Drug stores edge out competition in cough-cold and pain remedies

Drug Store News, Dec 9, 1991

Drug stores edge out competition in cough-cold and pain remedies

Perhaps because drug stores spend so much of their advertising and promotion budget on prescriptions and remedial products, consumers are more likely to buy remedial products like aspirin and cough/cold medicines in drug stores more than any other trade class.

According to this year's Consumer Brands Preference Study, 55 percent of all cough/ cold users purchased their last formula in a drug store, and 40 percent of all aspirin or non-aspirin pain killer users made their most recent purchase in a drug store.

Food stores are still able to capture a significant share of cough/cold and aspirin/pain reliever sales, and discount stores are also a popular source of supply for these products. However, drug stores are still the dominant purchase outlet.

Indeed, 31 percent of all aspirin/pain killer users who had bought some medication in the past year made their last purchase in a food store, while another 23 percent shopped discount department stores.

And 26 percent of all cough/ cold users who had bought some medication in the past year made their most recent purchase in a food store, while another 15 percent shopped discount department stores.

Heavy favorites

Tylenol is still one of the most heavily advertised brands in the pain killer category, and the result is that it is predictably the brand of choice in today's market: 39 percent of all users who bought a pain killer in the past 12 months most recently bought Tylenol. Bayer and Advil were tied for second place in popularity.

In the cough/cold category, Robitussin dominates, with Nyquil and Vicks tied for second place.

Table : Consumer Preferences by Region: Cough/Cold Last

brand purchased(*)  Total   Northeast   Midwest   South   West
Robitussin          24%     35%         24%       22%     17%
Nyquil              14      12          15        10      22
Vicks               14      12          16        16      9
Triaminic           6       6           5         6       4
Tylenol             5       6           2         7       4
Dimetapp            5       6           4         6       4
Alka Seltzer        5       3           6         5       5
Contac              3       1           2         2       9
Sudafed             2       2           4         1       3
Benadryl            2       1           3         2       1
Comtrex             1       2           1         1       0

* Based on consumers who bought cough/cold products in the past 12 months Source: Leo J. Shapiro and Associates.

Table : Purchasing Trends in Cough/Cold

1990 1991 % of consumers who have ever used cough/cold products 73% 77% % of users who have purchased

in the past 12 months                       82      73
Last purchased in drug store(*)             50      55
Purchased on special(*)                     26      22
Have a brand preference(*)                  96      96
Bought preferred brand(*)                   91      85

* Based on consumers who bought cough/cold products in the past 12 months Source: Leo J. Shapiro and Associates.

Table : Consumer Preferences by Region: Aspirin/Non-Aspirin Pain Killers Last

brand purchased(*)  Total   Northeast   Midwest   South   West
Tylenol             39%     41%         38%       42%     33%
Bayer               12      12          10        11      19
Advil               12      12          11        10      17
Generic             5       4           6         4       9
Excedrin            3       2           4         4       1
Anacin              2       4           2         2       2
Nuprin              2       2           3         1       3
Bufferin            2       3           2         2       2

* Based on consumers who bought aspirin or a non-aspirin pain killer in the past 12 months Source: Leo J. Shapiro and Associates.