In terms of prices, stone fruits, bell peppers and tomatoes were affected most by the low exchange rate.
The vegetable and fruit category in Russia is highly seasonal, so Dixy keeps this in mind when offering a certain product mix to customers. For example, Russian customers favor grapes in the fall followed by citrus in the winter. For citrus, there is a preference for pit-less and larger sizes, as well as clementine cultivars of mandarins. Berries become more popular in the spring, and customers turn to stone fruit during the summer, especially peaches and nectarines.
Good year for domestic produce
A good production season for potatoes, onions, cabbage and carrots in 2015 made it possible for the chain to provide a high share of local produce last year. Giralt said there was enough supply to offer the domestic products throughout the winter until April 2016.
Juan Giralt Silva, Vice-President for Commercial of DIXY Group.
"The ratio of domestic and imported products varies throughout the year. After the ban on EU and Turkish products was introduced, we have been expanding our cooperation with suppliers from Egypt, Morocco, Israel, Pakistan, South Africa, and Argentina. The chain is also negotiating with Iranian suppliers, and in the near future, the chain shelves will feature not only cucumbers and kiwi, but also tomatoes, squash, stone fruit, and grapes. We remain open to new partnerships." shared Giralt.
Bananas, apples rule Russian produce section
Most of the display area in the fruit and vegetable section is occupied by the basic offering, which includes root vegetables, cucumbers, tomatoes, citrus fruit, apples, bananas, etc. Seasonal products, such as watermelons, also occupy considerable space at the peak of their popularity.
Bananas are a bestseller in DIXY and for sure in most retail chains. Not only in the fruit category, but in terms of the whole product mix. As a traffic-generating product they can possibly be matched only by the category leader, apples, which account for more than 40% of the sales volume.
The Group’s footprint covers four Federal Districts in Russia: Central, North-West, Volga, and Urals, as well as Kaliningrad and Kaliningrad Region.
"Generally, customer preferences are the same, yet there are a few regional differences for which attributes consumers prefer within the different categories. For example, neighborhood store customers in Moscow, Kaluga, Tula and Chelyabinsk tend to prefer sour-sweet cultivars, such as Granny Smith, while sweet apples of Jonagold cultivar are more popular in Yaroslavl and Tver."
"Regional preferences are also seen in the potherbs subcategory - bunch onion, dill, and parsley are the obvious rating leaders in all cities, while celery stalks are purchased only in Moscow and Saint Petersburg. Marketologists having also recently noticed a consumer shift towards packed vegetables in the larger cities." concludes Giralt.
For
more information:Juan Giralt Silva
DIXY Group
Tel.: +7 495 933-14-50
Fax: +7 495 933-02-59
Email: A.Orlova@hq.dixy.ru
www.dixygroup.com