Kiwi, price test | Kiwi crushes Rima Waxtra: – I can’t live with him

As many as 46.1 percent of those surveyed say Kiwi is the cheapest grocery chain. Thus Kiwi completely beats low-cost competitors Rema 1000 and Extra.

26.4 percent indicate that Rima 1000 is the cheapest, while 13.7 percent believe that Extra is the cheapest.

13.8% answered “I don’t know.”

In other words: more people point to Kiwi as the cheapest, than those point to Rema 1000 and Extra combined.

Everyone wins price tests

But why is there a large majority that believes that kiwi is the cheapest?

Nettavisen’s five price tests of the three low-priced chains in 2023 show that there are small differences. Kiwi and Rema 1000 each won two tests and Extra won one.

In one test, 10 pieces were separated between the first and second numbers. Elsewhere, it was only 5 years.

– A successful step

– The move taken by Kiwi in February was very successful. The survey indicates that it is well established, and has stuck around like a real cold, says Trond Blindheim.

He teaches marketing communications and consumer behavior at Christiania University College

Read also: Battle on store shelves: – It’s parasites

Kiwi surprised “everyone” when it chose to keep prices quiet on February 1. This was the date that grocery chains used to adjust their prices.

Blindheim is supported by grocery expert and professor at the Norwegian School of Economics (NHH), Øystein Foros.

– Kiwi choosing not to increase prices on February 1 made another significant contribution to customers seeing Kiwi as the cheapest, although both Coop Extra and Rema responded immediately, he says.

– He adds that it was probably only a matter of hours on 1 February until Extra and Rema prices were higher than Kiwi for many goods.

Chewy kiwi effect

Nettavisen was able to conduct a similar survey in February right after Kiwi took the price action. It showed almost the same result as the one measured now in November.

Confidence in Kiwi as the cheapest chain was almost as strong in November as it was in February.

The measurements are not completely comparable since the answer option “equally cheap” was not included in November.

Marketing expert Trond Blindheim believes Kiwi got its marketing right.

– The Kiwi slogan that they pay the prices works well. It also depends on the fact that, along with Norgesgruppen, they are the largest and can squeeze prices with suppliers.

He believes the slogan is credible in that sense, but it does not necessarily mean New Zealanders have the lowest prices.

– Even if Kiwi gets better prices from suppliers, it is not certain that they will pass this advantage on to customers, he says.

Read also: Diplom-Is with Major Modifications – Over 100 Employees Affected

– Lack of communication

NHH professor Øystein Foros believes that price tests conducted by the media play a central role.

– Kiwi is running extensive advertising campaigns focusing on the fact that they will win all of VG’s food exchanges in 2023, he says.

– VG food exchanges and Nettavisen price comparisons are important for people’s awareness of who is cheaper. He says and adds: The winner in such comparisons receives reliable testimony that it is cheaper than competitors.

– In chain promotions, it is normal for there to be a lack of communication about lower price differences between the second and third numbers on the platform, says Forurs.

– I can’t live with that

Blindheim points out that for many years the Rema 1000 restaurant chain held the position of the cheapest low-priced chain, but Kiwi now appears to have taken over that role.

– The Rema 1000 can’t live with too many people pointing to Kiwi as the cheapest. They have to take action, says Blindheim.

However, Blindheim is unsure whether people are changing stores, although there is a clear majority who think Kiwi is the cheapest.

– Obviously, location is the most important when people choose a store. In fact, this is three times more important than number two on the list. The second issue is not the price, but the parking, says Blindheim.

Fighting to be the biggest

Rema 1000 was the largest discount chain at the turn of the year, but already in February it had been overtaken by Kiwi, according to figures Nettavisen had access to.

In February, Kiwi had 25.2 per cent of the grocery market, while Rema 1000 had 23.0 per cent.

But how was the development after that?

The numbers are confidential, so I cannot comment on that. But we are very satisfied with the development, says Christine Arvin, Kiwi’s communications director.

She is happy that the majority answer that Kiwi is the cheapest of the three discount chains.

-Customers are smart. They know New Zealanders are the ones paying the prices. We have proven that time and time again, not least this year,” she says.

far behind

Nettavisen asked the Rema 1000 if it could be convinced that so few think the Rema 1000 is the cheapest.

– Rema 1000 should be the cheapest grocery chain in the country, which was also proven by the previous price test at Nettavisen on September 16, says Pia Melby, Sales and Marketing Director.

In this test, Rima beat 1,000 Kiwis with €10 in a shopping basket worth over 2,000 kroner.

“Our customers can be confident that with us they will receive the lowest final amount at the cash register,” says Milby.

– Minimal differences

Extra is owned by Coop, which also has chains like Coop Mega and Coop Marked. Communications Director Harald Christiansen points out that Extra is the correct name, and that the use of Coop’s name Extra in the survey may have caused a misunderstanding.

Christiansen claims it’s at least as cheap as competitors.

– Of course we would like more customers to see us as the cheapest. He says: From our own measurements, we see that more and more customers view us as at least cheap.

– Those customers who follow pricing surveys know that there are slight differences and that Extra is at least as cheap as competitors. Customers also know that Extra has the largest selection, which is why the chain has grown even more in recent years, Christiansen says.