
18 VITAMINS 9,024.2 8,317.9 8.5 1,098.0 1,012.2 8.5
19 WINE 8,797.9 8,255.6 6.6 1,042.5 983.8 6.0
20 CONDIMENTS/GRAVIES/SAUCE 8,589.5 8,587.8 0.0 4,512.1 4,597.1 -1.8
21 BOTTLED WATER 8,449.4 7,839.6 7.8 4,283.0 4,083.6 4.9
22 HOUSEWARES APPLIANCES 8,233.9 7,646.2 7.7 351.6 349.9 0.5
23 COFFEE 8,205.2 6,870.4 19.4 1,252.0 1,180.0 6.1
24
COMPUTER/
ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS
7,921.7 8,564.0 -7.5 564.2 589.9 -4.4
25 HAIR CARE 7,826.0 7,604.9 2.9 1,816.2 1,798.4 1.0
* In millions † For the 52 weeks ended Aug. 4, 2012 ° For the 52 weeks ended Aug. 6, 2011 Source: Nielsen

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TOP 100 PRODUCT CATEGORIES
RANK CATEGORY
SALES* UNITS*
2012†
2011° % CHG 2012†
2011° % CHG
26 OFFICE/SCHOOL SUPPLIES $7,037.6 $7,001.1 0.5% 2,642.0 2,645.4 -0.1%
27 ORAL HYGIENE 6,700.0 6,563.2 2.1 1,808.3 1,804.7 0.2
28 COOKIES/ICE CREAM CONES 6,677.8 6,317.3 5.7 2,723.3 2,683.7 1.5
29 YOGURT 6,366.7 5,814.5 9.5 4,838.9 4,967.2 -2.6
30 COUGH AND COLD REMEDIES 6,359.1 6,189.1 2.7 1,029.1 1,031.6 -0.2
31 PIZZA/SNACKS-FROZEN 5,921.2 5,933.2 -0.2 1,793.0 1,844.9 -2.8
32 PREPARED FOODS-DRY MIXES 5,822.1 5,637.7 3.3 3,440.8 3,459.3 -0.5
33 SKIN CARE PREPARATIONS 5,791.0 5,703.3 1.5 856.0 842.8 1.6
34 SOUP 5,741.7 5,653.9 1.6 4,682.2 4,831.4 -3.1
35
UNPREPARED MEAT/
SEAFOOD-FROZEN
5,674.1 5,565.0 2.0 771.7 782.7 -1.4
36 COSMETICS 5,555.9 5,173.3 7.4 1,114.5 1,028.9 8.3
37 PREPARED FOODS-READY SERVE 5,474.3 5,330.2 2.7 3,084.2 3,129.1 -1.4
38 JUICES & DRINKS-REFRIGERATED 5,407.8 5,319.6 1.7 1,849.4 1,883.2 -1.8
39 BABY FOOD 5,304.8 5,192.8 2.2 1,458.6 1,520.6 -4.1
40 VEGETABLES-FROZEN 5,269.2 5,172.7 1.9 2,447.6 2,500.6 -2.1
41 VEGETABLES-CANNED 5,202.0 5,206.0 -0.1 5,041.4 5,324.3 -5.3
42 ICE CREAM 5,105.2 4,859.2 5.1 1,397.4 1,428.5 -2.2
43
WRAPPING MATERIALS
AND BAGS
5,037.1 4,827.5 4.3 1,380.0 1,402.1 -1.6
44 CRACKERS 4,923.5 4,783.7 2.9 1,891.9 1,902.7 -0.6
45 LIQUOR 4,770.7 4,402.2 8.4 375.0 332.0 12.9
46 DISPOSABLE DIAPERS 4,769.9 4,852.9 -1.7 330.4 347.0 -4.8
47 FRESH MEAT 4,698.5 4,358.3 7.8 898.8 899.3 0.0
48 EGGS-FRESH 4,662.6 4,334.5 7.6 2,089.8 2,106.2 -0.8
49 NUTS 4,645.8 4,161.5 11.6 1,176.3 1,174.4 0.2
50 PERSONAL SOAP/BATH NEEDS 4,584.1 4,393.5 4.3 1,406.9 1,377.9 2.1
* In millions † For the 52 weeks ended Aug. 4, 2012 ° For the 52 weeks ended Aug. 6, 2011 Source: Nielsen

