Fresh data indicates that the blow of the living cost crisis might be subsiding as the inflation rate on groceries has dwindled to its lowest point in over two years. This decrease has led to improved buyer sentiment. According to a report from Kantar Worldpanel, retail analysts, grocery inflation stood at a mere 2.9 per cent in the 12-week stretch leading up to mid-April, a stark contrast to the nearly 13 per cent seen during the same period last year.
Expanding further on consumption habits, the study unveiled a considerable surge in chocolate egg and hot cross bun purchases heading towards Easter. In Ireland, take-home grocery sales saw an increase of 4 per cent in the month leading up to April 14th, as consumers amped up their in-store spending amidst the Easter and school break period.
A long-time subject of mockery, supermarket ‘yellow pack’ has now found favour among Irish customers. Analysis polls reveal that while issues like immigration and housing still dominate the news, other subjects are slowly gaining relevance.
Discount retail still attracted ample attention, with approximately 25 per cent of all sales at the cash register being promotional merchandise, this number even reached beyond 43 per cent for Easter eggs. Retailers used their own brand products to entice customers, experiencing a growth of 6.5 per cent in year-on-year sales and capturing nearly 48 per cent of the market share.
Premium own brand line-ups also experienced increased consumer spending with shoppers shelling out an extra €18.7m on these items year-on-year, witnessing a growth of 12.9 per cent in comparison to the previous year.
Emer Healy, Kantar’s Business Development Director, shared that this is the twelfth consecutive month that there’s been a plunge in grocery inflation, signalling welcome news for shoppers. The inflation rate is the lowest it’s been since March 2022. Citing the results from Kantar’s recent pressure group survey, she indicated that Irish shoppers exhibit more positivity as fewer individuals face financial strain due to the subsiding inflation. Although about a quarter of shoppers admitting to still experiencing difficulties, this is an improvement on the 32 per cent reported in October of the prior year.
In the days leading up to Easter Sunday, confectionery sales reached a record high of €23.9 million, unaffected by the earlier than usual Easter. Not only did ascending prices influence this figure, but also an increase in sales volumes played its part, with the number of chocolate Easter eggs purchased in the week before Easter rising by 22 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. Nearly a third of consumers in Ireland snapped up at least one egg during this timeframe.
Easter egg sales alone raked in a whopping €9.9 million. However, hot cross buns were not overlooked as customers spent over €1 million on them in just a week, a 7.7 percent increase from last spring. Digital sales also experienced a boost, rising 19.5 percent year-on-year that added an extra €33 million to the overall spend via the platform.
Surveying the retail landscape, Dunnes maintained the top spot with a 23.9 percent market share. Tesco followed closely in second place securing 23 percent, outpacing SuperValu who had 20.4 percent. Meanwhile, Lidl and Aldi held onto 13.6 percent and 11.5 percent of the market share respectively.