Fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) or Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) are products that are sold quickly and at relatively low cost. Examples include non-durable goods such as soft drink

Soft drink

A soft drink is a non-alcoholic beverage that typically contains water , a sweetener, and a flavoring agent...

s, toiletries, and grocery items. Though the absolute profit made on FMCG products is relatively small, they generally sell in large quantities, so the cumulative profit on such products can be substantial.

Scope

The term FMCG refers to those retail goods that are generally replaced or fully used up over a short period of days, weeks, or months, and within one year. This contrasts with durable good

Durable good

In economics, a durable good or a hard good is a good that does not quickly wear out, or more specifically, one that yields utility over time rather than being completely consumed in one use. Items like bricks or jewellery could be considered perfectly durable goods, because they should...

s or major appliance

Major appliance

A major appliance, or domestic appliance, is usually defined as a large machine which accomplishes some routine housekeeping task, which includes purposes such as cooking, or food preservation, whether in a household, institutional, commercial or industrial setting...

s such as kitchen appliances, which are generally replaced over a period of several years.

FMCGs have a short shelf life, either as a result of high consumer demand or because the product deteriorates rapidly. Some FMCGs – such as meat, fruits and vegetables, dairy products and baked goods – are highly perishable. Other goods such as alcohol, toiletries, pre-packaged foods, soft drinks and cleaning products have high turnover rates.

The following are the main characteristics of FMCGs:

• From the consumers' perspective:
  • Frequent purchase
  • Low involvement (little or no effort to choose the item -- products with strong brand loyalty are exceptions to this rule)
  • Low price
• From the marketers' angle:
  • High volumes
  • Low contribution margin
    Contribution margin
    In cost-volume-profit analysis, a form of management accounting, contribution margin is the marginal profit per unit sale. It is a useful quantity in carrying out various calculations, and can be used as a measure of operating leverage...
    
    s
  • Extensive distribution
    Distribution (business)
    Product distribution is one of the four elements of the marketing mix. An organization or set of organizations involved in the process of making a product or service available for use or consumption by a consumer or business user.The other three parts of the marketing mix are product, pricing,...
    
     networks
  • High stock turnover

See also

• Trade promotion management
  Trade promotion management
  Trade promotions management typically refers to one or more software applications that assist companies in managing their complex trade promotion activity.- Business problems addressed :...
  
  
• Category management
  Category management
  Category management is a retailing and supply management concept in which the range of products purchased by a business organisation or sold by a retailer is broken down into discrete groups of similar or related products; these groups are known as product categories...
  
  
• Good (economics)
• Grocery trading
  Grocery trading
  Grocery trading is an industry, historically not well known by the general public, in which grocery "traders" or grocery trading companies buy and sell blue chip grocery store items such as Cheerios and Alpo amongst the nation's largest supermarket chains based on price discrepancies from chain to...
  
  
• Market segment
  Market segment
  Market segmentation is a concept in economics and marketing. A market segment is a sub-set of a market made up of people or organizations with one or more characteristics that cause them to demand similar product and/or services based on qualities of those products such as price or function...
  
  
• Marketing strategy
  Marketing strategy
  Marketing strategy is a process that can allow an organization to concentrate its limited resources on the greatest opportunities to increase sales and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage.-Developing a marketing strategy:...
  
  
• Mass production
  Mass production
  Mass production is the production of large amounts of standardized products, including and especially on assembly lines...
  
  
• Retailing
  Retailing
  Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
  
  
• Supermarket
  Supermarket
  A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
  
  
• Consumerism
  Consumerism
  Consumerism is a social and economic order that is based on the systematic creation and fostering of a desire to purchase goods and services in ever greater amounts. The term is often associated with criticisms of consumption starting with Thorstein Veblen...
  
  
• The Story of Stuff
  The Story of Stuff
  The Story of Stuff is a short polemical animated documentary about the lifecycle of material goods. The documentary is critical of excessive consumerism and promotes sustainability....
  
  
• Destination management company
  Destination Management Company
  A Destination Management Company is a term for a professional services company possessing extensive local knowledge, expertise and resources, specializing in the design and implementation of events, activities, tours, transportation and program logistics.A DMC provides a ground service based on...