With surging supermarket prices, shoppers are being pushed to change where and how they buy groceries. Research by Ipos found that 37% are moving to cheaper brands, 34% have stopped buying non-essential groceries, and 32% are buying ‘yellow sticker’ discounted items approaching their use-by date to save money.
With almost a fifth (18%) changing where they shop, the study found that 30% currently do their main grocery shop at Tesco and 15% at Aldi. Of those planning to switch, 23% said they plan to switch to Aldi for most of their grocery shopping, with 19% plumping for Lidl and 10% favouring Asda.
Smarter shopping appears to be one way forward as 28% wait to buy items until they are on promotion, 28% shop at several supermarkets to find better deals, whilst 26% of bargain hunters bulk buy to manage the price increase. However, sacrifices are still being made with 18% revealing they have cut other household expenses to afford their weekly shop and 10% forgo getting their online grocery deliveries.
“Within a turbulent climate affecting government, oil prices and employment, basic amenities like food and household goods are being hit heavily by inflation in the UK,” said Kelly Beaver, CEO of Ipsos.
“Our data shows three in four UK shoppers expect prices of cornerstone items that families need on a weekly basis to increase over the next three months. We’re seeing a year-on-year increase in the cost of living that’s resulting in shopper sacrifices with 18% confessing to forgoing non-essential items as well as changing where they shop. As disposable income comes under growing pressure, we expect to see shoppers becoming savvier and shopping cheaper, so households can afford the price increase in their weekly shop.”
