Specialty Food Stores
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 18,150 specialty foods stores in the US sell produce, seafood, grocery, meat and poultry, bakery, prepared foods, specialty cheese, coffee and tea, nutritional supplements, vitamins, educational products, floral, and even certain household products. Most specialty food stores offer products deemed to be higher quality and premium-priced than traditional grocery stores.
Perishable Products
Specialty food stores typically carry more perishable products than traditional food retailers, often comprising two-thirds or more of their product offerings.
Dependance On Economic Conditions
Specialty food customers typically are more affluent (household income of $75,000) than the average grocery store shopper.
Industry size & Structure
Industry Forecast
Specialty Food Stores Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Apr 13, 2024 - Store Wages Continue to Climb
- In the first two months of 2024, producer prices for specialty food retailers eased from their peak in December. Still, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the producer price index rose 5.5% in February compared to a year ago after surging nearly 25% in the previous annual comparison. Overall employment by specialty food stores declined in January versus the prior month, while average wages were $18.24 per hour in February, a record-high for the industry and an increase of 1.2% compared to the prior year, preliminary data from BLS shows.
- In April, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (aka WIC) received its first update in roughly a decade, AP News reports. The updated program for low-income mothers incentivizes fruit and vegetable purchases while expanding access to culturally diverse offerings. Under the new rules, fruits and vegetable vouchers in 2024 will provide $26 per month for kids ages 1 through 4, $47 per month for pregnant and postpartum women, and $52 for breastfeeding women. “It places a heavy emphasis on fruits and vegetables, which we think is an important component of a healthy diet,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. The updates also expand access to global whole grains like quinoa, wild rice, and millet and to foods such as teff and whole wheat naan and remove or reduce monthly allowances for juice and cut back on allowances for milk, according to the agency.
- The Shrinkflation Prevention Act, introduced in the Senate in February, aims to crack down on corporations that deceive consumers by selling smaller sizes of their products without lowering prices, according to the bill’s authors, Democratic senators Elizabeth Warren and Bob Casey. The proposed bill would direct the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to develop regulations that classify shrinkflation as an unfair or deceptive practice and would prohibit manufacturers from engaging in shrinkflation. Additionally, it would authorize the FTC to pursue civil actions against corporations engaging in shrinkflation and authorize state attorneys general to bring civil actions against corporations engaging in the practice. Snacks such as chips and cookies have become 26% more expensive since January 2019, according to a recent report released by Casey. According to the report, nearly 10% of the price increase was due to shrinkflation. Critics say the bill would go too far by telling companies how to package their products.
- Specialty food retailers may be poised for growth in 2024, according to new research from shopper traffic analytics firm Placer.ai. The report showed strong year-over-year traffic increases at higher-end specialty supermarkets in major markets over the holidays, even as shoppers also flocked to more price-driven banners, the Specialty Food Association reports citing Placer.ai data. As more consumers strive to create restaurant-quality dishes at home they’re visiting specialty food stores to buy ingredients. In November, monthly visits were up 20.9% at Lazy Acres in California versus a year ago; monthly visits rose 10.6% at New York’s Uncle Giuseppe’s and were up 8.3% at Cermak Fresh Market in Illinois. All three chains also saw similar increases in September and October. “Rising interest in sustainability, natural products, and organic ingredients – especially among Gen Z – likely helped drive traffic growth as well,” per Placer.ai.
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