Norway

Deodorants in Norway continued to grapple with a high degree of market maturity in 2023. Despite a return to social activities and exercise routines, deodorant sales have not seen a corresponding rise. This can be attributed to several factors.…

Household spending power in Norway is under strain due to the combination of price inflation and higher interest rates, leading to a more cautious approach to purchasing decisions. With inflation persisting at a rate of 5% in 2023, according to…

The pandemic has revived the fortunes and renewed the popularity of the direct selling channel amongst Norwegian consumers, as it led companies to establish new ways of marketing and selling their products, namely by using digital tools, such as…

Orkla continued to dominate dishwashing in 2023, supported by its Sun and Zalo brands, which led in automatic dishwashing and hand dishwashing, respectively. While these two brands lost value share during the review period, this was due partially to…

Overall, 2023 has been a positive year for consumer foodservice in Norway. After two strong years of recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, the industry has seen volume and value growth begin to normalise in 2023. Rising unit prices has been a key…

Higher retail price points in 2023 can be attributed to rising input costs, including energy, material sourcing, labour, supply chain distribution and logistics. These increased costs are often transferred to retail price points.

Following a period of exceptional growth fuelled by the pandemic and a rising focus on self-care, skin care in Norway has experienced a slowdown in 2022 and 2023. This can be attributed to the market's increasing maturity. While the pandemic led to a…

Unlike other beauty categories that experienced a correction after the pandemic boom, colour cosmetics in Norway have maintained a strong trajectory. Retail value sales recorded solid growth in current terms in 2023. This positive performance extends…

In 2023, in the wipes product area in Norway there was a notable increase in product claims focusing on clean wellness, highlighting the absence of harmful substances and the use of plant-based or natural ingredients. This trend is driven by…

Sales of home insecticides were dominated by spray/aerosol insecticides again in 2023. However, these products are increasingly at odds with environmental concerns due to their chemical-based formulations. Indeed, a growing number of Norwegian…

Home care in Norway was significantly influenced by elevated retail pricing in 2023, which drove current value growth. Retail volume sales, however, saw a decline as local consumers facing constraints on their household budgets reduced their spending…

In 2023, sun care in Norway was a highly volatile category, heavily influenced by the country's unpredictable weather. The pandemic provided a temporary boost as staycations led to increased domestic sun care consumption. However, with the return of…

In 2023, oral care is a well-established product area in Norway with limited room for volume growth, particularly in core categories like manual toothbrushes and toothpaste. Additionally, intense price competition, especially from low-cost stores…

In 2023, menstrual care in Norway witnessed a notable increase in retail prices. This surge can be attributed to rising input costs for manufacturers and retailers, including expenses related to material sourcing, rental overheads, and salary…

Sales of dog food declined in volume terms over 2023. Price increases affected consumer shopping habits with fewer people buying dog food in higher volumes as they looked to manage their budgets. Promotional activities subsided quite substantially…

Vending in Norway is dominated by Coca-Cola, which garners over one-third of value share in 2023. Vending sales rebounded strongly in 2023 as vending machines continued to gain popularity with locals. Sales were underpinned by the return of builders…

In 2023, grocery retailers engaged in price wars as they reacted to weaker consumer confidence and tried to support consumers facing higher costs of living. Food prices continued to increase significantly as costs soared across the value chain,…

Hypermarket sales have stayed above pre-pandemic levels in 2023, due to a solid performance from the sole player Coop Obs. The retailer employed bulk buying and delivered budget friendly products to compete against other dominant grocery retailers in…

The twin challenges of high inflation and heightened competition continue to impact the performance of convenience retailers in Norway, only prolonging its recovery from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Convenience stores and forecourt retailers…

Volume sales of cigarettes continued to decline in Norway in 2023. Smoking prevalence dropped in 2023 compared to 2022 with more people quitting smoking or switching to smokeless tobacco such as snus. The government is making concerted efforts to…

Fragrances emerged as the biggest winner in beauty and personal care during the pandemic, partly due to a decline in duty-free purchases. Surprisingly, despite the return of travel and a rise in duty-free sales in 2022 and 2023, domestic fragrance…

The multifunctional nature of home care products continued to restrict growth opportunities for polishes in 2023. For example, surface care wipes are increasingly used to remove dirt from shoes, floor cleaners replace floor polish, and automatic…

Demand for pet accessories slowed over 2023, with value growth only sustained by a sharp rise in prices. With Norway seeing a sharp rise in the cost of living, pet owners focused mostly on essentials like pet food and looked to limit their…

After a spike in the pet population following the outbreak of COVID-19 the pet population has returned to more stable rates of growth. With the pandemic over and people spending more time away from the home there is no longer such a rush to become a…

Cat food manufacturers saw raw material and production costs surge in 2022 and while several players initially opted to delay passing cost increases on to consumers so as not to undermine their competitiveness this strategy become unviable for most…

