INNOVATIONS CONTINUE (e.g. microalgae) saw their sales grow by 9%. In TO BE SUCCESSFUL their quest for health solutions, which guided In 2020, sales of food supplements and over-the- their purchases, consumers seem to have want- counter products increased by €64 million. The ed to find solutions close to nature. impact of the volume effect (number of sales units) was negative (- €0.4 million); this was NATURALNESS: A PREREQUISITE offset by a positive impact of the price effect. As Presented during Synadiet’s General Assembly a result, it was the arrival of new products that by Grégory Bonillo, Research Director health- was «responsible» for the growth observed in care department, the survey conducted by Harris 2020 compared to 2019. At the Synadiet Digital Interactive clearly shows that naturalness is an Assembly, Flore Coudy, Marketing Manager important prerequisite in consumers’ choice of at IQVIA, recalled the positive impact (in oth- food supplements. Currently, for a small major- er words, the performance in terms of sales) ity of French people (55%), food supplements that certain new food supplements or over- are associated with natural health products. The the-counter products have had: + €5.2m for equation “food supplements = food supplemen- Symbiosis Alflorex® (Biocodex medical device), tation” is still relevant. “A relationship still needs + €4.8m for Berocca Energie (Bayer), + €1.1m to be built between these two concepts in order to for Forcapil fort Ker+ (Arkopharma), + €850k overcome the simple idea of dietary supplementa- for Chondrosteo+ (Laboratoires des Granions). tion, Grégory Bonillo says, as it limits the product These innovations are positioned in the prom- (tobe read as the supplement) to a single func- ises that carry the most weight in each of the tion.” This vision is the one driven by the new distribution channels followed by IQVIA - phar- consumers. And this is what the brands and dis- macy, parapharmacy and e-commerce. Even tributors can rely on to conquer these new con- if the weight of food supplements (including sumers but also the occasional ones. sales) is often not comparable in each channel How exactly? Through the healthcare profes- (€1.1 billion in pharmacies versus €103 million sionals’ “much-needed” support (physicians in drugstores), there is a common point: the and pharmacists), namely through their coun- seven biggest promises account for around 80% selling and recommendations. According to of sales in each channel (up to almost 90% in IQVIA, medical prescription accounts for slightly drugstores). It is in e-commerce that this con- more than 6% of sales of food supplements sold centration is least strong: 23% of the turnover offood supplements is in fact achieved by prod- +12%in community pharmacies.scription is high in the segment of vision (20%)The share of pre- ucts making other promises. increase of vitamins or pregnancy (18%). On the other hand, it is low This confirms e-commerce (€190 million ac- and minerals for stress & sedative supplements (5%) and im- cording to IQVIA, including home sales) as in 2020 (28% mune defences (4%). The immunity segment has a platform offering greater diversity in terms of formulas). been among the top-listed sales in 2020 (+38% in of the positioning of food supplements - it pharmacies, +28% in drugstores, +21% in organic is therefore not surprising that DNVBs with stores): the consumers did not need any recom- promises «outside the box» are proliferating mendations from their physicians. On the oth- and breaking out of the shackles of traditional er hand, stress supplements could greatly ben- distribution. efit from physicians’ recommendations—which means this category of healthcare professionals WHAT DOES THIS MEAN should get out of their comfort zone which main- FOR INGREDIENTS? ly includes allopathic solutions... Unsurprisingly, two categories of ingredients Even if the favourite place for purchasing food have benefited greatly from the explosion in supplements remains community pharmacies, sales of supplements for immune defences and consumes are endorsing online purchases - with vitality: vitamins and minerals on the one hand, a preference for generalist marketplaces and and beehive products on the other. The latter brand websites, which are described as easier to (royal jelly, propolis) accounted for 4% of the access and more economical during this crisis value of food supplement formulas and saw period. Communication in the social media has their sales increase by 24%. Vitamins and min- attracted new consumers. Brands could make erals (28% of sales) increased by 12%. Ferments further investments in the social media by add- (10% of sales) increased by only 7%. And while ing content to back their communication. Not plants (38% of the sales market share) were doing it would be an error since the French are down 2%, food supplements incorporating su- ready to change/adapt their buying behaviour to perfruits (e.g. acerola) and other superfoods accommodate their growing needs...• stekraM — séhcraM- 62 -