Cost of living crisis: 63 per cent of Brits now shop at discount grocery stores
More than half of shoppers now shop at discount grocery stores as Brits continue to seek out bargains amid the cost of living crisis.
According to new data released by NIQ, in the last four weeks some 63 per cent of the public shopped at value chains such as Aldi, B&M and Poundland, with over 780,000 new shoppers entering the doors of these types of stores.
Over the past few months, B&M and Poundland have released a string of financial results that highlighted their success stemming from increasingly thrifty customers.
Revenues in B&M’s UK portfolio, which spans over 700 sites, reached more than £1bn in the first leg of the year, up from £957m in the same period last year.
Poundland, which is owned by Pepco, also has plans to open a further 50 stores in the UK, due to demand for its cheap and cheerful goods.
Both brands have also been rumoured as potential buyers for troubled rival Wilko.
While inflation dropped unexpectedly during the summer, many customers are still cautious about spending or are yet to see prices drop significantly at the till.
Retailers have continued to ramp up promotional deals to entice shoppers and alleviate cost pressures, with grocers increasing spend on promotional activity by 23 per cent compared to the previous month.
It comes as the data also shows that Total Till sales at UK supermarkets slowed to 7.2 per cent in the last four weeks, the lowest since January as wet weather continued to impact sales.
“Recent weeks have seen a decline in supermarket volumes, likely influenced by factors such as summer holidays and unpredictable weather,” Mike Watkins, NIQ’s UK head of retailer and business insight, said.
“Despite lower inflation, most consumers remain pessimistic about their financial situation in the coming three months, with 60 per cent anticipating that they will be severely or moderately impacted by rising living costs.”
“With the added concerns of increasing mortgage and rental expenses for many households, it appears that a shift in sentiment may be some time off and as a result, while Total Till growth will continue to decelerate as inflation eases, it will still be difficult for retailers and manufacturers to drive fmcg volume growths”.