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The North American VMS segment is comprised of VMS product categories and includes, but is not limited to, categories such as (i) vitamins including multivitamins and single vitamins (e.g. vitamin A, B and C), (ii) dietary supplements (e.g. herbal or traditional supplements, glucosamine and other minerals), (iii) tonics, such as herbal nutrient mixes and (iv) pediatric vitamins and dietary supplements. Products are typically either branded by a manufacturer or produced under a "white-label" for retailers who then sell the products under their own private label brand.

The North American VMS market has grown from approximately US$25 billion in 2011 to approximately US$28 billion in 2015, representing a 2.9% CAGR. Euromonitor expects the segment to continue growing at a CAGR of 2.8%, reaching US$33 billion by 2021. Probiotic supplements are increasingly seen as important for promoting gastrointestinal health and have become the fastest growing category within dietary supplements, expected to grow at a 10.0% CAGR from 2015 to 2021.

The global VMS segment was estimated by Euromonitor to be approximately US$88 billion in 2015, having experienced a CAGR of 4.1% from 2011 to 2015. Euromonitor expects the global VMS segment to grow at a 3.4% CAGR, reaching US$107 billion by 2021, largely driven by robust growth in Asian markets as VMS consumption becomes more widespread.

The consumer health products in general have shown resilience to the performance of the overall economy and that North American demand for such products has been relatively inelastic to measures such as GDP growth. This resilience is believed to be largely due to the fact that the products have attributes that are considered important to consumers irrespective of other macro-economic factors. The VMS segment has demonstrated positive annual growth for nine of the past ten years, despite periods of economic weakness during that time.

VMS products are distributed through all retail formats, including food, drug, mass and club channels, as well as health food, specialty and online retailers as highlighted in the chart below.

Though varying from country to country, the e-commerce sales are rapidly growing, particularly in developing economies. Euromonitor estimates that in 2016, 16.6% of total VMS sales in the U.S. were through e-commerce platforms, while only 1.9% of VMS sales in Canada were through e-commerce. Emerging economies such as China have experienced high e-commerce sales growth rates. E-commerce allows consumers to make "informed" or educated purchases with help from the numerous information repositories available online during the transaction process. Supported by an increasing scientific base of information outlining the benefits of VMS products, the e-commerce channel will provide consumers with increased convenience and a cost-effective means of purchasing VMS products.

Key trends in the VMS segment regarding consumer tastes and preferences include:

The introduction of new products, expansion of existing categories and targeted introduction of niche products which take these key trends into account has helped to address areas of growing consumer interest and has driven substantial VMS category growth.