France: significant room for improvement Although it grew by nearly 2% in 2020 to more than €2.1 billion, it must be said that the French food supplements market is far from being full. Among the levers that could be used by brands but also by distributors is the promotion of naturalness. verything seems to be going well for food supplements. Their sales in France in 2020 exceeded the €2.1 billion mark. As you now know, the pandemic has had a positive impact on the sales of certain families of supplements. The most obvious example is the segment of supplements for immune defences, which have 80% recorded growth of over 30%, all distribution channels combined (see infographic). Their sales were highest in pharmacies: +37% (€52 of consumers think million), as well as in parapharmacy (€5.1 mil- that supplements lion); in organic shops, these supplements also are useful for grew (+21%, €37 million). These figures must be improving their sleep. weighed up insofar as some circuits were pe- nalised by the confinement of March and April 2020: closures for one (this is the case for par- apharmacy); a drop in traffic in the catchmentareas for the other (pharmacies in tourist urban 2.1 areas). Another growth to be highlighted is that Mds€ of supplements for balance, where sales have jumped by more than a third to €34 million. Sales of food supplements This performance can be attributed to pharma- in 2020 cies - this channel accounts for more than half in France. (€37m), vitality (€33m) and digestion-transit of sales, which rose by more than 72%. (€29m). In supermarkets, on the other hand, One note: sales of supplements positioned in their sales have increased by 7.7% to €41 mil- the mood, stress and sleep - this is the leading lion (it is even the second largest segment in segment in France at €268 million - increased by this channel behind slimming supplements - «only» 7.4%. A surprising performance (coun- €66 million). Any expaatons? Although ad- ter-performance?) insofar as the French have vice in pharmacies seems to be more success- declared that they feel stressed throughout ful, stress and sleep supplements are coming the last year and have difficulty finding sleep. up against the pharmaceutical industry’s drug Depending on the distribution channel, sales of solutions, and even anti-depressants. It may stress and sleep supplements have not had the also be that these supplements are having dif- same success. In pharmacies, where they are ficulty convincing consumers who are looking the leading segment, their turnover (€190 mil- for innovation. However, when questioned by lion) increased by more than 9%, while in par- Harris Interactive, nearly 80% of consumers apharmacies, it decreased (almost - 6% to €15 think that supplements are useful for improving million). In organic shops, this segment grew by their sleep (up 5 points in one year) and man- only 1.9% - it is the fourth largest segment in this aging their stress (up 9 points). However, not channel with €22m, behind immune defences everything in this universe is to be dismissed: the mood sub-promise has grown by 49% (it is even one of the strongest growths) generating an additional turnover of nearly €4M. #75 - 52 -GAM s’fitcA