OCU survey on supermarket prices

Madrid, September 25. OCU presents the results of its annual survey on supermarkets. The purpose of this study, conducted over 26 years, is to determine the level of prices of different retailers so that consumers can easily compare prices. This study was made ​​possible thank to the support of OCU members. The full report is published in the OCU-Compra Maestra October issue.

OCU has registered prices of 1,165 establishments in Spain, in 63 cities and online. Collecting and analyzing more than 151,000 prices we have made two baskets with basic food, hygiene and household products representing an average family consumption.

The "basket type" consists of 146 products. It Includes fresh products (meat, fish, fruit and vegetables), packaged, household and hygiene products. They are products of leading brands in its segment (except for fresh products that respond to the same commercial category). Each product has a weight in the basket according to the household budget survey compiled by the INE. With this basket OCU seeks to compare exactly the same products in all establishments.

The "economic basket" intended to provide information to those consumers who choose cheaper products regardless of brand. In most establishments these products usually coincide with house or private label. This basket is composed of 79 consumer products, defined by their content, format and volume (eg liter of extra virgin olive oil) but not by their brand. With this basket OCU aims to show consumers the establishment’s tendency to have cheap prices.

This year hypermarket ALCAMPO in Vigo is the cheapest establishment in Spain. It happens to be that for the first time an establishment belonging to chain with presence in the whole country occupies this position of privilege. It is followed by several DANI supermarkets in Granada and Jaen which were in the first position last year. The most expensive establishments are SANCHEZ ROMERO supermarkets in Madrid, followed by a Covirán supermarket in Pamplona and EL CORTE INGLES supermarket in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

By chain, DANI is the cheapest in the basket type. It is followed by ALCAMPO AND FAMILY. The most expensive brands are HIPERDIRECT, TU DESPENSA and especially SANCHEZ ROMERO.

By city, the cheapest ones for branded products are Cordoba, Murcia, Vigo, Corredor del Henares in Madrid, La Coruna and Ourense. The most expensive in 2014 are all the Basque cities with the exception of San Sebastian, plus Pamplona and Barcelona.

The main conclusion is that it is possible to save an average of  929.54 € in the shopping cart. The saving has increased by 11.2% due to price reductions policies undertaken by some retailers which were already cheap. This year they are even more so.

In Madrid this figure reaches 3,322.82 € per year, the highest figure nationwide. This represents 61% of annual expenditure. This saving means that a family could buy with the same annual budget in the cheaper establishment until the following August.

Madrid is followed by Vigo, with a 1647.91€ saving, Pamplona (1581.85€), Santa Cruz de Tenerife (1373.89€), …..(1,368.14€) and Barcelona (1,311.06€). By contrast, cities where less can be saved are Ciudad Real (331.12€), Vitoria (382, 15€) and Lugo (409.85€).

In 2014 the price change has been different depending on whether they are branded or private label. Branded products have lowered their prices by 2.1% on average. This drop in prices is the response of retailers to the severe economic crisis within families who have seen their income and purchase power lowered another year. On the contrary most chains have opted for increasing product prices in the economic basket mainly composed of private branded products. Thus companies have raised prices of products that consumers considered cheaper.

It is possible to draw the following conclusions from the OCU survey:

• One more year and due to the crisis family purchasing power has dropped.
• A family can save nearly a thousand euros on average in the shopping cart depending on the establishment where you buy.
• The savings are even greater in the economic basket, the one which includes private brands. (3,164.78€ in Madrid and 2,326.68€ in Barcelona)
• The cheaper regions are Murcia, Galicia and Andalucía. The most expensive are the Basque Country, Navarre, Catalonia and Aragon.
• The cheapest chains are DANI, ALCAMPO AND FAMILIA.
• While chains have lowered prices of basket type by 2.1% over last year, most chains have chosen to raise prices of private labels.

For more information (media) Eva Jimenez Tel. 917 226 061 prensa@ocu.org