The recent soaring temperatures have increased sales of summer grocery favourites by 9% – ahead of the overall market at 2.1%, according to the latest grocery market share figures from Kantar Worldpanel.
This survey was published today (Monday, July 2) for the 12 weeks ending June 17, 2018.
This surge in summer essentials, such as sun care products and ice cream, has boosted the Irish grocery sector to the tune of €27 million.
David Berry, director at Kantar Worldpanel, comments: “With hot, sunny weather comes barbecuing, sunbathing and socialising – and this has had its impact on the grocery market.
Sales of ice cream, barbecue foods and sun care products have rocketed by 12%, 10% and 8% respectively compared to this time last year.
“Alcoholic drinks have also experienced a surge in demand – cider has seen impressive growth of 14% and beers and lagers are up 5%.
“The influence of the hot weather on sales of summer essentials looks even more impressive when you compare this to overall market growth at 2.1%.”
Tesco takes top spot
Tesco has continued its recent strong run of form, experiencing sales growth of 3.7% over the 12-week period.
Berry continued, noting: “Tesco remains the leader of the pack among the retailers, increasing its market share to 22.4% – a jump of 0.3%.
Over the past 12 weeks, 1.3 million customers chose to shop at Tesco – the highest reach of all the retailers.
“Although the grocer has not notably increased this shopper base compared to this time last year, Tesco has encouraged customers to add an extra item to their baskets every time they shop – upping their average spend by 80c to €25.50.”
In second position, SuperValu has captured 21.8% of Irish shoppers’ grocery spend, experiencing sales growth of 0.1%.
The retailer continues to have a loyal customer following, with consumers shopping more frequently at SuperValu stores.
Dunnes Stores has also performed well – the retailer posted sales growth of 2.6% and has increased its market share by 0.1% to 21.7%
Meanwhile, Lidl holds market share of 11.7% – its highest since October 2017. With sales growth of 2.4%, Aldi has upped its share to 11.4%.
The two grocers have performed particularly well in Munster, where they continue to challenge the other major retailers.