Across Europe, more consumers are chosing to entertain indoors, leaving restaurateurs increasingly up against retailers in battling for a share of consumers’ money.
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Dinner party culture has evolved over the last few years – gatherings have become more frequent and less formal. By 2006 there will not only be more parties and gatherings hosted, but more will be spent on each as consumers increasingly use gatherings at home to show of both their living quarters and their culinary skills. Manufacturers are benefiting from selling premium convenience products to consumers who ‘pass off’ gourmet prepared food as their own.
Over 2 billion gatherings were held in private homes across Europe in 2001,and, according to independent market analyst Datamonitor, the dinner party culture of the last few years has resulted in a home entertaining market currently worth over €100bn (US$86.37bn) to consumer companies.
Datamonitor’s new report, “Entertaining At Home” looked at the overall European spend, by market, on entertaining. Food accounts for the largest absolute share of spend on entertaining, with retail food and take-away food accounting for over 55% of total entertaining spend. Overall, spend on take-away food for entertaining represents the largest share of the associated market at 20%, showing that nearly one fifth of the value all take-away meals are consumed in company.
European spend on entertaining:
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By GlobalData€m Total spend Entertaining % Entertaining spend
Food 694,255 7.5% 51,880
Take-away 19,838 19.9% 3,949
Drinks 339,181 12.5% 42,480
Personal care 31,389 5.2% 1,632
Home hygiene 3,613 18.3% 660
Overall 1,088,276 9.2% 100,602
Datamonitor’s research reveals that the UK in particular is noted for rapid growth in the home entertaining trend. Currently British consumers are the third on the list for the number of parties, with 313 million gatherings per year, behind Germany (539 million) and Italy (327 million). By 2006, however, The UK will have moved to second position with 333 million gatherings. British spend on average €67.79 per party. Only France spends more at €78.30 per party.
Food is the new rock and roll
“While not all home-gatherings involve cooking, food commands the greatest proportion of spend on home entertainment. Alongside educating people how to cook, media attention to all things culinary, be it the celebrity chef or the glossy food magazines, has made cooking cool. It has gone from being a female dominated chore to a hugely popular hobby commanding millions of pounds from both food and the connected products such as cookbooks, videos, and premium kitchenware. It has gone beyond being a hobby for only those with the skill – manufacturers have enabled consumer to ‘cook by numbers’ by taking the hard work out of gourmet foods and providing pre-prepared foods. This allows even the most unskilled of food lovers the opportunity to entertain and show off while they’re doing it. Retailers have picked up on this trend, with ranges such as Tesco Finest enabling even inexperienced people to put on a show,” comments Neil Broome, Datamonitor consumer markets analyst and author of the report.
Smaller, less formal gatherings are popular
As part of the trend of entertaining at home, parties in general are becoming less formal. It is becoming increasingly common for guests to assist with the preparation of food, and to contribute by bringing courses or alcohol. This has, and will continue to encourage more people to ‘have a go’ in preparing food and to be more adventurous in the food they choose. One explanation for the increasing informality of parties is that consumers’ social circles are becoming smaller, but they are socializing with those friends more often.
Over recent years, economic growth and high economic confidence have been important catalysts for the home entertaining market. Although short-term economic growth is forecast to slow across Europe, over a five year period it is still expected that continued growth with drive the market. Datamonitor’s consumer research indicates that value for money is a major driver of the entertaining at home phenomenon.
Higher expectations from going out
“Increased disposable income has not necessarily been spent at the nearest posh restaurant; people have bought bigger and better houses, spent more time and money making them look good and want to show them off. With more in the way of in-home entertainment to keep people occupied, the home has taken more of a pivotal role in entertaining again. This does not mean that consumers will forgo restaurants altogether, but they will perhaps expect more the experience of going out,” comments Broome.
Gatherings are for showing off
For many consumers, showing off is a primary motivation for hosting gatherings. For retailers, this means stocking specialist (especially ethnic) ingredients to cater for more experimental recipes associated with dinner party cooking. Many consumers also stated that appearance was more important than actual quality, and that they are seeking a ‘wow factor’ from their guests.
Consumers are increasingly willing to accept help from convenience solutions such as frozen desserts, pre-marinated meat and pre-cut and washed salads, although they are keen for convenience products which can be passed off as home-cooked.
Marketing to parties will prove successful
Although there will be growth in the number of gatherings over the next five years (0.8% growth per annum), the spend on gatherings will increase more significantly through consumers trading-up to premium products, and increasing number of gatherings involving home cooking. The overall result shows that the home entertaining market across Europe will grow by 3.2% per annum to nearly €118bn, outstripping the general growth in the underlying markets of 2.6% per annum. There are specific needs from consumer goods products for the party market. Consumers generally have positive associations with ‘party spirited’ products, especially alcohol products. Therefore specific targeting of the party occasion through new product design and positioning has volume opportunities and positive image benefits for the brand as a whole.
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