AgenciesOut-of-home demand for packaged goods exceeded expectations in the quarter ended March despite the third wave of Covid-19 in January, as per companies that have declared their fourth quarter earnings.
"Despite the third Covid wave impacting January sales, the out-of-home business posted better-than-expected results in the first quarter, mainly resulting from faster channel openings," Nestle India said in its earnings update.
The country's largest foods maker said growth of Maggi sauces and seasoning was impacted by a high base and gradual shift from in-home cooking to out-of-home consumption, with the progressive reopening of offices and schools.
Out-of-home channels including school and college campuses, offices, restaurants and bars, cinemas, airports and entertainment complexes serve as crucial points of sales for impulse or discretionary categories. They were severely affected by lockdowns, closures and other restrictions since the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020.
In its post-March quarter earnings investor call, Coca-Cola chairman James Quincey said, "In India, we drove integrated execution as consumer mobility improved across channels by stepping up product availability, adding approximately 240,000 outlets and over 50,000 coolers."
Ice-creams, which depend heavily on impulse consumption, saw healthy demand not only with the early onset of summer but also return of push-cart vendors in cities, and revival of business and leisure travel as well as general mobility.
A spokesperson for Mother Dairy said its ice-cream sales have grown over 50% versus pre-Covid levels. "While the surge in demand is across categories, we are seeing the demand more skewed towards the impulse category," the person said. Sales across top packaged consumer goods makers have been stressed on account of tapering rural demand and inflationary pressures, which have seen consumers switching to cheaper products both in urban and rural markets. However, normalcy and reopening of out-of-home channels has brought some relief to the sector, analysts said.
Brokerage Motilal Oswal wrote in a recent report on PepsiCo bottler Varun Beverages that the soft drinks category is an outlier and that it expects further revival in out-of-home consumption with the revival of business operations and traveling activity.
"Despite the third Covid wave impacting January sales, the out-of-home business posted better-than-expected results in the first quarter, mainly resulting from faster channel openings," Nestle India said in its earnings update.
The country's largest foods maker said growth of Maggi sauces and seasoning was impacted by a high base and gradual shift from in-home cooking to out-of-home consumption, with the progressive reopening of offices and schools.
Out-of-home channels including school and college campuses, offices, restaurants and bars, cinemas, airports and entertainment complexes serve as crucial points of sales for impulse or discretionary categories. They were severely affected by lockdowns, closures and other restrictions since the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020.
In its post-March quarter earnings investor call, Coca-Cola chairman James Quincey said, "In India, we drove integrated execution as consumer mobility improved across channels by stepping up product availability, adding approximately 240,000 outlets and over 50,000 coolers."
Ice-creams, which depend heavily on impulse consumption, saw healthy demand not only with the early onset of summer but also return of push-cart vendors in cities, and revival of business and leisure travel as well as general mobility.
A spokesperson for Mother Dairy said its ice-cream sales have grown over 50% versus pre-Covid levels. "While the surge in demand is across categories, we are seeing the demand more skewed towards the impulse category," the person said. Sales across top packaged consumer goods makers have been stressed on account of tapering rural demand and inflationary pressures, which have seen consumers switching to cheaper products both in urban and rural markets. However, normalcy and reopening of out-of-home channels has brought some relief to the sector, analysts said.
Brokerage Motilal Oswal wrote in a recent report on PepsiCo bottler Varun Beverages that the soft drinks category is an outlier and that it expects further revival in out-of-home consumption with the revival of business operations and traveling activity.
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