‘Dinner for tonight’ is now the fastest-growing shopping trip as more Brits favour healthier, home-cooked meals over dining out.
Such trips now make up one-in-five grocery visits, according to NIQ, with shoppers increasingly opting for quick, small baskets of fresh food, chilled meat, and fruit and vegetables.
The number of store visits grew by 6.2% in the four weeks to 9 August, according to the same period last year, while average spend per visit fell 3.1%.
The shifting spending pattern comes at the cost of fast food restaurants, which saw visitors fall 6% over the three months to mid-July, according to Worldpanel data released this week.
“With shoppers looking to dine in at home in the summer, this often means more al fresco with barbecues replacing some meals out,” said Mike Watkins, head of retailer and business insight at NIQ.
“Supermarkets will be optimistic about a strong end to summer 2025.”
After two early summer heatwaves saw more shoppers willing to splash out, Brits opted to rein in their spending last month.
Total till sales at UK supermarkets grew just 3.7% in the four weeks to 9 August, down from 5.8% in July.
“After the three heatwaves in early summer, this reset was expected and the slowdown in spend was felt across the industry,” said Watkins.
Aldi and Lidl were the exceptions, with growth remaining buoyant at 6.6%. Almost one in two UK households shopped at Lidl in the period as the grocer sustains its growing allure.
Online was hit hard, with sales down 2.2%, while convenience store sales fell 1.1%.
No comments yet