Kroger loses $12 billion in CPG spending to Amazon, Walmart and Costco

EarningsIndustry

โดย TheStreet·

Summary · why it matters

Kroger has lost more than $12 billion in consumer packaged goods spending to Amazon, Walmart and Costco over the past year, according to a recent Numerator report. Within that total, CPG spending at Kroger and Ralphs stores declined by $715 million and $516 million respectively, as customers made 9 million and 5.5 million fewer trips than a year earlier, producing direct losses of more than $1 billion for the retailer. Lower-income shoppers pulled back their CPG spending by 5.2% year over year and made 30 million fewer trips, a shift the report describes as creating a $1 billion spending gap for Kroger, even as the chain added more than 1 million high-income households and lost 700,000 lower-income ones. On Kroger's September 11 earnings call, CEO Greg Foran said customers remain under pressure from reduced SNAP benefits, higher fuel prices and softer consumer confidence, and CFO David Kennerley said sales were softer than expected, with identical sales excluding fuel up just 0.2% in the second quarter of 2026. Kroger cut its full-year 2026 outlook for identical sales excluding fuel to growth of 0.2% to 0.8%, down from a previous expectation of 1% to 2%, while leaning into private label, including Private Selection, whose sales rose more than 14% in the quarter, and expanding its low-price Smart Way brand.