Spain’s usually conservative supermarkets are branching out to target fast-growing ‘expat’ market

Expats are driving the increase in supermarket spending in Spain, as supermarket shelves reflect their tastes and culture.

Recent research shows that foreigners in Spain spend more on groceries than locals.

Spanish supermarkets are stocked with a wide variety of local food: salmorejo, tortillas ready to eat and olives in all shapes and sizes. 

Their offerings have changed to better suit the tastes and preferences of wealthy expats. 

Read more: Spain’s bargain boom: Low-cost supermarkets grabbing record market shares with more shoppers looking for discount deals

According to supermarket chain Consum’s stores, they now stock around 360 international products. This represents 2.5 per cent of the total range.

They focus primarily on British and German shoppers in Alicante, Almería, and Girona, where baked beans and bratwurst sit alongside anchovies and jamón.

The Spanish supermarkets increasingly offer their customer service in English, German and other languages to cater to the 29 per cent of Europeans who reside in Spain.

It’s not only Europeans whose tastes from home are reflected in Spanish supermarkets – Latin American communities, who account for half of foreign residents, are also shaping the shelves.

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From Colombian arepas to Mexican hot sauces and Venezuelan tequeños, the shelves are packed with flavours from home.

84,6 % of Latin American customers check the price of products and services before making a purchase. Among them, 61,3 % are looking for special offers. 

They also love own-brand products, spending more than half of their grocery money on them – compared to just 44 per cent for the average shopper.

Although only 14 percent of the population is foreign, projections suggest that the number could increase by 75 percent over the next fifteen years. 

Spanish supermarkets have already begun to track the exact way that shoppers shop and are racing to capture this market.

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