Meanwhile, Northern Ireland grocery sales have dropped by 6.7% in the 52 weeks to 20 March 2022, according to Kantar.

As prices rise across the board, grocery inflation for this period stands at 0.8%.

“We are seeing people return to more typical shopping patterns as we start to emerge from the pandemic,” Emer Healy, Senior Retail Analyst at Kantar, said.

“Shoppers in Northern Ireland are making more frequent trips to the supermarket, with visits up 0.7% as they get out and about again. With restaurants and cafés back open for business, shoppers are cooking fewer meals at home and buying a lot less when they’re in store.

“There’s been an 8.3% decline in the number of items in people’s trollies. Now that shoppers aren’t looking to treat themselves at home as much as they did during lockdown, we’re seeing a steep decline in sales of take-home confectionery which have dropped by 19% in the latest 12 weeks.

“Northern Irish shoppers are freshening themselves up to return to socialising and getting ready for some spring cleaning too. Sales of personal care products like deodorant and shampoo have increased by 5.8% over the past three months. Household cleaning products including bleach and surface cleaner have also seen a boost in the same period, with sales up by 2.1% as shoppers keep an eye on health and hygiene.

“Tesco remains top of the table as Northern Ireland’s largest grocer with a market share of 36.0%, and, while sales dropped by 6.1% compared with last year, the grocer registered 4.6% growth against early 2020. Sainsbury’s holds the second biggest slice of spend and a 16.9% share of the market.

“Asda’s market share stands at 16.3%. With a 7.0% market share, Lidl is the fastest growing retailer and the only grocer to achieve growth year on year.”

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Meanwhile, grocery sales in Northern Ireland declined but remained higher than pre-pandemic.

Emer Healy, Senior Retail Analyst at Kantar, commented: “The Northern Irish grocery market declined by 5.5% over the year to 23 January 2022, but it remains 7.7% larger than it was prior to the pandemic two years ago.

“Looking at the latest 12 weeks, take-home grocery sales have fallen by 6.4% as people have made the most of more relaxed restrictions and started eating at pubs, bars and restaurants again.

“There has been a 12.9% drop off in the amount of home cooking done by Northern Irish shoppers in the past year.  We can really see the impact of this shift reflected in how much people are buying and how often they are going to the shops.  Basket sizes have dropped by 7.6% while supermarket visits are down 3.2%.

“Alcohol sales fell by 12.8% over the past 12 months, as shoppers showed a strong commitment to Dry January during the first month of the year.

“Looking at the retailers, Tesco has maintained its position as Northern Ireland’s largest grocer with a 35.6% share.  Lidl put in a strong performance this period and it was the only retailer to see year-on-year growth as people visited its stores more often.  It holds a 7.1% share of the market.

“Sainsbury’s held its market share steady at 17% while Asda’s share sits at 16%.”

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Retail analyst Emer Healy said the Northern Irish grocery market declined by 4.1% in the 52 weeks to 26 December 2021.

“Last year people visited stores less frequently and bought fewer items on each trip than in 2020, though sales are still 8.2% higher in comparison to 2019,” she said.

“Christmas was much closer to normal this year than last, and with larger family gatherings allowed, shoppers were keen to put on a spread for guests.  Sales of seasonal biscuits were up by 6.9%, while special biscuits like Jaffa Cakes and chocolate wafers grew by 5.9%.

“A significant trend this year was a decline in sales of fresh turkeys by 33%, as shoppers opted for different cuts and crowns, as well as other meats altogether.  The market for roast beef had a strong year overall, increasing value by 2.7%.”

Grocery decline

The latest 12 weeks saw an 8.0% decline in grocery market sales, as shoppers bought 6.9% fewer items and the number of trips to stores decreased by 5.2%.

“This reflects a more open Christmas this year, with people spending money in restaurants, bars, and pubs rather than buying all their food and drink at supermarkets,” Emer Healy said.

