Food sales rise in March but shopper confidence plummets
Food sales increased in March, despite a decline in shopper confidence amid imminent increases in household bills, new data shows.
According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC)-KPMG retail sales monitor, food sales rose by 1.6% year on year over the five weeks to 5 April.
However, this was against a growth of 8.3% in March 2024 and below the three-month average growth of 2.3%.
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The sales figures come as shopper confidence fell from 4 to -2 in March, according to IGD CEO Sarah Bradbury.
She said: “Rising geopolitical uncertainty and the imminent increases in household bills will have contributed to this decline. While half-term, Bank Holidays, and Easter may temporarily lift sales, the potential negative impact of U.S. tariffs and recession concerns are likely to keep confidence low. We may have already seen the peak for some time.”
Meanwhile, UK total retail sales increased by 1.1% year on year in March, against a growth of 3.5% over the same period in 2024.
Despite the challenging landscape, BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said the small increase in food and non-food sales “masked signs of underlying strengthening of demand given March 2025’s comparison with last year’s early Easter”.
