UK supermarket sales surge amid Covid-19 outbreak

British consumers made over 79 million extra grocery shopping trips in the last four weeks, with total till sales at supermarkets surging to 20.5%, according to new data from Nielsen.

The uptick in sales was particularly pronounced in the week ending 21 March, which saw a “massive” 43% weekly growth in sales.

Nielsen said this significant rise in grocery sales is attributed to increased stockpiling, amid health fears around the worldwide spread of the coronavirus disease Covid-19, which has since led to the UK implementing strict measures around social distancing.

In terms of category performance, Nielsen data shows that in the last week of February and the first week of March, shoppers focused on ‘stockpiling’ necessities, such as medicines for the family, cleaning supplies, household and pet care items and ambient groceries (shelf stable food). This continued through to the third week, with a consistent rise in these “pandemic pantry” items.

However, Nielsen data shows that in the week ending 21 March, many shoppers had already stocked up their cupboards and pantries with the necessities, and then began to prepare for the ‘lockdown’ by filling their freezers as well.

Sales of frozen food during this week rose by 84% compared with the same period last year. This was also the week in which the government announced the closure of pubs and restaurants, resulting in a surge in beer, wine and spirits sales (67%), indicating a shift from consumers stockpiling on essential items to focussing on stocking up on items to maintain their lifestyles.

In terms of retailer performance, all UK supermarkets experienced significant growth in sales over the four week period. Moreover, online grocery sales began to pick up and increased by 14% in the four week period, with two in 10 households shopping online.

Mike Watkins, Nielsen’s UK head of retailer and business insight, said: “With households making almost three extra shopping trips in the last four weeks, this small change in individual shopping behaviour has led to a seismic shift in overall shopping patterns.

“As well as increased store visits, consumers opted to shop online – many for the first time. However, unlike stores there is a finite capacity for online grocery shopping, due to warehouse capacity and available delivery slots, and this will have limited the growth of online sales.”