Grocery till sales at UK supermarkets fell by 4.1% over the last four weeks ending 16th March, the lowest sales growth recorded in 2022 according to NielsenIQ’s latest data.
However, this figure marks the final sales growth measurement against the high lockdown comparatives. Indicating a potential return to growth post-Easter and into the spring.
Furthermore, NielsenIQ revealed that online sales fell 19% compared with the same period last year while sales at brick and mortar stores fell by 0.6% – but this is in line with expectations given the lockdown comparatives last year, which saw online sales surge 92%.
The recent trends indicate that the normalisation of post-pandemic shopping behaviours is almost complete with store visits up 5% over the last four weeks and online sales stabilising at 12.4%.
READ MORE: Food store sales drop to below pre-Covid levels
“As we leave behind the pandemic, it`s clear that shoppers are re-evaluating what they spend,” NielsenIQ UK head of retailer and business insight Mike Watkins said.
“Whilst some of the changes in grocery spend will be due to consumers simply having a different basket mix compared with last year, our data also shows that consumers are now increasingly shopping for private label products as part of their coping strategy”
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