Saudi Arabia

Beauty and personal care in Saudi Arabia continues to be led by well-established regional and international luxury brands. This includes leading local players in fragrances, such as Abdul Samad Al Quraishi, Arabian Oud, and Al-Majed for Oud. The…

Consumers are becoming more health-conscious and are seeking healthier food options. Supermarkets in Saudi Arabia are looking to respond to this by offering a wider range of organic, natural, and locally sourced products. They are also providing more…

The Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, acquired a 30% stake in Riyadh-based grocery store chain Tamimi Markets Company in 2023. The PIF is looking to help Tamimi Markets realise its full potential, with the aim of…

Al Dukan from Dabbagh Group Holding Co Ltd remained the only player present in the discounters category in Saudi Arabia in 2023. The group focused on increasing its number of outlets in the western province of the Kingdom in 2023 with it opening a…

Hand dishwashing continued to dominate sales of dishwashing in Saudi Arabia at the end of the review period. The diversity of hand dishwashing products available in the local market in terms of prices, fragrances, and the assortment of brands on…

Sales of depilatories continued to decline in retail volume terms in 2023. Aside from a brief recovery during 2020 when hair and beauty salons were forced to close – and thus women had to take a DIY approach to hair removal – sales of depilatories…

Beer in Saudi Arabia in 2023 remained the only relevant category in alcoholic drinks, as non-alcoholic beer is the only AD product allowed to be consumed in the Kingdom. This is due to the strict laws prohibiting the consumption of alcoholic drinks…

Consumption and sales of cigarettes in Saudia Arabia in 2023 remained severely impacted by the growing consumer shift from cigarettes to e-vapour products and heated tobacco. The number of consumers quitting smoking cigarettes has been increasing,…

With consumers spending more time outside of the home again there was greater incentive to wear deodorants in 2023 with this helping to fuel demand. With the World Health Organisation declaring the pandemic to be over in early 2023 more consumers…

Unlike many home care categories in 2023, the average unit price of bleach continued to rise in Saudi Arabia, resulting in more dynamic current value growth compared to retail volume. Nevertheless, demand continued to rise in 2023, as bleach offers a…

Vending saw strong growth in current value terms in Saudi Arabia in 2023 with the category still seen to have further growth potential. New opportunities are arising from the increase in tourism and the development of new shopping and entertainment…

Retail in Saudi Arabia continued to experience positive growth in current value terms in 2023 with the end of the pandemic and improved consumer confidence helping to encourage spending. Although the Saudi economy actually contracted in 2023 due to a…

Wipes in Saudi Arabia continued to be driven by increased hygiene awareness, a rising demand for convenience, improving disposable incomes, travel, the rebound and development of tourism and hospitality as consumers continued to resume pre-COVID-19…

Demand for polish continued to rise in 2023, following the retail volume declines of 2020 due to pandemic-induced home seclusion. The latter resulted in waning interest in polishing one’s footwear, for instance, with the latter experiencing the…

Tobacco in Saudia Arabia saw marginal volume growth overall in 2023. Cigarettes remained the largest category in tobacco despite the growing trend towards heated tobacco. Health and wellness trends as well as high taxation and increasing prices…

Pet care continues to see dynamic double-digit growth in value and volume terms in Saudi Arabia with it having become one of the most dynamic industries in the Kingdom. This dynamism is being driven by the huge investment made by major pet care…

Despite a further drop in value sales in 2023, in line with a weakening average unit price, laundry care remained the largest category in home care in Saudi Arabia. Within laundry care, laundry detergents remained the dominant category with powder…

In 2022, PET bottles remained the preferred choice for cooking and table sauce packaging in Saudi Arabia due to their cost-effectiveness, durability, lightweight properties and affordability in production and transportation. In chocolate…

The government continues to support female empowerment in Saudi Arabia striving for equality between men and women in the workplace, enhancing their rights, support systems and care programmes with the aim of improving their work environment in all…

Retail tissue in Saudi Arabia continued to register retail volume and current value growth in 2023, although it face challenges, such as raw material availability and environmental sustainability. Meanwhile, the government's commitment to local…

Within menstrual care in Saudi Arabia, sustainable products are becoming increasingly popular, in line with the global trend. These products are designed to be eco-friendly and reduce waste, compared to traditional disposable menstrual care products.…

Alcoholic drinks in Saudi Arabia in 2023 continued to be characterised by the fact that alcohol is prohibited by Saudi law. As such, all sales in the category come from non-alcoholic beer. Indeed, Saudi Arabia is one of the top ten markets for…

The Saudi Arabian consumer foodservice market is expected to witness a full recovery to pre-pandemic levels in value terms in 2023. The market has seen growing consumption and the opening of new outlets, involving both new brands entering the market…

Thanks to the combined efforts of the government, schools, oral care brands, dentists, paediatricians, and pharmacists, consumers are now more aware than ever of the importance of a regular oral care routine. These factors combined with the increased…

Due in part to Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 strategy the Kingdom is experiencing accelerated population growth and internal migration toward concentrated metropolitan areas. This has presented opportunities for quality-focused convenience stores to…