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TOP 100 PRODUCT CATEGORIES
RANK CATEGORY
SALES* UNITS*
2012†
2011° % CHG 2012†
2011° % CHG
51 PET CARE $4,539.2 $4,200.0 8.1% 785.6 767.2 2.4%
52 BREAKFAST FOODS 4,462.9 4,339.6 2.8 1,567.1 1,586.1 -1.2
53 LAUNDRY SUPPLIES 4,375.8 4,334.8 0.9 1,200.5 1,233.8 -2.7
54 SALAD DRESSINGS/MAYO/TOP 4,305.0 4,112.9 4.7 1,511.3 1,513.9 -0.2
55 TEA 4,071.8 3,852.1 5.7 1,668.2 1,596.8 4.5
56 BUTTER & MARGARINE 3,876.7 3,780.6 2.5 1,493.1 1,521.9 -1.9
57 KITCHEN GADGETS 3,825.4 3,596.5 6.4 1,090.1 1,068.5 2.0
58 SHAVING NEEDS 3,710.9 3,626.2 2.3 603.9 609.0 -0.8
59 HOUSEHOLD CLEANERS 3,699.7 3,663.0 1.0 1,142.4 1,163.6 -1.8
60 SHORTENING/OIL 3,610.4 3,382.4 6.7 786.8 792.8 -0.8
61 FROZEN NOVELTIES 3,603.5 3,490.9 3.2 1,158.5 1,192.4 -2.8
62 PAIN REMEDIES 3,563.3 3,722.3 -4.3 672.6 691.2 -2.7
63 PACKAGED MILKS & MODIFIERS 3,560.2 3,323.5 7.1 1,402.2 1,426.6 -1.7
64 JAMS/JELLIES/SPREADS 3,322.8 2,850.0 16.6 967.4 976.8 -1.0
65 BATTERY/FLASHLITE/CHARGE 3,236.5 3,147.5 2.8 537.5 551.6 -2.6
66 SPICES/SEASONING/EXTRACT 3,231.4 3,086.0 4.7 1,367.9 1,375.5 -0.6
67 HOUSEHOLD SUPPLIES 3,070.2 3,065.5 0.2 765.5 783.6 -2.3
68 SUGAR/SUGAR SUBSTITUTES 2,909.0 2,803.8 3.8 937.2 938.1 -0.1
69 BAKING SUPPLIES 2,864.4 2,754.6 4.0 1,386.8 1,391.3 -0.3
70 IRST AID 2,798.5 2,733.6 2.4 800.7 797.6 0.4
71
BUCKETS/BINS/
BATH ACCESSORIES
2,772.0 2,690.8 3.0 438.2 438.1 0.0
72
LIGHT BULBS
TELEPHONE ACCESSORIES
2,700.4 2,451.5 10.2 356.2 371.4 -4.1
73 FRESHENERS/DEODORIZERS 2,659.5 2,574.9 3.3 1,005.2 979.8 2.6
74 BREAKFAST FOODS-FROZEN 2,651.4 2,465.9 7.5 826.7 818.9 1.0
75 DEODORANT 2,649.8 2,606.9 1.6 782.7 787.3 -0.6
* In millions † For the 52 weeks ended Aug. 4, 2012 ° For the 52 weeks ended Aug. 6, 2011 Source: Nielsen

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TOP 100 PRODUCT CATEGORIES
RANK CATEGORY
SALES* UNITS*
2012†
2011° % CHG 2012†
2011° % CHG
76 SANITARY PROTECTION $2,632.9 $2,581.7 2.0% 600.1 605.4 -0.9%
77
MOTOR/VEHICLE CARE/
ACCESSORIES
2,599.6 2,454.7 5.9 424.7 448.2 -5.2
78 DESSERTS/GELS/SYRUPS 2,308.0 2,279.3 1.3 1,436.1 1,478.0 -2.8
79 GUM 2,232.4 2,340.5 -4.6 1,441.3 1,509.9 -4.5
80 PASTA 2,218.4 2,151.9 3.1 1,559.4 1,620.2 -3.8
81 PICKLES/OLIVES/RELISHES 2,189.3 2,206.9 -0.8 1,025.2 1,043.8 -1.8
82 GROOMING AIDS 2,149.3 2,028.7 5.9 739.5 712.0 3.8
