Purchasing power for tobacco products, fruit and drugstore products is highest in Munich

The largest share of the retail purchasing power of the Germans flows into food and luxury goods, hardware store articles and clothing. However, the consumer behavior of Munich residents differs from that of the rest of Bavaria, as the current study by the Gesellschaft für Konsumforschung (GfK) on regional purchasing power in 2013 shows.

The study “GfK Assortment Purchasing Power” shows the regional purchasing power potential for around 60 standard ranges. In addition, on the basis of the GfK consumer panels, GfK can also identify retailer-specific regional sales potential for more than 200 product range groups. Purchasing power measures the average available spending potential at the consumer’s place of residence and thus includes range-related potential for both stationary and online retail. Expenses in the catering sector are not taken into account.

In the following, the regional purchasing power potentials for the food, health and care product groups and clothing are considered as examples.

Food and beverage

On average, Germans spend 1.5 times as much on confectionery as they do on fruit: around 100 euros per capita are available for fruit and 151 euros for confectionery. When it comes to the confectionery range, the north around Hamburg and the Ruhr area with the urban districts of Düsseldorf and Cologne stands out – there the purchasing power for sweets is up to 20 percent higher than the national average. Munich, the first southern German area, only ranks 14th; With around 173 euros per nose, Munich residents still have a good 14 percent more purchasing power for confectionery than the German average. In the Bavarian districts of Regen and Freyung-Grafenau, on the other hand, you have 15 to 20 percent left over for healthy and unhealthy goods – that is, for both confectionery and fruit. The residents of the Hochtaunus district and Munich have the most purchasing power for fruit (around 130 euros). At 78 euros, the residents of the district of Cloppenburg spend the least on fruit. However, it should be noted that in rural regions fruit is often also available at home, so the number only says a limited amount about people’s fruit consumption.

The study confirms that purchasing power for tobacco products is particularly high in cities. Again, Munich are right at the front, with a calculated 404 euros per capita – that is almost 46 percent above the national average. In the Thuringian district of Eichsfeld it is exactly half, namely 202 euros per person.

GfK market data expert Simone Baecker-Neuchl comments: “The example of purchasing power for tobacco products shows particularly clearly how a regional average should be understood. The immensely high average purchasing power of Munich residents for tobacco products is of course only caused by a fraction of the approximately 1.3 million Munich residents. ”

Health and care

The standard range “Health and Care” includes the typical drugstore offer. Sub-ranges such as personal care and cosmetics, paper goods, detergents, cleaning agents and cleaning agents can also be regionalized on the basis of the GfK panel data.
Germans have an average of 433 euros at their disposal for health and care. Here, the Munich-based people compensate for their high tobacco product purchasing power, at least measured in euros, and are also at the forefront in Germany at 589 euros per capita. That is 36 percent more than the national average. The district of Siegen-Wittgenstein in North Rhine-Westphalia is exactly on average.

clothing

In the “premier class” of the fashion segment – women’s clothing – Berlin is right at the forefront with a total purchasing power of 811 million euros. The sum makes up 4.4 percent of the overall German womenswear purchasing power. When looking at the potential for spending on clothing per capita, the capital is just above the national average, even though Berliners have around three percent less than average in purchasing power for retail spending. Obviously, on average, women living in the capital place more value on fashion than on consumer spending in general. The simple distinction between men and women also shows interesting results, because the purchasing power for men’s clothing shows that the Berlin men with the spending potential remain ten percent below the national average. The opposite is true in the Rhein-Sieg district: measured on average, there is a higher purchasing power for men’s clothing (index: 118.2) than for women’s clothing (index: 108.8). Viewed nationwide, the purchasing power per capita for women’s clothing (227 euros) is around twice as high as that for men’s clothing (115 euros). Even the district with the highest purchasing power for men’s clothing, Starnberg with 163 euros, does not quite come close to the lowest purchasing power for women’s clothing in the Eifel district of Bitburg-Prüm (167 euros per capita).

In view of the approaching Christmas business, a look at the regional purchasing power for hosiery is also exciting: Munich, Hochtaunus and Düsseldorf lead the ranking, with per capita purchasing power values ​​between 26 and 28 euros – that is 32 to 42 percent above the average of 20 euros per German citizen. In the bottom line of the 402 German districts, the districts of Cloppenburg and Freyung-Grafenau can be found again with around 15 euros per capita.

The study “GfK Assortment Purchasing Power 2013” ​​is based on various surveys and analyzes of the purchasing behavior of consumers in retail. This also includes data from the GfK consumer panels, which anonymously record the expenditure of a representative sample of around 30,000 households in Germany. On the basis of this consumer information, GfK’s geomarketing department can use socio-demographic comparisons and geostatistical modeling to show regional, product-related purchasing power. Purchasing power is shown as a nominal, i.e. not adjusted for inflation, forecast value. It relates to the place of residence, not to the place of purchase. The data represent averages for all residents of a region. Inferences about the assets of individuals are therefore incorrect.

You can find more information and graphics on the study “GfK Assortment Purchasing Power 2013” here.

(GfK GeoMarketing GmbH / de)