Organised retail boost for FMCG sales in April-June

INDIA'S ORGANISED RETAIL stores, which contribute around 12% of overall fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sales, grew the highest in six quarters at 21.1% year-on-year during the April-June period, NielsenIQ data shows, on the back of a stable urban demand environment.

- VIVEAT SUSAN PINTO

Steady urban sales across categories such as food, home care and personal care, the data insights and market research agency said helped modern trade outperform traditional trade, which grew at 6.2% y-o-y in the June quarter. NielsenIQ does not track e-commerce sales, but industry estimates suggest that the online channel grew at about 12-15%y-o-yin terms of FMCG sales in the June quarter.

For perspective, 8% of overall FMCG sales comes from e-commerce, while traditional trade contributes around 80% of overall FMCG sales in the country. The revival in traditional trade in the June quarter versus 1.9% in the March quarter has been led by a recovery in rural markets, NielsenIQ said.

At the same time, urban markets have not slacked at all, the market research agency said, which is reflected in volume growth figures over the last few quarters in modern trade. Urban areas, says NielsenIQ, have a higher concentration of modern trade outlets versus rural areas, which has more traditional trade or kirana stores.