Mandatory since Monday in closed public places, the masks have been sold by pallets in recent weeks. According to data communicated by the Nielsen Institute on Monday, in ten weeks, sales of surgical and fabric masks in supermarkets reached 175 million euros.
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In detail, more than a third of turnover, or 68 million euros, was achieved in the week before deconfinement and the first of deconfinement, when consumers were preparing to go out and could again buy masks. Sales then gradually slowed to € 19 million at the end of May, then € 10 million from June 8 to 16, before stabilizing at € 8 million between mid-June and early July. They have since increased slightly again, to 10 million euros in the second week of July.
The masks were “ no doubt a starter product initially for distributors, during the rush from May 4th. Consumers came to buy them and took the opportunity to do their shopping. This is no longer the case today, ”analyzes Nielsen's marketing and communications director, Sébastien Monard. The increase in sales of masks since March is exceptional, the latter only being sold " very marginally " before the epidemic, specifies the expert. " This is a very special case of a product that was not selling and has experienced very strong growth, " adds the representative of the institute. The only similar developments are seasonal and concern products such as fans or misters, which tear up for a few weeks, during heat waves, before falling back into oblivion.
Taking a step back, 175 million euros in turnover is " not a gigantic sum ", comments the expert, when this figure is reported to the French population and its needs for masks. Households have been able to obtain them via other distribution channels (online, in pharmacies, in particular) or to manufacture them themselves. The total sales of masks are therefore actually higher.
A probable increase in sales to be expected
At the same time, sales of hydroalcoholic gels were also significant, reaching 78 million euros in 2020. While the weekly turnover in supermarkets peaked at 1 million euros until the epidemic passed to the stage. 2, at the end of February, sales jumped just before confinement and during these confined weeks, rising to 7 million euros in early May and 8 million euros in the first week of deconfinement. They have since gradually fallen, stabilizing around 3 million euros for five weeks.
These sales could see a further increase in July and then in August, the mask having become mandatory in a number of public places. “ There is a chance that mask sales increased during the week ending July 19. At the height of the epidemic, it was found that sales quivered as soon as there was a government announcement or rumors. This was also the case for hydroalcoholic gels , ”comments Sébastien Monard.
In the longer term, a similar increase in sales should occur as the start of the school year approaches, when households will equip themselves for the start of the school year and the return to work. Caution, however, nuance Nielsen: “ it is difficult to project beyond two weeks, it all depends on the evolution of the epidemic. Equipment purchases respond to announcements. Even the overall sales of consumer products are difficult to predict, ”explains the institute's expert at Le Figaro . Thus, if the unusual sequence experienced by large retailers during containment seems to have passed, " the return to normal has been slowly and gradually since May 11 ". It only takes a peak of the epidemic, even local, for sales to develop strongly, as well.
The government recently extended the price controls for these essential products in the fight against the epidemic until January 2021, in order to avoid any increase penalizing consumers.
