Circana’s report “Europe’s Innovation Pacesetters 2025” analyses over 75,000 new product launches and product innovations in 2024, covering food and beverages, household, personal care, baby and pet products. Point of sale data were used from 6 EU countries: France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK.
Key findings are
- The Covid Effect: Five years on, the aftershocks of the pandemic are dramatically re-shaping the innovation landscape. In 2024, the number of innovations declined by 20% in comparison with 2023. NPD has fallen since the pandemic, with between 15% and 17% fewer launches each year.
- Inflationary impact shows a mixed picture with sales down in most countries but pockets of positivity. In 2024, around 62% of new product launches struggled to deliver sales over €100,000 per SKU, compared to an average of 80% in previous years. The UK and the Netherlands saw the highest inflation of the EU6 in 2024 and therefore bearing the brunt of innovation declines in terms of value sales.
Three main trends emerge from Circana’s analysis:
- Smaller manufacturers have been highly innovative, and their launches are very effective in terms of driving sales
- The reinvention of older, heritage brands is significant
- Private label products fill the innovation gaps in the market