Issue_4_2017

Better off Brits flock to food discounters
It seems you can never be too posh to push a discount trolley,
as Mintel’s Food and Non-food Discounters UK 2017 Report
finds better off Brits flocking to UK food discounters. Indeed,
today, as many as 77% of British consumers with a household
income of £50,000 or more visit food discounters, compared to
73% of those with a household income of £15,500 or less.
And it appears that
premium products are
pulling in the punters.
A savvy 66% of
discount shoppers say
that food discounters’
premium ranges are
just as good as
elsewhere, with only
7% disagreeing with
this statement.
Moreover, even when
entertaining, well-off
Brits are not afraid to stock up with the
discounters. Almost half (47%) of food discount shoppers with
a household income over £50,000 have bought party items
from these stores in the past three months, up from an
average of 36% of shoppers.
Mintel research confirms that Brits are well and truly hooked
on food and non-food discounters as a discount loving nine in
10 (89%) consumers shop at discount retailers, with 84%
visiting non-food discounters and 74% visiting food
discounters. Brits’ love of discounters peaks among young
consumers: 93% of 16–24s have visited either a food or nonfood
discounter in the last three months. In contrast to usage
of food discounters, non-food usage peaks amongst those with
a household income of between £25,000 and £49,999 (84%),
compared to those with a household income of £50,000 or over
(79%).
Nick Carroll, Senior Research Analyst at Mintel, said: “High
income households are just as likely to shop at food
discounters as lower income ones. The post-recession success
of leading discount food retailers has been built on a softening
of their hard discount roots and bringing in ranges which
appeal to a wider variety of consumers. A part of this success
has been the introduction of more premium ranges, something
that is clearly going over well with shoppers.”
This year total discount sales are set to reach £26.7 billion,
with food discounters accounting for the bulk of sales (£17.2
billion) and non-food making up the remaining £9.5 billion.
What is more, Mintel forecasts that total sales are set to
experience further growth of 57% through 2022 to reach
£41,827 billion, accounting for 11.4% of all retail sales.
Within the sector, food discounters grew by an estimated 13%
in 2016 to reach £15.2 billion; further growth of 13.5% is
estimated for 2017 when the market will reach £17.2 billion. ■