Abnormally hot weather over the last two months and the June bank holiday have resulted in take-home value sales in Ireland’s grocery market increasing 5.7% during the four weeks to 15 June.
The latest grocery data from Kantar shows shoppers were in store an average of 22.7 times during June, contributing an additional €28.8m to the market’s overall performance. This is the highest summer frequency recorded since June 2021, when the frequency was an average of 21.4.
Grocery price inflation currently stands at 5.3% compared to the same 12-week end period last year – an uptick on the 4.96% figure recorded the previous month.
“The rise in average prices is clearly affecting both sales performance and shopper behaviour,” said Emer Healy, Business Development Director at Kantar.
“As grocery bills rise alongside other household expenses, Irish consumers are cautious with their spending and actively seek out promotions to secure the best value.”
Shoppers spent €802m on promotional lines during the latest 12-week period, a 15.7% increase compared to the previous year. Key categories saw significant growth, including table sauces, fabs and mixers, carbonates, frozen confectionery, beer and cider, all growing ahead of the total market for promotional lines.
Brands and own label both performed strongly, growing at 6.2%. Shoppers spent an additional €197m on these ranges versus last year.
Own label overtook brands in value share of the total market at 47.3%, compared to brands with a 47.1% value share. Premium own label experienced double-digit growth (+15.3%), outperforming the total market (+6.9%) and both brands and total own label. This growth has resulted in a 4.1% value share for premium own label compared to 3.8% last year. Healy noted: “Retailers must continue to find a balance between delivering compelling value and navigating rising operational costs.”
The total online channel held 5.9% value share of the market, with sales rising by 9.1% year-on-year after shoppers spent an additional €17.5m. Over the latest 12-week period, shoppers purchased their groceries more often online, up by 8.9%, contributing €16.9m to its overall performance.
Looking at the performance on individual retailers, Dunnes controlled 23.6% of the market after delivering sales growth of 8% year-on-year. Shoppers returned to its stores more often, up 5.6% which contributed a combined €43.9m to its overall performance.
Tesco held 23.3% of the market, with value growth of 7.7%. Shoppers increased their trips to its stores by 4.4%, which contributed €34.1m to overall performance.
SuperValu took 20.2% of the market after recording growth of 5.6%. Consumers made the most shopping trips to this grocer, averaging 25 trips over the latest 12 weeks – the highest shopping trips seen since July 2023. This increase in the number of shopping trips contributed an additional €51.7m to its performance.
Lidl’s market share was 14% after it saw growth of 8.5%. The discounter recruited new shoppers in-store, while encouraging consumers to make larger trips, resulting in an additional €13m in sales. Aldi controlled 11.8% of the market, with growth of 6.4% after increased store trips and new shoppers drove an additional €26.9m in sales.