“Tesco remained the largest grocer with a 35.6% market share over the past 52 weeks.  While its sales declined by 3.0% this period, that drop off was slower than the overall market and its closest competitors.

“Meanwhile, Lidl continues to be the only retailer to achieve growth, this time by 4.5%.  Its success was driven by shoppers increasing the number of trips to stores, which contributed an additional £20.8m to its overall performance.

“Asda’s share rose by 0.1 percentage points to 16.0%, despite basket sizes being 8.2% smaller, and Sainsbury’s maintained its 17.0% share of the market.  That means that each of the four largest supermarkets either maintained or grew their market share this year, reflecting a sharp drop off in the use of symbols and independent stores since the height of the pandemic in 2020.

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The latest figures from Kantar show that people have been shopping less and spending more time at restaurants and pubs, with supermarket trips down 2.9% compared with last year.

“However, it’s worth stating that the grocery market is still 8.7% larger than it was prior to the pandemic two years ago,” said retail analyst Emer Healy.

“The slowdown is brought into sharper focus by the latest 12-week data, which shows a total market decline of 8.7% compared with the same period last year.

“Baskets are 5.9% smaller than in the same period last year and the number of trips has fallen by 6.0%.”

Alcohol sales are a good example of how periods with more relaxed Coronavirus restrictions have impacted the grocery sector, she said.

“Over the past 12 months, take home alcohol purchases have fallen by 6.1% compared with 2020 as people enjoyed going out and spending time with family and friends at restaurants, pubs and clubs again when lockdowns were eased. That change in behaviour has meant they spent less on drinks to have at home.

“Tesco has retained its spot as the largest grocer, with a 35.6% market share. Its sales nudged down by just 1.7% over the past 52 weeks, slower than the overall market. Meanwhile, Lidl posted another set of strong growth numbers, boosting sales by 6.8%.

“Sainsbury’s maintained its 17.0% market share this period. However, as is the case across the sector, basket sizes were considerably smaller which led to a decline of 2.5%. Asda’s numbers tell a similar tale with a 6.9% decline in items purchased, contributing to an overall sales fall of 2.1%, though not affecting its market share which remained at 16.0%.”

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 “The Northern Irish grocery market grew by 2.6% in the 52 weeks to 5 September 2021.  This growth reflects people making bigger shops throughout the COVID-19 lockdowns of the past year, picking up an average of 3.7% more items each time they visited the supermarket.  That trend has helped to boost sales across all the nation’s major retailers” said Emer Healy, retail analyst at Kantar.

“Tesco retained its crown as Northern Ireland’s largest grocer.  It enjoyed a 3.2% increase in sales as its shoppers bought 5.3% more products while in store.  Sainsbury’s grew by 1.9% this period as shoppers visited the retailer four more times than they did the previous year.

“Asda’s sales rose by 2.5% as shoppers made additional trips to its stores and added extra items to their baskets.  Both these factors helped the grocer to maintain its 16.0% share of the market.

“Consumers continue to respond well to Lidl’s offer and the grocer held on to its title as the fastest growing retailer, with sales up 12.2%.  It benefited from shoppers visiting 14.2% more frequently than they did this time last year.

“Looking at the more recent picture, grocery sales dipped by 5.0% in the latest 12 weeks as shoppers nudged back to their pre-pandemic routines.  The easing of restrictions has meant people are eating out of their homes more whether in restaurants or work canteens and so they don’t need to buy as much food from the supermarket.  That change has seen volume sales fall by 4.8% over the past three months.

“People aren’t cooking from scratch as much as they did last year, which maybe reflects life getting busier again.  Consumers spent £4.7 million less on home cooking staples in the latest 12 weeks.  It seems like a lot of shoppers took the chance to get out the kitchen and enjoy Northern Ireland’s record-breaking temperatures this summer and the good weather saw sales of chilled drinks soar by 11.4%.”

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