Northern Ireland grocery sector grew by over 10% last year – but last 12 weeks show slower pace
Latest figures from Kantar show that the the Northern Irish grocery market grew by 10.3% in the 52 weeks to 18 April 2021 – however the last twelve weeks indicate a slower pace – with just 0.3% growth.
The average person made around 20 fewer shopping trips across the year – but stocked up more. Lidl is the fastest growing supermarket in Northern Ireland, with Tesco still wearing the crown with over 35% share.
Emer Healy, retail analyst at Kantar, said “The Northern Irish grocery market grew by 10.3% in the 52 weeks to 18 April 2021. Over the short term, growth slowed to 0.3% in the latest 12 weeks compared with the same period last year, when Northern Irish shoppers were picking up extra items in store to prepare for the first national lockdown.
“Throughout a year of restrictions and people staying at home more, shoppers have made 20 fewer trips to the supermarket on average. This means they had to pick up more when they did visit stores, and volume per trip has soared by 14.3%.
“Tesco maintained its position as Northern Ireland’s biggest grocer with 35.5% of the market this period. Growth of 10.7% added an extra £126 million to its overall sales.
“The second largest retailer, Sainsbury’s, grew by 10%, with bigger baskets and more frequent trips adding an extra £50 million to its takings. Meanwhile, Asda’s sales rose by 8.4% this period.
“Lidl was the fastest growing retailer and increased overall sales by an impressive 17.9%. Its customers adding more items to their baskets contributed an additional £29.6 million to their overall growth.
“Shoppers made an extra effort with their Easter celebrations this year. In the latest 12 weeks, alcohol sales and chocolate confectionery grew by 13.1% and 20.4% respectively year-on-year.”
