Sweden

Household sustainability and environmental awareness drive a demand for natural ingredient air care products. Manufacturers respond with innovations, such as the 2023 launch of Air Wick Active Fresh Room Spray, a spray/aerosol air freshener…

Air treatment products stood out in the Swedish consumer appliances market in 2023 as the category registered a rise in volume sales despite a challenging economic climate, characterised by an increasing cost of living from higher interest rates and…

In 2023, airlines in Sweden continue to see a rebound in passengers, as consumers place a higher importance on travel. Despite the relatively difficult economic climate, the volume of arrivals by air returned to pre-pandemic levels. However, air…

Sales of alcoholic drinks in Sweden failed to see any perceptible growth in volume terms in 2022, despite the easing of pandemic-related restrictions. While on-trade volumes continued to edge towards their pre-COVID-19 levels, as consumers returned…

Unlike other European countries, Sweden did not impose major lockdown restrictions on households and businesses due to COVID-19, instead advising its citizens to observe social distancing measures, limit travel and avoid major gatherings in public…

Analgesics remained a key product area within consumer health in Sweden in 2023, having accounted for close to a quarter of overall OTC value sales. The most popular analgesics were those based on active ingredients acetaminophen or ibuprofen, with…

Apparel accessories has seen a weaker performance in 2023, following strong growth in 2021 and a stable development in 2022 (excluding Other Apparel, which plummeted due to face masks no longer being needed).

Apparel and footwear in Sweden is expected to display weaker current retail value and volume growth in 2023. Retail volume will post an overall decline, while retail value is set to remain positive, albeit lower than levels experienced in 2021 and…

Apparel and footwear specialists in Sweden had to deal with unstable macroeconomic and geopolitical environments towards the end of the review period. The high inflation rates in 2022 and 2023 forced consumers to prioritise purchases of essential…

Appliances and electronics specialists in Sweden was one of the few channels that posted a decrease in retail value sales in 2022 and 2023. This was the case even in current terms, even though the inflation rate reached a high single-digit figure in…

In 2023, value sales of away-from-home tissue and hygiene increased at a relatively high rate. Inflationary cost pressures remained an issue in 2023 forcing manufacturers to increase unit prices. Inflation stemmed from price inflation, spiking input…

Baby and child-specific products in Sweden maintained its positive trajectory in 2023. While volume sales remained stable, value sales received a boost from inflation and a growing preference for premium products. Swedish parents prioritise their…

Baby food is facing challenges in Sweden, with the declining birth rate dampening retail volume sales. However, due to inflation and increasing production costs, baby food saw fast price rises in 2022 and continued to face growing prices at the…

Total packaging volumes in baby food saw slow and stable growth in Sweden over 2020-2022, with the pandemic and associated economic uncertainties having little impact on the category. Swedish parents consider their children’s nutrition to be a…

Bags and luggage displayed a positive performance in current value terms in 2023, Besides inflationary pressures, coupled with rising unit prices, growth was driven primarily by the revival of outbound travel, coupled with a continued premiumisation…

In 2023, baked goods in Sweden continues to exhibit normalising sales. After the pandemic, sales through foodservice took a hit, leading consumers to shift towards retail as they preferred dining at home. Additionally, unit prices have continued to…

Bath and shower, as a product area as a whole, faces challenges due to its high degree of maturity and commodification. This translates to declining volume sales. However, a silver lining exists in the form of a strong premiumisation trend and…

Beauty and personal care in Sweden remained stable in terms of volume sales in 2023. However, value growth was significant due to a powerful trend towards premiumisation and high inflation. Swedes view beauty and personal care products as essential,…

Skin care packaging in Sweden continued to record positive growth in 2022 not just due to the demand for these products among the local population but also as a result of its emphasis on sustainable packaging materials, minimalist designs and a…

Beer saw a fairly flat performance in volume terms in 2022, when compared to the previous year. While on-trade volumes continued to edge towards their pre-COVID-19 levels, thanks to the removal of pandemic-related restrictions, off-trade sales were…

A continued upward trajectory in retail price points is evident, driven by escalating manufacturer and retailer input costs. Increased operating expenses, including material sourcing, rental levels, and salary costs, contribute to higher price…

Despite the economic uncertainties in 2023, pent-up travel demand from the COVID-19 pandemic is driving bookings in Sweden. With both outbound and domestic travel on the rise, driven by elevated costs owing to general inflation, booking value…

Bottled water sales are projected to see only a marginal increment in off-trade volume terms over 2023, partly due to the shift back to foodservice, which exceeded its 2019 pre-pandemic volume sales level by 2022. However, growth rates have varied…

In 2023, breakfast cereals have experienced normalising sales as the foodservice sector continues its recovery. However, retail sales have dropped back to pre-pandemic levels. Simultaneously, unit prices have seen an increase due to inflation and…

In 2022, Sweden maintained high business freedom and an attractive investment climate, placing it among the best locations to conduct business. Strong infrastructure and a high digitalisation level, along with supportive tax policies for R&D…

