UK shoppers are set to spend £824 million on Easter related products this year, marking an increase of 6.4% on 2017, according to a new study from marketing agency Savvy.
Research showed that 62% of consumers are planning to celebrate the event, and within that group, 83% are planning to buy Easter eggs, 43% to buy chocolates, and 42% to buy the ingredients for a roast dinner.
Additionally, 63% of shoppers said they don't mind spending more than usual to make the Easter weekend special.
"While consumer confidence continues to wobble, the outlook for Easter looks encouraging for retailers," said Alastair Lockhart, insight director at Savvy Marketing.
"With almost 40 percent of us planning to spend more this year, our research supports a wider trend towards shoppers wanting the make the most of calendar events."
Retail Trends
Traditional Easter products, such as chocolate eggs, cakes and flowers, remain popular, but Savvy's research shows that shoppers are expecting more from retailers this year.
“At the big supermarkets, retailers have scaled up premium ranges – they will no doubt be hoping Easter will mirror the success they enjoyed for premium ranges at Christmas," said Lockhart.
"Also related to Christmas, we’ve seen more Easter decorations in-store this year, building on range expansions over the past couple of years.”
Although premium products are well-placed, the research reveals that 74% of shoppers still know where they can find the best value eggs, and 50% are planning to stock up at the discounters this weekend.
"Discounters are well placed to win, with half of us planning to buy meal ingredients from the likes of Aldi and Lidl," added Lockhart. "And while we expect premium will do well, savvy shoppers will be looking for value at every price.”
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
