Sales of preventative cold and flu vitamins soared in March and June this year as Australian consumers sought to boost their immune systems, according to Nielsen/IQVIA data.
Immune-support vitamins increased by 26 per cent in March 2019 compared to the same period in 2018, and by 29 per cent in June.
Daniela Nova, analytics manager at Retail Industry Group said that the rise in sales is the result of a promotional strategy by manufacturers in response to the Federal Immunisation Program, which saw half-price discounts across key pharmacy banners during the winter period.
“This strong promotional activity led to a 12 per cent increase in sales for these products when compared to the same period in 2017,” Nova said.
Perhaps in part due to the high sales of cold and flu vitamins, there was a 30 per cent decline in cough and cold treatments and analgesics during winter 2018.
Export sales of immune-boosting vitamin products to China increased substantially in recent years. A quarter of all vitamin sales attributed to exports in the month of January 2018 due to strong promotional activity during China’s winter period (Nov-Jan).
