Christmas may still be weeks away, but Spanish supermarkets have already stocked their shelves with turrones, panettones, marzipan and other seasonal sweets. The products are appearing alongside items for back-to-school and Halloween, as major chains continue a long-running trend of bringing Christmas sales forward.
The early start reflects both logistics and marketing. The range of seasonal products has expanded, with new brands and varieties adding to the volume retailers need to handle. According to EFE, supermarkets can add as many as 300 extra product lines for Christmas. Seasonal displays, decorations and music also create a festive atmosphere intended to encourage purchases, an approach known in retail as “dayketing.”
Data from Circana cited by EFE suggests shoppers are buying these products earlier, but spending more does not necessarily mean buying more. The consultancy estimates that the Christmas sweets market reached €506.5 million in September, up 6.2% year over year. The increase was driven by prices, which rose 10%, while sales volumes fell 3.8%. Within the category, sales of “other specialities” increased 34.3% in value and 27% in volume.
Retailers are also responding to consumers who plan and spread out their holiday spending rather than waiting until December. The article notes that families are buying festive foods, including sweets, meat, fish and seafood, over several weeks to ease the pressure on household budgets.
A Sensormatic Solutions report cited in the article forecasts that average household spending on Christmas gifts in Spain will rise 4.5% to €482.9. That estimate covers gifts rather than food, while a separate Eroski analysis from the previous year projected a 30% increase in household budgets for Christmas meals.
Sources: Xataka.