1. Avocado Holiday Retail Recap
HOLIDAYS
&
EVENTS
Q1 2019
Avocado Holiday Retail Recap
Big Game, Valentine’s Day & St. Patrick’s Day

2. Definitions
This report looks at retail sales performance for the three holiday and event weeks* listed below:
Big Game – week ending 2/03/2019
Valentine’s Day – week ending 2/17/2019
St. Patrick’s Day – week ending 3/17/2019
Category: Avocados
Geographies:
Total U.S.
Regions
Retail POS data source: IRI / FreshLook
*IRI data is provided in weekly increments, with each week ending on a Sunday. Weeks shown are the best fit for the holidays in this report.
HAB's calculation is based in part on data reported by Information Resources, Inc. through its Freshlook Service for the Avocado category for Multi-Outlet (MULO). The information is believed to be reliable at the time supplied by IRI but is neither all-inclusive nor guaranteed by IRI. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, specific data points may vary considerably from other information sources.

3. Big Game
week ending 2/03/2019
Big Game means big avocado sales. The Big Game ranks among the biggest avocado weeks of the year, and 2019 continued the tradition
Avocado volume reached 65.0M units in 2019, a four-year high!

4. Big Game shows record high unit sales
Holiday Week Sales and Average Price by Year
(Dollars and Units in millions)
Units
Dollars
ASP
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Big Game week volume has increased each year for the past four years, up +27% vs to 65.0MM units. Dollars sales also increased for three out of the past 4 years, but declined slightly in 2019 (-3% vs, 2018) to $56.4MM
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 2/03/2019

5. Big Game showed dollar gains in West and South Central
Dollar Sales and % Change
Nationally, Big Game sales declined -3% vs. prior year to $56.4MM
West and South Central posted dollar gains in 2019, while all other regions declined
On average, avocado retailers saw Big Game week sales of $591 per store
Per store dollar sales were especially strong in West ($1,226) and California ($1,106)
Total U.S.
$56.4MM
-3%
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Dollars per Store Selling
Total U.S.
Avg. = $591
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 2/03/2019

6. Big Game volume growth varied across regions
Unit Sales and % Change
Nationally, Big Game week avocado volume grew +1% to a new four-year high of 65.0MM units
Five of eight regions posted volume growth, ranging from a high of +7% in Plains to +3% in Midsouth
On average, avocado retailers saw sales of 681 units per store during Big Game week
California led the regions in unit sales per store selling. California, West, and South Central units/store exceeded the national average
Total U.S.
65.0MM
+1%
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Units per Store Selling
Total U.S.
Avg. = 681
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 2/03/2019

7. Nationally, Big Game prices declined -4%
Total U.S.
$0.87
-4%
South
Central
$0.71
+5%
Plains
$0.79
-15%
West
$0.88
+4%
Midsouth
$0.93
-7%
low
high
Great
Lakes
$0.84
+1%
California
$0.76
-6%
Southeast
$0.92
-8%
Northeast
$1.16
-11%
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
At the region level, average price changes ranged from an increase of +5% in South Central to -15% in Plains
There was a wide range of prices across the regions, from a low of $0.71/unit in South Central to a high of $1.16/unit in Northeast
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 2/03/2019

8. Big Game category dollars decreased -$1.6MM
Dollar Growth by Region
(in millions)
Unit Growth by Region
(in millions)
Nearly all regions contributed to the Big Game week dollar decline of -$1.6MM. However, South Central and West each posted a +$0.3MM gain
Five of eight regions grew units, with California (+0.65MM) and Southeast (+0.39MM) posting the greatest gains
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 2/03/2019

9. Valentine’s Day Love is in the air…for avocados!
week ending 2/17/2019
Love is in the air…for avocados!
This year, shoppers gave a delicious gift to their “special someone” for Valentine’s Day. Dollar sales reached $44.5MM for the holiday

10. Valentine’s Day sales declined slightly in 2019
Holiday Week Sales and Average Price by Year
(Dollars and Units in millions)
Dollars
Units
ASP
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Valentine’s Day sales have trended upward for three out of the past four years. Dollar sales and volume declined slightly in 2019
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 2/17/2019

11. Valentine’s Day dollar sales grew in the Southeast
Dollar Sales and % Change
Nationally, Valentine’s Day sales declined -2% to $44.5MM
Southeast dollar sales increased +11%, while sales were flat or down in other regions
On average, avocado retailers saw sales of $467 per store for the holiday week
West posted per store dollar sales of double the national average
Total U.S.
$44.5MM
-2%
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Dollars per Store Selling
Total U.S.
Avg. = $467
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 2/17/2019

