What does FMCG stand for? Download our Acronym Dictionary 📖

Are you new to the FMCG industry or managing a team with new starters?

From RSV to SEL, it can be so frustrating to stay on top of the endless acronyms and initialisms when you’re just getting started.

That’s why we’ve shared our FMCG Dictionary, it’s an easy-to-use resource featuring the most used abbreviations in the industry. This handy guide breaks down the essential terms you need to know, making it perfect for anyone looking to get up to speed quickly.

Why download the FMCG Dictionary?

• Essential for Newcomers: Simplifies complex terminology.
  

• Great for Managers: A useful onboarding tool for new team members.
  

• Boost Your Knowledge: There’s probably at least one term in there you’re not familiar with!

Download the FMCG Dictionary now:

FMCG Dictionary - Updated June 2024

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Abbreviation	Stands For	Meaning/Usage
FMCG	Fast-Moving Consumer Goods	Products that sell quickly at relatively low cost, such as packaged foods, beverages, household goods, and toiletries. FMCG is often used in the UK to refer to the industry that produces and sells these products. Other terms used include CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods), which is used in the same way in some other markets e.g. USA.
SKU	Stock Keeping Unit	An individual product or line, usually with an individual barcode e.g. we have 5 SKUs in our range.
EAN	European Article Number	A barcode standard used internationally to identify products uniquely.
GTIN	Global Trade Item Number	Global version of EAN. Some companies use both to describe the product barcode.
POS	Point of Sale	The location where a transaction occurs between a retailer and a customer. POS is often used in relation to 'POS material', which refers to in store shopper marketing displays.
EPOS	Electronic Point of Sale	Computerised systems used in retail that record sales and manage inventory. EPOS is often used in reference to the data created, available from retailers or to purchase via a third party agency (e.g. Nielsen or Circana/IRI).
NPD	New Product Development	The process of bringing a new product to the market. NPD is often used to refer to new products themselves, interchangable with "innovation", e.g. NPD is worth 10% of category sales.
CSR	Corporate Social Responsibility	Business practices involving initiatives that benefit society.
RSV	Retail Sales Value	Value Sales sold through retail (as apposed to turnover of sales sold from manufacturer to retailer).
MAT	Moving Annual Total	The total sales or other metric measured over the most recent 12 months.
YTD	Year to Date	The period starting from the beginning of the current year to the present date (or latest available data).
YTG	Year to Go	The period from the present date to the end of the current year.
BPS	Basis Points	A unit of measure used in finance to describe percentage changes (e.g. share); one basis point is equal to 0.01%.
LFL	Like-for-Like	A measurement to understand retail performance excluding any new stores opened.
ROS	Rate of Sale	The speed at which products are sold over a certain period, often used to measure product performance, e.g. Units per Store per Week (UPSPW) or Weighted ROS.
CWD	Category Weighted Distribution	A metric that measures a product’s distribution weighted by the category's sales, giving insight into its market reach.
ACV	All Commodity Volume	A measure of a product’s distribution based on the total sales of all products in the outlets where it is sold.
YOY	Year on Year	A comparison of a specific metric over the same period in different years, often used to track growth or performance trends.
RRP	Recommended Retail Price	The price at which the manufacturer suggests the retailer sell the product. Legally, price is at the sole discretion of the retailer, so it is important that brands use this language.
COGS	Cost of Goods Sold	The direct costs attributable to the production of the goods sold by a company.
CPI	Cost Price Increased	Refers to an increase in the cost price of goods, affecting profit margins and pricing strategies.
API	Average Price Index	A calculation that indexes the price of a product vs. the average price of the category, e.g. 105 API means the product is 5% more expensive than the category average.
AUP	Average Unit Price	The average price at which a unit of product is sold, often used in sales and pricing analysis, calculated by dividing value sales by unit sales.
BOGOF	Buy One Get One Free	A common sales promotion offering a free product when another is purchased.
EDLP	Every Day Low Price	A pricing strategy promising consumers a low price without the need to wait for sales events.
BOGSHP	Buy One Get Second Half Price	A promotional offer where the second item is sold at half the original price.
WIGIG	When It's Gone, It's Gone	A sales strategy indicating a temporary listing of limited stock that won't be replenished once sold out.
S&OP	Sales and Operations Planning	A process to integrate sales and production planning to ensure supply meets demand efficiently.
JBP	Joint Business Plan	A collaborative plan / agreement created between a retailer and supplier to achieve mutual business goals. JBP is used to the plan itself as well as the process of creating it.
D2C or DTC	Direct to Consumer	The online channel where brands sell directly to customers, bypassing traditional retail channels.
NRM	Net Revenue Management	Strategies to optimise the revenue of a company, considering pricing, promotions, product mix, and channels.
ROI	Return on Investment	A measure of the profitability of an investment, calculated as a ratio or percentage.
ROAS	Return on advertising spend	Used to calculate the performance of advertising investment in driving sales.  Unlike an ROI, this calculation will not include other costs associated in the performance of a product.
OOS	Out of Stock	Indicates that an item is not available for sale because the inventory is depleted.
FSDU (or FSU)	Free Standing Display Unit	A type of display unit used in retail stores for merchandising products, also known as a shipper.
FOS	Front of Store	The area at the front of a retail store, typically featuring high-demand or promotional items.
CTA	Call to Action	A prompt in marketing to encourage an immediate response or action from the audience, such as "Buy Now" or "Sign Up".
GE	Gondola End	The end-cap display at the end of a store aisle used for high-visibility product promotion.
ILP	In Line Plinth	A prominent in-aisle display area designed to draw attention to specific products, also known as a 'Hotspot'.
SEL	Shelf Edge Label	The price label placed on the shelf below or above the product, contains key information about the product.
ROPA	Research Online Purchase Anywhere	The term used to describe shoppers who research purchases online but purchase instore or online.

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