The UK food and grocery industry is expected to grow by 12.5%, or £24.1 billion (€27.12 billion), by 2024, according to the latest market forecast from IGD.
This level of growth would bring the market to a total value of £217.7 billion (€245 billion).
Almost two-thirds of this growth is to be attributed to the online and discount channels, which will boost their combined market share from 18.6% to 23.4% over the next five years, IGD says.
Out of every £10 worth of growth, discounters alone will contribute £4 over the next five years, adding up to £9.7 billion out of £24.1 billion.
Supermarkets and hypermarkets will account for half of the market, around 50.1%, in 2024, according to IGD.
The report also shows that on average, consumers are conducting 24 shopping trips per month and spending 18.3 hours a month for grocery shopping.
Online
Online is the fastest-growing channel, with the average shopper doing one online shop a month.
When conducting a food shop online, consumers spend 22 minutes planning, 31 minutes shopping and 13 minutes unpacking, on average.
“From a shopper perspective, the key benefits of shopping more online in future are good value, time saving and ease of shop." said Simon Wainwright, director of insight at IGD.
Discount
Discounters are the biggest cash contributor to market growth with the average shopper conducting three shopping trips at food discounters a month, IGD says.
When shopping at a main food discounter, consumers spend 15 minutes planning, 25 minutes travelling, 34 minutes shopping and 12 minutes unpacking.
"Food and variety discounters continue to grow their market share rapidly, fuelled by ambitious store-opening programmes," said Wainwright.
"With many food discount shoppers now perceiving Aldi and Lidl as supermarkets rather than discounters, and more targeted investments in categories such as fresh produce, meat, bakery and beauty, the channel will continue to experience notable growth." he added.
Convenience
Convenience store shoppers spend on average eight minutes shopping, and conduct seven shopping trips a month there, according to IGD.
"Younger shoppers are more predisposed to shopping at convenience stores than older shoppers. Having grown up in the era of ‘new convenience’, offering wider ranges, longer opening hours and supermarket quality, younger generations will be key to driving ongoing growth, but they do have high expectations." said Wainwright.
Supermarkets And Hypermarkets
When conducting a main food shop at large stores, shoppers spend 12 minutes planning, 28 minutes travelling, 38 minutes shopping and eleven minutes unpacking, on average.
The average shopper conducts ten shopping trips per month at large stores.
“Large stores remain a core part of the multichannel approach shoppers continue to take, with the average shopper still visiting larger stores ten times a month, which is three times as many as food discount stores." said Wainwright.
“To remain relevant to shoppers, large store retailers should focus on providing better value, more ways to save time and an easier shopping experience.” he added.
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Helen Galgey. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine
