In categories like Alcohol and Confectionery, the pressure to keep pace with the ever-changing market and the ‘need’ to bring newness and exclusivity to Travel Retail is leading to a proliferation of SKUs. Even during the TFWA at Cannes 2023, it’s not unreasonable to estimate that hundreds of new products were vying for the attention of retail buyers. But with limited space available, this abundance may be stifling rather than invigorating.
Enter ShelfTrak, Pi Insight’s tool uniquely designed to shed light on the retail environment in airports. One crucial metric we use is the SKU Density Ratio (SDR), a simple yet powerful measure of how efficiently space is being utilised. By dividing the total number of SKUs by the total linear space available in a store, this measure evaluates how densely products are displayed on shelf.
As an example, a store with 500 unique SKUs and a total linear shelf space of 300 metres, the SDR calculation would equate to 1.7 SKU’s being displayed per linear metre.
When we run this calculation at both a total store and sub-category level, we uncover a wealth of insights into shelf density and its impact on visibility and shop-ability.
For example, in the alcohol category across Europe, our data reveals an average SDR of 2.1 (an average of 2.1 SKU’s per linear metre). At this level, a store that averages around 2 SKU’s per linear metre (or around 2 SKU’s per shelf) is offering its shoppers a reasonably well displayed fixture where each SKU has a decent amount of space to be showcased.
Of course, this does not account for HPPs or gondola ends where that average would soon be reduced. Or conversely, segments such as Premium Wine or Single Malts, where a larger range displayed in a tighter space can be tolerated. These segments have a more discerning customer base and slower purchase cycle. However, even here, an excessively crowded display risks diluting the shopper experience and obscuring premium offerings.
But beneath the surface of these averages, we find some stark discrepancies at both an airport level and at a sub-categories level as the chart below demonstrates. Here we see a high score of 3.9 SDR in Frankfurt T1 and a low score of 1.0 SDR for LHR T3.