12. Valentine’s Day volume trends were mixed across the regions
Unit Sales and % Change
Nationally, Valentine’s Day volume was flat at 45.0MM units
Volume trends ranged from a high of +20% in Southeast to % in Northeast
On average, avocado retailers saw sales of 472 units per store during the holiday week
At 982 units/per store, West’s rate was more than double the national average, and +183 units above the second-highest region, California
Total U.S.
45.0MM
-0%
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Units per Store Selling
Total U.S.
Avg. = 472
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 2/17/2019

13. Nationally, average price declined slightly for Valentine’s Day
Total U.S.
$0.99
-1%
California
$1.05
+4%
South
Central
$0.77
+6%
Plains
$1.04
-4%
Southeast
$0.97
-7%
low
high
Great
Lakes
$0.99
-8%
West
$0.96
+1%
Midsouth
$1.05
-8%
Northeast
$1.22
-1%
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Average price for Valentine’s Day ranged from a low of $0.77/unit in South Central to a high of $1.22/unit in Northeast
Average price increased across three of five regions and ranged from an increase of +6% in South Central to a decline of -8% in Great Lakes and Midsouth
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 2/17/2019

14. Valentine’s Day saw a decline in incremental sales
Dollar Growth by Region
(in millions)
Unit Growth by Region
(in millions)
Dollar sales decreased by -$0.8MM nationally. Six out of eight regions posted dollar declines
Incremental unit sales were mixed across the regions. However, the increases in Plains, Midsouth, Southeast and Great Lakes were not enough to offset the losses in other regions
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 2/17/2019

15. St. Patrick’s Day
week ending 3/17/2019
The holiday of all things green! Shoppers added some color to St. Patrick’s Day meals with delicious avocados
In 2019, St. Patrick’s Day saw record dollar sales and volume at $49.7MM and 51.4MM units

16. Avocados deliver record sales for St. Patrick’s Day
Holiday Week Sales and Average Price by Year
(Dollars and Units in millions)
Dollars
Units
ASP
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Benefiting from lower prices, volume surged, pushing dollar sales to new heights for St. Patrick’s Day holiday week
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 3/17/2019

17. St. Patrick’s Day dollar trends were mixed across regions
Dollar Sales and % Change
Nationally, St. Patrick’s Day sales increased +4% vs. prior year to $49.7MM
Five of the eight regions showed dollar growth, led by California at +13%
On average, avocado retailers saw sales of $522 per store during the holiday week
Per store sales were especially strong in West ($1,078) and California ($1,041)
Total U.S.
$49.7MM
+4%
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Dollars per Store Selling
Total U.S.
Avg. = $522
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 3/17/2019

18. St. Patrick’s Day volume soared across all regions
Unit Sales and % Change
Nationally, St. Patrick’s Day volume rose +15% to 51.4MM units, with very strong trends in nearly all eight regions
Great Lakes (+28%) and Southeast (+25%) led the regions in unit growth
On average, avocado retailers saw sales of 539 units per store during the holiday week
West, California and South Central had per store unit sales above the national average
Total U.S.
51.4MM
+15%
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Units per Store Selling
Total U.S.
Avg. = 539
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 3/17/2019

19. Average prices decreased for St. Patrick’s Day
Total U.S.
$0.97
-10%
Great
Lakes
$0.99
-15%
South
Central
$0.68
-19%
California
$1.02
-3%
Southeast
$0.97
-14%
low
high
Plains
$0.91
-16%
Midsouth
$0.98
-7%
West
$1.01
-1%
Northeast
$1.25
-8%
Prepared by: Fusion Marketing
Data Source: IRI / FreshLook Marketing
Nationwide, average price for St. Patrick’s Day week fell -10% to $0.97/unit
Average price decreased in all regions, with the largest declines in South Central (-19%) and Plains (-16%)
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 3/17/2019

20. All regions contributed to St. Patrick’s Day incremental volume
Dollar Growth by Region
(in millions)
Unit Growth by Region
(in millions)
Five of eight regions contributed to Total U.S. dollar growth of +$2.0MM. California posted the highest incremental dollar sales at +$0.9MM
All regions delivered unit growth, with Southeast, South Central, Great Lakes and California each delivering volume growth exceeding +1.0MM units
Source: IRI/FreshLook week ending 3/17/2019