Champagne, custard and cream helped to drive a 3.5% growth in grocery sales over the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee weekend, according to the latest figures from NielsenIQ.
The data confirmed that the Platinum Jubilee saw value sales at supermarkets in the UK topping £2.7bn in the week ending 4 June, 10% above the year-to-date average.
Sales for the half-term week improved by £92m on last year for the same period, a 3.5% growth on 2021 figures. Sales jumped a further 5.8% on the previous week; an increase of £149m.
The highest performers were teatime treats such as cream and custard (up by 48%) and pastry good (up by 46%). Celebratory fizz also performed strongly across the board, with champagne sales up by almost half (47%) and sparkling wine up by 40%.
READ MORE: Platinum Jubilee: How retailers and brands
are celebrating the historic event
The increase in picnics and street parties saw disposable tableware sales increase by more than half (56%), while dry pasta, preserves and frozen savoury products all saw sales increasing by around 40%.
There was also a significant uplift in sales for baking essentials (32%), chilled soup (31%) and noodles (30%).
In terms of category performance, ambient grocery was up 11.6%, with beers, wines and spirits returning to growth (7%). Excluding Christmas and Easter, this is the first time this category has seen sales improve since the week ending 11 September 2021.
Fresh food was also up, with a growth of 4.4% across the category. Within that, there was a particular improvement in sales for bakery (15.7%), dairy (10.6%) and convenience foods (6.6%).
With the extra bank holiday allowing many consumers an extra few days to socialise and enjoy the long weekend, NielsenIQ data also shows that impulse sales improved by 6.2%, led by items such as biscuits (15.9%), confectionery (11.2%), crisps (11.2%) and nuts and seeds (9.1%).
However, soft drinks sales declined by 1.3%, measured against the tough comparable of last year’s hot temperatures.
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