Methodology
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Methodology guides for brand-side CPG analysts working in SPINS. ACV, TDP, share of shelf, MULO+, panel-coverage gotchas, and the syndicated-vs-Kroger-direct-data decisions that come up every quarter — written for the analyst, not for the buyer.
Foundations
Plain-English definitions of the SPINS metrics and data sources every analyst should be able to explain in one sentence.
What is SPINS data?
What is SPINS data? SPINS is the leading syndicated retail data source for natural and wellness CPG. Here's what it tracks and how brands use it.
What is ACV?
What is ACV? All Commodity Volume measures retail distribution as a percentage of category sales. Here's how to read it and where analysts get tripped up.
What is TDP (Total Distribution Points)?
What is TDP? Total Distribution Points is ACV multiplied by SKU count. Here's what it tells you and the trap of using it as a single performance metric.
What is MULO — and what SPINS' MULO+ adds
What is MULO? The CPG industry's Multi-Outlet aggregate. SPINS' MULO+ adds Natural Enhanced coverage. Here's the difference and when to use which.
What is share of shelf?
What is share of shelf? It measures a brand's facings as a fraction of category facings. Here's how it's tracked, what it explains, and what it doesn't.
Syndicated vs. panel data: what each measures
Syndicated vs. panel data: they answer different questions about CPG sales. Here's what each measures, where they overlap, and when to use which.
Methodology deep-dives
How to actually compute these metrics in real data — the steps, the math, the gotchas, and what the textbook leaves out.
ACV-weighted distribution in SPINS across multiple retailers
ACV-weighted distribution in SPINS captures both store count and store importance. Here's how to calculate it across retailers without double-counting.
SPINS metrics decision tree: velocity, share of shelf, or TDP?
A SPINS metrics decision tree for velocity, share of shelf, and TDP — here's which metric answers which analyst question.
Decomposing TDP: ACV change vs. SKUs-per-door change
TDP can grow from new doors, new SKUs at existing doors, or store-mix shift. Each is a different commercial story — here's how to tell them apart.
Choosing a baseline period for SPINS post-promo lift
Pre-promo, year-over-year, or trend-adjusted? The baseline choice can swing a SPINS promo lift number by 30+ points. Here's how to pick.
Comparing brand performance across SPINS channels without lying
Reporting +20% growth in Natural and +5% in MULO without weighting by channel size? You're misleading the CFO. Here's how to compare honestly.
SPINS panel coverage: projection, suppression, and data gaps
SPINS panel coverage explained: how SPINS projects from sample stores to the full channel, and the suppression rules that quietly skew brand-side analysis.
SPINS vs. Circana vs. NielsenIQ: an analyst's comparison
SPINS vs. Circana vs. NielsenIQ: all three sell syndicated CPG data. From an analyst's chair, here's what each does well and where each falls down.
Retailer & channel guides
Retailer-specific quirks — Kroger banners, Sprouts coverage, Whole Foods Natural, Costco gaps, KeHE/UNFI movement.
Kroger banner vs. total in SPINS: what the aggregate hides
Kroger banner data in SPINS: total-store reads hide banner-level performance. Here's how Ralphs, King Soopers, Fred Meyer, and Harris Teeter differ.
A workflow for monitoring Kroger banner performance in SPINS
How to monitor Kroger banner performance week-over-week — what signals matter, what's noise, and when banner divergence becomes a brand decision.
SPINS vs. 84.51° Stratum vs. Circana for Kroger data
SPINS, 84.51° Stratum, and Circana cover Kroger differently — here's which Kroger data source answers which analyst question and where the gaps are.
Reconciling Kroger promo lift across SPINS, Stratum, and scan
SPINS, 84.51° Stratum, and scan data each tell a different story about the same Kroger promo. Here's how to reconcile them without picking favorites.
What SPINS shows about Sprouts that the vendor portal hides
Sprouts gives vendors their own portal — but SPINS' read of Sprouts shows cross-retailer context the portal can't. Here's what each surfaces and hides.
Whole Foods analysis in SPINS Natural channel: what's actually there
Whole Foods doesn't report POS data to SPINS — but the Natural channel reads still tell you a lot about WFM's category context. Here's how to use them.
Costco and club performance: the SPINS coverage gap
Costco doesn't report to syndicators. SPINS' club coverage is limited to Sam's Club and BJ's via Circana. Here's how brands triangulate Costco performance.
Reading KeHE and UNFI movement data in SPINS
KeHE and UNFI distributor flow is what SPINS uses for independent natural retailers — but it's shipment data with quirks. Here's how to read it cleanly.
Vertical guides
Category-specific coverage — what SPINS sees (and misses) for pet, wellness & beauty, and beverage alcohol brands.
SPINS for Pet brands: what's covered and what's missing
SPINS has natural-channel pet coverage but Pet specialty (PetSmart, Petco, Chewy) sits outside the syndicated surface. Here's how Pet brands use SPINS.
SPINS for Wellness & Beauty: emerging brand coverage gaps
Wellness and Beauty in SPINS have strong natural-channel attribution but Sephora, Ulta, and DTC sit outside. Here's where SPINS fits the brand journey.
SPINS for Beverage: the alcohol / non-alcohol split
SPINS' Beverage coverage diverges sharply between alcoholic and non-alcoholic — the regulatory environment shapes what's available. Here's the split.
AI & tooling
What AI-native analytics actually means for the CPG analyst stack — and how to evaluate vendor pitches without falling for the demo.
The AI-native CPG analyst stack — four layers, what each does
The working CPG analyst stack in 2026 has four layers — source, modeling, analysis, distribution. What goes in each, and where one tool wrecks the rest.
What is agentic AI for CPG analysts?
Agentic AI for CPG analytics is a specific claim, not a buzzword. Here's what the term actually means once it touches SPINS data and a category-review deadline.
AI-native dashboards vs. AI bolted onto BI — a buyer's framework
Most AI-for-CPG demos look the same in 30 minutes. Eight questions to put to a vendor that separate AI-native dashboarding from AI bolted onto BI.
Why "ask your data" is the wrong frame for AI in CPG analytics
"Ask your data" sells in a demo. For real CPG analyst work on SPINS data, it's the wrong frame — here's what to ask for instead.
Buyer decisions
The tradeoffs that come up when you're picking tools — SPINS portal vs. dashboards, the spreadsheet tax, what to budget for.
SPINS portal vs. dashboard tools — what you give up
The SPINS portal does several things well. Five specific things it doesn't — and what a working CPG analyst loses by staying portal-only.
The hidden cost of Excel-driven SPINS reporting — a time-cost analysis
Excel SPINS reporting eats hours. Here's the visible plus invisible cost for one analyst over one year — with the math shown.