As Swedes spent more time outside homes and ate out more, the elevated need for butter and spreads, as witnessed during the pandemic, was normalised. Nonetheless, while the demand declined, the unit prices increased due to inflation and growing…

Cafés in Sweden continued to see positive current value growth in 2023, however this was partly due to the continued strong inflation which led to price increases. As a result of the economic downturn and strong inflation many consumers have cut back…

Off-trade volume sales of carbonates increased only slightly in Sweden during 2023, as consumers continued to return more fully to foodservice with the lifting of the threat and related restrictions of COVID-19. Growth in both the retail and…

In 2024, retail value sales were positive in cat food, with cats being the most prevalent pet choice in the country. However, cat ownership has reached a stable phase, with the growth in adoptions showing signs of plateauing compared to the surge…

Charge cards are increasingly viewed as a niche product in Sweden, accounting for just 1% of all transactions in 2023, and therefore recorded further decline in the year. In a development which started before the COVID-19 crisis, fewer and fewer…

Swedes consume cheese on many occasions during the day; for breakfast with sandwiches and using it in meals, while premium cheese is often indulged on and offered on cheese platters. As such, some cheeses are specifically positioned to be indulgent…

In 2023, childrenswear in Sweden is anticipated to follow the overall apparel trend, showing a decrease in retail volume sales. The landscape remained relatively stable during COVID-19, but similar shopping patterns influence it, as some Swedish…

Chocolate confectionery, as a product area, is set to see retail volume sales continue to normalise in 2023 following the surge seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, inflation and rising production costs had an impact on the development of unit…

Cider/perry saw marginal growth in total volume terms in 2022. Despite the removal of pandemic-related restrictions, which saw the revival of the on-trade channel, this had little impact on overall demand, due to the overwhelming importance of…

Sweden’s smoking population is extremely low by European and indeed global standards, with numbers continuing to decline in 2022 as consumers transition away from cigarettes. This translated into another year of decline for cigarettes, at least in…

Following several years of volume decline, cigar and cigarillos saw a very marginal increase in retail volume sales in 2022. Border trade is typical in tobacco products within the Nordic region, and the return of Norwegian buyers in Sweden supported…

The briefing introduces the Cities Households Necessities Spending Index. The index ranks 1,075 cities by household expenditure on non-discretionary items, namely food, housing, and clothing and footwear. This analysis focuses on 160 major cities.…

Fresh ground coffee, which accounted for the vast majority of the coffee sales in Sweden, is projected to see a moderate increase in off-trade volume sales and a slight rise in on-trade volume sales over 2023. Nonetheless, retail demand rebounded…

Colour cosmetics in Sweden continues to flourish, demonstrating strong post-pandemic sales. While volume growth has slowed down due to market maturity, value sales remain robust. This is fuelled by a powerful premiumisation trend, a steady stream of…

The commodities country overview provides comprehensive data on production, consumption and price trends on key commodities markets. The commodities overview in Sweden covers production and consumption trends in agricultural commodities, energy…

Sales of computers and peripherals saw a brief return to growth in 2020 as the pandemic forced a shift to homeworking; however, this positivity was short lived with sales declining in retail volume terms in 2021 and 2022 and continuing to decline in…

The brief upturn in off-trade volume sales of liquid concentrates in 2021 ended quickly and the downturn continued to the end of the review period. However, new product innovation in liquid concentrates, such as reduced sugar variants from brands…

Total confectionery packaging volumes saw a marginal decline in 2022. Although chocolate confectionery and gum saw increases in their packaging volumes in this year, the decline witnessed in sugar confectionery was enough to drive the overall…

In 2019, Western European construction recorded output of USD4,588 billion despite a slight slowdown in major economies. The COVID-19 crisis in 2020 and related uncertainty led to residential and commercial construction contracting. Rising…

The consumer appliances market in Sweden saw volume sales fall in 2023, following higher demand during the COVID-19 crisis when consumer spending was much more focused on the domestic environment. While the decline in volume sales seen in 2023 was in…

Consumer credit suffered during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, when economic uncertainty saw the postponement of larger purchases. While gross lending surpassed pre-pandemic levels in 2022, consumers remained cautious, amid much uncertainty…

Sales of consumer electronics continue to decline in retail volume terms in 2023 with high inflation and economic uncertainty continuing to negatively impact sales. With many households facing a drop in disposable income and with interest rate rises…

As retailing has witnessed the return of normal shopping patterns in Sweden, consumers have reduced online shopping from home and there has been a return to consumer foodservice in retail locations. However, value growth in 2023 was partly driven by…

Consumer foodservice in Sweden continues to see positive current value growth in 2023, although there has been a marked slowdown compared to recent years when the pandemic recovery was taking effect. The value growth in 2023 was partly driven by the…

The Swedish market consumer health saw healthy growth in retail current value terms in 2023, continuing the trend of the previous year. However, this was driven mainly by inflationary pressures, rather than any real upturn in demand. While the rate…