83 SEAFOOD-CANNED 2,145.7 2,087.7 2.8 1,365.0 1,479.4 -7.7
84 BAKING MIXES 2,126.3 2,043.3 4.1 1,291.1 1,334.1 -3.2
85 BAKED GOODS-FROZEN 2,101.1 2,036.9 3.2 667.7 675.3 -1.1
86 SOFT DRINKS-NON CARBONATED 2,045.5 1,975.1 3.6 1,525.4 1,540.7 -1.0
87 BABY NEEDS 1,940.1 1,990.8 -2.5 305.5 319.2 -4.3
88 FRUIT-DRIED 1,913.8 1,886.9 1.4 725.3 743.2 -2.4
89 FRUIT-CANNED 1,758.4 1,790.2 -1.8 1,132.3 1,215.3 -6.8
90 DESSERT/FRUIT/TOPS-FROZEN 1,723.8 1,595.8 8.0 547.0 544.3 0.5
91 VEGETABLES & GRAINS-DRY 1,620.1 1,551.2 4.4 587.3 601.4 -2.3
92 COOKWARE 1,398.5 1,373.3 1.8 273.5 274.2 -0.3
93 MAGAZINES SELECTED TITLE 1,385.0 1,539.7 -10.1 363.9 414.2 -12.1
94
CANDLES/INCENSE &
ACCESSORIES
1,340.2 1,344.1 -0.3 512.0 535.0 -4.3
95 CHARCOAL/LOGS/ACCESSORIES 1,153.1 1,207.3 -4.5 197.7 218.2 -9.4
96 INSECTICIDES REPELLANTS 1,101.2 1,090.7 1.0 229.7 232.4 -1.2
97 FAMILY PLANNING 943.2 919.3 2.6 83.8 83.2 0.7
98 FILM & CAMERAS 943.1 1,070.0 -11.9 27.9 36.5 -23.5
99 FRAGRANCES – WOMEN 869.4 800.6 8.6 100.7 91.5 10.1
100 FLOUR 849.7 777.8 9.2 322.3 330.3 -2.4
* In millions † For the 52 weeks ended Aug. 4, 2012 ° For the 52 weeks ended Aug. 6, 2011 Source: Nielsen

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RANK CATEGORY
SALES
2012* % CHG
1 COFFEE $8,205.2 19.4%
2 JAMS/JELLIES/SPREADS 3,322.8 16.6
3 NUTS 4,645.8 11.6
4 LIGHT BULBS TELEPHONE ACCESSORIES 2,700.4 10.2
5 YOGURT 6,366.7 9.5
6 FLOUR 849.7 9.2
7 FRAGRANCES - WOMEN 869.4 8.6
8 VITAMINS 9,024.2 8.5
9 LIQUOR 4,770.7 8.4
10 PET CARE 4,539.2 8.1
11 DESSERT/FRUIT/TOPS-FROZEN 1,723.8 8.0
12 FRESH MEAT 4,698.5 7.8
13 BOTTLED WATER 8,449.4 7.8
14 HOUSEWARES APPLIANCES 8,233.9 7.7
15 EGGS-FRESH 4,662.6 7.6
16 BREAKFAST FOODS-FROZEN 2,651.4 7.5
17 COSMETICS 5,555.9 7.4
18 SNACKS 20,930.7 7.3
19 PACKAGED MILKS & MODIFIERS 3,560.2 7.1
20 CHEESE 15,816.7 6.8
21 SHORTENING/OIL 3,610.4 6.7
22 WINE 8,797.9 6.6
23 KITCHEN GADGETS 3,825.4 6.4
24 GROOMING AIDS 2,149.3 5.9
25 MOTOR/VEHICLE CARE/ACCESSORIES 2,599.6 5.9
* In millions; for the 52 weeks ended Aug. 4, 2012 Source: Nielsen
G
laceau Vitaminwater Zero, Chobani,
Prevacid, Bud Light Lime, Zyrtec and
Arnold Select Sandwich Thins are six
very different products unified by one impor-
tant trait — they all achieved the highest level
of new product success on Nielsen’s recent
“Breakthrough Innovation Report.”