Following a period of normalisation over 2021-2022, when retail volume sales of home care in Saudi Arabia declined compared to the surge witnessed in 2020 as a result of pandemic-induced home seclusion, demand for many products increased in 2023.…

Skin care continued its revival in 2023 having seen declining volume sales during the early years of the review period. With the pandemic over the local population increased with foreign workers returning to the Kingdom in search of employment…

Hair care continued to see strong growth in retail volume terms in 2023. Despite the Kingdom’s economy contracting in 2023 there remained a renewed consumer confidence in the wake of the pandemic with more consumers returning to the workplace and…

The pandemic had a huge impact on pet ownership in Saudi Arabia and also led to rising awareness of pet health issues as well. In 2019 the pet population in Saudi Arabia was 1.4 million, but by the end of the pandemic in 2023 this number had doubled…

Sales of dog food continue to see dynamic double-digit growth in value and volume terms in 2024, continuing the pattern seen throughout the review period. Sales have continued to be positively impacted by the rapid rise in dog ownership in Saudi…

Increasing health awareness and consciousness of consumers in Saudi Arabia helped to maintain strong demand for home delivered bottled water in 2023, which is one of the leading products within direct selling. Most households in Saudi Arabia are…

Despite a decline in value sales due to falling unit price driven by price promotions, demand for surface care remains elevated in relation to pre-pandemic levels, and continued to rise in 2023. Products in surface care claiming to kill 99.99%…

Rising urbanisation and busier lifestyles, along with extremely hot and humid weather for long periods of 2023, supported the significant growth of crawling bugs, ants and cockroaches in Saudi Arabia. This helped drive up demand for home…

Cat food dominates pet care sales in Saudi Arabia with the category continuing to see dynamic double-digit growth in value and volume terms in 2023. This is largely due to the growing population pet cats and increasing awareness of the benefits of…

There is limited demand for sun care in Saudi Arabia, with sun protection accounting for the bulk of retail volume sales. While the local climate is very hot and the sun is strong – the Tropic of Cancer passes through the middle of the Kingdom –…

Among the many formats of toilet care products, toilet liquids/foam remained the most in demand in Saudia Arabia at the end of the review period, due to its perceived convenience in easy-glide application. Local consumers appreciate toilet care…

Despite greater time spent at home at the height of the pandemic, demand for air care notably declined in 2020, as many local consumers, faced with mounting financial pressures, reduced their spending on perceived non-essential home care. In…

Other pet food continues to see dynamic growth in value and volume terms in 2024, continuing the patter seen in the second half of the review period. This dynamism is in part thanks to the increasing openness of the culture in the Kingdom with…

The rise of e-commerce and digital platforms has transformed the retail landscape in Saudi Arabia, including when it comes to beauty specialists. Beauty specialists in Saudi Arabia have adapted to the digital age by establishing an online presence,…

The COVID-19 crisis had a very strong negative impact on the performance of street stalls/kiosks in Saudi Arabia. Both chained and independent street stalls/kiosks recorded big declines in foodservice value sales and the number of transactions as…

Jeans is a stable category in apparel, being an eternally-fashionable form of apparel which can be dressed up and dressed down accordingly. That said, jeans does face some competition from the rising athleisure trend, although jeans can also be…

Gum sales were negatively impacted by the pandemic in 2020 due to lockdowns in Saudi Arabia and limited mobility outside of the home. In addition, local consumers were more focused on purchasing essential commodities such as medicine and groceries,…

Wine is not available in Saudi Arabia as alcoholic drinks are not permitted in the country under Islamic Law.

The introduction of the excise tax on sugar-sweetened beverages in Saudi Arabia, which came into force on 1 December 2019, has had a notable influence on beverage companies' packaging strategies, particularly evident in the sizes of packs utilised by…

The increasing popularity of the other metal pack type in the Saudi Arabian hot drinks market can be attributed to several factors. One significant driver is the increasing adoption of fresh ground coffee pods, boosted by the growing presence of…

Women’s empowerment in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in line with the goals of the Saudi Vision 2030, helps to support growth in womenswear. The government continues to support female empowerment and strive for equality between men and women, through…

Non-sheer hosiery continues to perform better than sheer hosiery in Saudi Arabia, supported by the rising athleisure and sporting trends, which support sports socks. On the other hand, the hot climate in the Kingdom, which has extreme summers, plays…

Ever since the remaining COVID-19 related restrictions have been lifted there has been a strong demand among locals to start travelling again with many people having already gone back to all of their pre-pandemic travelling habits and more. Direct…

Cafés/bars was one of the categories in the consumer foodservice industry to be hit hardest by the COVID-19 crisis. The pandemic led to the closure of many outlets, especially cafés located in shopping centres, as those were extremely severely…

Microwaves have evolved from appliances of dubious reputation which simply eat food, to versatile products which offer a variety of options. Indeed, modern microwaves can bake, grill, heat and defrost, thereby combining baking and microwaving tasks…