A 360º View of Fast Food and Impulse Habits

Eva Ng
Associate Director
ACNielsen Hong Kong

There is huge market growth potential for retailers and manufacturers in the out-of home, fast food and impulse sector. According to an ACNielsen survey conducted during the establishment of the I-Scan™ Impulse individual consumer panel in Hong Kong, people make an average of 20 ‘impulse’ food and drink purchases per month.

Monthly Purchase Frequency for Impulse Food and Drinks in Hong Kong

In addition, in a global consumer survey conducted over the Internet by ACNielsen in October 2004, 30 percent of Asia Pacific consumers claimed to eat takeaway at least once a week, closely behind the US (33%). On a market-by-market basis, nine of the top 10 markets globally for weekly take-away consumption hail from Asia Pacific. And in Asia Pacific, despite 12 percent claiming never to eat fast food, the region has the most takeaway addicts, with 35 percent reportedly eating fast food at least three times a week to as often as once a day or more.

According to the ACNielsen survey, Hong Kong ranks the world’s No. 1 in terms of frequency of fast food restaurant visits followed by Malaysia (59%) and the Philippines (54%).

Source: ACNielsen Online Survey, October 2004

But where and how to exploit the opportunity? With its launch in 2004, ACNielsen | I-Scan Impulse aims to deliver never before available insight into the dynamics of out of home food and beverage consumption in Hong Kong.

I-Scan Impulse shows that while the Modern Trade is a dominant channel for major grocery shopping taken home, it only accounts for around 10 percent of out-of-home consumption purchases. In the out-of-home market, fast food shops are, not surprisingly, a key channel for mature adults, while teenagers make most of their purchases through school canteens.

I-Scan and Homescan: Total Impulse and Packaged Products

Value Share of Trade Total HK. April – Sep ‘04

Among the different food and drink items purchased on-the-go, beverages are the most popular, comprising at least 50 percent of total impulse purchases. This is even more prominent in convenience stores where over 60 percent of total food and drink purchases are beverages.

In Hong Kong, I-Scan Impulse found lunch time to be the most popular out of home consumption opportunity, followed by breakfast and afternoon tea. Teenagers tend to spend more during the afternoon, probably snacking after school, while mature adults spend more on breakfasting out of home. Understanding what consumers like to snack on at different times of the day presents an opportunity for retailers and suppliers to have the right product offering available to cater for all age groups.