Sainsbury’s has said it expects profit to come in at the upper end of guidance as it reports a “record Christmas”, with total sales up by 7.1%.
Grocery sales were also up by 7.1% across the Christmas period, with the grocer reporting a boost across its Christmas and Q3 grocery volume performance for the third consecutive year, attributing it largely to “investment in value, innovation, service and availability”.
The supermarket giant now expects to be making close to £690m in pre-tax profit when its full-year results are announced in March, despite the inflationary pressures faced by consumers.
General retail sales for Q3 – the 16-week period to 7 January – were up by 5.2%, with like-for-like sales up by 5.9%, reflecting the inflation seen throughout the market as well as the “relatively resilient” volume sales.
Grocery sales for the quarter were up by a similar amount (5.6%), putting them 12.5% ahead of pre-pandemic levels.
Sainsbury’s CEO Simon Roberts said the retailer “delivered the best possible Christmas for customers as millions of households managed their budgets differently” and socialised at home.
He also noted a number of shopper behaviour changes in response to the cost of living squeeze, with customers shopping early, looking for deals and taking advantage of Black Friday and other seasonal offers.
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Roberts said pricing was key throughout the festive period, as the retailer “prioritised keeping prices low and giving customers great value”.
“Our determined focus on delivering the best value alongside new and exciting festive food plus outstanding customer service and availability meant we delivered record sales and market outperformance.”
Roberts also revealed a focus on inflation and pricing over the coming year adding that the supermarket continues to “work closely with suppliers to battle cost inflation”.
He also revealed that Sainsbury’s will be continuing to run its Aldi price match value campaign throughout 2023, as it launches its biggest ever push in January, running across 300 of its most popular products.
Sales were also boosted by the World Cup as people celebrated at home.