Discounters in Norway fared well both during and after the COVID-19 pandemic and have been able to sustain this solid performance in 2023. In the face of high inflation, locals are seeking out lower prices when grocery shopping. Price pressures have…

Consistent with trends across home care as a whole, toilet care declined in retail volume terms in 2023. As inflation soared, household incomes faced intense pressure, and local consumers began trading down to cheaper products, including private…

Norwegians tend to prefer clean, natural and scent-free homes, and many do not deem air care to be a necessity. Moreover, concerns over the impact of harmful chemicals on personal health and the environment placed a downward pressure on sales of air…

Sales of cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco declined in retail volume terms in 2023. Smoking prevalence also dropped in 2023 compared to 2022. More people are quitting smoking for health and financial reasons while some smokers are…

Hair care experienced significant growth during the pandemic as consumers had more time for self-care and participated in increased outdoor activities. However, the exceptional growth rates seen in 2020 and 2021 have moderated in 2022 and 2023.…

Depilatories in Norway is characterised by a high degree of maturity. The preference for a hairless appearance has been the norm for a long time, leading to limited opportunities for innovation and premiumisation. Furthermore, the market is dominated…

Inflationary pressures have led to stronger price competition in Norway’s retail landscape. Food price increases have been a notable issue for grocery retailers resulting in intense competition between supermarkets and discounters. Players have come…

The persistent high inflationary conditions of 2023 dampened consumer purchasing power, and demand for laundry care products fell for the third consecutive year. This was in marked contrast to 2020, when laundry care products saw positive growth in…

Despite receiving a boost during the pandemic thanks to its well-recognised and effective sanitising properties, bleach is increasingly viewed as an old-fashioned product, and registered volume sales decline once again in 2023. Nevertheless, remains…

Self-service cafeterias have already seen value sales recover to pre-pandemic levels in Norway, aided by the growth of new developments. After the initial shock in 2020, sales recovered well in 2021 followed by s strong rebound in 2022. Self-service…

The growth of retail adult incontinence in Norway in 2023 continues to be predominantly driven by the ageing population. Factors such as increased awareness, improved availability through grocery retailers, reduced stigma surrounding incontinence,…

Rabbits remain one of the most popular small pets among Norwegians. Often, rabbits are seen as a kid-friendly starter pet for children to learn about taking care of an animal before committing to a cat or a dog. However, as a result, rabbits also…

While the pandemic did benefit men's grooming sales, the impact was not as significant as in other beauty and personal care categories. This can be attributed to several factors: the market's maturity, a modest premiumisation trend, the growing…

Following very strong progress during the pandemic, retail e-commerce continues to grow at a steady pace in Norway, with another solid performance in 2023. This is even true of segments that performed poorly offline, such as homewares and home…

The year 2023 saw a notable trend of broad increases in retail price points for nappies, diapers, and pants in Norway. This surge was primarily driven by cost inflation across various aspects of production, including energy, material sourcing,…

Street stalls/kiosks remains the smallest category in consumer foodservice, in both outlet numbers and current value terms, while in transactions it is expected to close the year narrowly ahead of self-service cafeterias. The category is struggling…

Although outlets numbers continued to decline in 2023, limited-service restaurants witnessed another solid year in Norway and registered one of the best performances in consumer foodservice. On balance, limited-service restaurants have proved…

Bath and shower in Norway experienced a decline in 2023, a natural correction following the surge witnessed during the pandemic. Heightened hygiene awareness during that time led to increased demand for products like liquid soap, bar soap, and hand…

Tissue and hygiene experienced robust value growth in Norway in 2023, driven primarily by persistent inflationary pressures. While inflation moderated from its 2022 spike, it remained elevated historically, resulting in notable percentage increases…

After dynamic growth during the pandemic, home improvement and gardening stores and homeware and home furnishings stores have struggled in 2023. Following increases in shipping costs and electricity alongside large inventories, the channels have…

Small local grocers accounts for a negligible share of overall value sales within grocery retailers. Like most other grocery retail channels, small local grocers saw exceptional current value growth in 2020 in the first year of the pandemic, as…

By some distance, full-service restaurants remain the biggest category in consumer foodservice, which benefits from the high spend per transaction. Norway is notorious for its high consumer food service prices, which are up to three times that seen…

Cafés/bars recovered to pre-pandemic levels in 2023, in current value terms, although growth was muted compared to the sharp rise seen in 2022, as consumers flocked back to visiting cafés/bars. The number of outlets has remained stable in the last…

Baby and child-specific product sales remained stagnant in 2023. Norwegian parents continue to favour a minimalist approach to baby hygiene, using as few products as possible. This translates to a preference for gentle, multi-functional washing…

Apparel and footwear saw current value growth rise on a par with recent years, with inflation fuelling some growth. This followed a few tough years during the pandemic era when people stayed at home and retail sales were naturally limited. Saved…