The UK convenience sector declined 1.7% in 2025, with losses accelerating to 2.5% over the Christmas period, new data from specialist convenience insight agency Talysis has revealed.
Inflation and regulatory changes, including the disposable vape ban, have hit convenience particularly hard due to the channel’s reliance on tobacco-related footfall.
Despite the overall decline, performance is becoming increasingly polarised, with growth focused on specific missions and impulse-led categories.
Soft drinks have become a “clear growth engine” for driving footfall, with the category accounting for 17.5% of total convenience value sales, driven primarily by energy and sports drinks. Talysis highlighted innovation, functionality and NPD as key growth factors.
Alcohol is following a similar pattern, according to the research. Traditional categories, such as beers, wines and spirits, continue to decline, but ready-to-drink products are rapidly gaining share and are on track to challenge, or overtake, cider in 2026, supported by chilled availability and impulse-led execution.
The findings come from Talysis’ report Convenience 2025: A review of the year in UK Convenience, based on EPoS data from thousands of independent and symbol group stores across the UK.
“Our Convenience 2025 report provides a wide-ranging and insightful look into a hugely important part of the UK grocery market, based on accurate, robust and up-to-date information,” said Talysis MD Ed Roberts.
“These are challenging times for convenience operators and the extra burdens created by the disposable vaping ban, increased business costs and ongoing inflationary pressures mean that only the best will survive in the long run. However, it’s not all doom and gloom out there, and there are opportunities for retailers to capitalise on.
“Focusing on customer missions, high-growth categories, agile implementation and clarity in pricing will be critical to driving growth in a challenging market. Convenience retailers will need to demonstrate their long-standing resilience and ingenuity once more as we go through 2026, but there are some positives to take from our findings.”
No comments yet