The firm analyzed 11,000 new product in-
troductions in the United States from 2008 to
2010 to gain insight into why the vast majority
of products fail and others — 34 to be exact
— go on to achieve success. The items men-
tioned above fall into the latter camp because
they generated two-year cumulative sales in
excess of $200 million and were designated as
Platinum innovation leaders.
Sixteen other products were designated as
Gold innovation leaders thanks to two-year
sales in the range of $100 million to $200 mil-
lion.Another 12 other products with sales in the
$50 million to $100 million range were desig-
nated as Silver. Regardless of which precious
metal is used to signify innovation, Nielsen de-
termined each product on the elite list satisfied
four essential innovation requirements:
• Distinctiveness: Breakthrough innova-
tion requires delivering on a new value
proposition, which is why Nielsen exclud-
ed from its assessment brand restages,
ingredient reformulations, line extensions
and packaging and size changes.
• Relevance: To even be considered as a
Breakthrough Innovation Leader, a prod-
uct had to generate first-year sales in
excess of $25 million.
• Category Impact: Innovation leaders had
to outperform the sales velocity of the av-
erage product in their category and either
help grow the overall category or mean-
ingfully alter the competitive landscape.
• Endurance: Breakthrough innova-
tion isn’t a one-year proposition from
Nielsen: New products’ path to glory
50 FASTEST-GROWING CATEGORIES

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RANK CATEGORY
SALES
2012* % CHG
26 COOKIES/ICE CREAM CONES $6,677.8 5.7%
27 TEA 4,071.8 5.7
28 CANDY 15,074.1 5.5
29 ICE CREAM 5,105.2 5.1
30 SPICES/SEASONING/EXTRACT 3,231.4 4.7
31 SALAD DRESSINGS/MAYO/TOP 4,305.0 4.7
32 FRESH PRODUCE 21,889.4 4.5
33 VEGETABLES & GRAINS-DRY 1,620.1 4.4
34 WRAPPING MATERIALS AND BAGS 5,037.1 4.3
35 PERSONAL SOAP/BATH NEEDS 4,584.1 4.3
36 BAKING MIXES 2,126.3 4.1
37 BAKING SUPPLIES 2,864.4 4.0
38 BEER 13,010.7 3.9
39 SUGAR/SUGAR SUBSTITUTES 2,909.0 3.8
40 SOFT DRINKS-NON CARBONATED 2,045.5 3.6
41 FRESHENERS/DEODORIZERS 2,659.5 3.3
42 PREPARED FOODS-DRY MIXES 5,822.1 3.3
43 FROZEN NOVELTIES 3,603.5 3.2
44 BAKED GOODS-FROZEN 2,101.1 3.2
45 PASTA 2,218.4 3.1
46 BUCKETS/BINS/BATH ACCESSORIES 2,772.0 3.0
47 CRACKERS 4,923.5 2.9
48 MEDICATIONS/REMEDIES 12,657.7 2.9
49 HAIR CARE 7,826.0 2.9
50 BREAKFAST FOODS 4,462.9 2.8
* In millions; for the 52 weeks ended Aug. 4, 2012 Source: Nielsen
Nielsen’s perspective.That’s why the elite
group of products recognized as leaders
were required to show staying power by
achieving at least 90% of their first-year
sales in the second year.
This last point arguably is the most impor-
tant because it weeds out products that start
strong but don’t finish. The emphasis on en-
durance also differentiates Nielsen’s assess-
ment of innovation from other reports on new
product success, which tend to focus on first
year sales. However, only one-third of new
products are able to sustain their sales from
year one, according to Vicki Gardner, the In-
novation Report’s co-author and Nielsen SVP
product innovation. She contends there is too
much focus in the industry on first-year sales
as the benchmark of success.
“You should not hold up year one success as a
good example of innovation,”Gardner said.“Year
two is the most important year of innovation.”
That’s why Nielsen’s “Breakthrough Inno-
vation Report” only reflects industry standouts
through the end of 2010. Products launched
in 2011 can be measured on such attributes
as distinctiveness, relevance and category
impact, but their endurance won’t be known
until the end of 2012 when second-year sales
are tallied. ■
You should
not hold up year
one success as a
good example of
innovation. Year two
is the most important
year of innovation.
— Vicki Gardner, Nielsen
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