Finland

At the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, vending was amongst the biggest losers in retailing in Finland. Already marginal in size (vending is the smallest retail channel in the country) vending heavily depends on people being active, moving around…

Unusual times were seen for retail in Finland starting from the beginning of COVID-19 in 2020. As people stayed at home more, travelled less, went out to eat less, and worked fewer hours in the office, unusually high growth was seen for grocery…

Hypermarkets has traditionally been the leading retail (not only grocery retail) channel in Finland, with around a third of overall sales of grocery retailers accounted for by hypermarkets in 2022. Hypermarkets has managed to maintain its narrow lead…

Direct selling has always been a marginal retail channel in Finland, and has in recent years seen a clear decrease – sales fell in 2022 for the sixth year in a row in current value terms. Even more worryingly, direct selling underperformed…

Generally speaking, COVID-19 created a boom for grocery retailers in Finland, as a lot of consumption moved from foodservice and travel to grocery retailers. People ate at home instead of going out to eat, because of restrictions on foodservice…

Sanitary protection in Finland is a mature category and continuing to grow retail volume sales is hard. This situation was not alleviated by the stagnant 12-54-year-old female population at the end of the review period. Thus, investing in boosting…

Oral care overall maintained a moderately positive current value trajectory in Finland in 2022, despite consumers' efforts to find savings in their hygiene product spending. This growth was largely driven by an improved selection of therapeutic…

Fragrances in Finland saw positive growth in both volume and current value terms in 2022, albeit at a slower rate than was recorded in 2021, as sales reached/surpassed pre-COVID-19 levels. The first half of the year witnessed very favourable growth…

Premium private label is now expanding faster in cat food in Finland. Following the success of SMAAK dog food, the brand introduced a cat food range that is locally sourced and produced.

During COVID-19, Finns made more effort to maintain the cleanliness of their homes, leading to an increase in sales for surface care. Consumers in Finland typically look for quick and efficient results. While in 2022, cleaning homes continued to…

Home insecticides in Finland see seasonal demand, with sales rising in Summer – however, this is very dependent on the Nordic weather conditions every year. Finland is a long country geographically, and in 2022 there was a heightened amount of…

Air care saw retail volume sales declined in 2022, while current retail value sales grew as price points rose.

Sun care in Finland recorded positive current value growth overall in 2022, albeit at a substantially slower pace than in the previous year. This growth was partly driven by the ongoing recovery of sun protection and aftersun sales, which began to…

Pet healthcare, dominated by specialist players who are not present in other pet care categories (with the exception of Best Friend Group), is by far the most dynamic category in pet products, recording double-digit annual growth in current retail…

While prices for dog food have gone up significantly as a result of inflation, premium food sales still saw growth in current retail volume terms as many Finnish consumers prioritise maintaining a consistent, healthy diet for their pets. This is…

The already high consumption of tissue products in Finland left little room for retail volume growth at the end of the review period. There was also some temporary fluctuation in availability and demand in 2022. In August 2022, Metsä Tissue announced…

Over the review period, toilet care benefitted from the COVID-19 restrictions, with consumers staying at home and working from the household. Moving into 2020, sales reduced as consumers spent more time outside of the household, with increased time…

Due to a combination of maturity, increasingly busy lifestyles and changing home décor and fashion preferences, the use of polishes in Finland has been falling for several years. The outbreak of COVID-19 further undermined demand in 2020, with rates…

Overall hair care current value sales were low in Finland in 2022, with unit pricing undergoing adjustments due to inflationary pressures. Overall volume, meanwhile, was in slight decline. Volume growth across several categories remained stagnant or…

Dishwashing saw increasing demand during COVID-19 lockdowns, with consumers spending more time in the household, increasing the use of dishwashing. While some normalisation was seen in 2021, distant working and ongoing eating at home continued the…