The variety discounters channel in the UK is set to be worth £12.6 billion by 2022, up from £11.1 billion in 2020, new research from IGD has revealed.
The channel will comprise a 5.8% share of the overall UK grocery market and its growth of 6.8% per year will be over four times the pace of the overall UK food and grocery market.
Variety discounters in the UK include Home Bargains, B&M, Poundland, Wilko and other smaller players.
The channel has consolidated its position on the retail map with the expansion of Home Bargains and B&M and is attracting consumers with its strong value proposition, wide range of products, and constant range changes, the study noted.
In January of this year, 66% of British shoppers claimed to have visited a variety discount store to buy food and groceries.
The number of shoppers visiting these stores has steadily increased since May 2020, following an initial drop in shoppers due to the lockdown.
'Top-Up Mission'
Nicola Ball, shopper insight manager at Shopper Vista, IGD, explained, “Variety discounters are fast becoming a destination for food and grocery shopping. Over a quarter of shoppers were on a top-up mission on their last trip to a store.
“In response, the channel is increasingly growing its food ranges to increase basket sizes and frequency of visits.”
Ball added that “top-up grocery missions” were most common in B&M and Home Bargains as they offer a broader range of food and drinks, with the latter offering greater variety in terms of fresh, frozen, chilled and ambient food and drinks.
The study also highlighted that more customers are likely to visit variety discounters after lockdown restrictions ease and top-up missions become more frequent.
Families are most likely to shop at variety discount stores, predominantly driven by the perception that it can help them save money amid the post-pandemic financial strain.
Lucy Ingram, retail analyst at Retail Analysis, IGD, said, “While toiletries, non-grocery household products and snacks are still most commonly found in variety discounter baskets, household grocery products are appearing more than they did a year ago. As a result, variety discounters are adapting their ranges.”
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
