Household spending groceries hit a record high this Christmas. (Image: Getty)
UK supermarkets saw a lively December as household spending on take-home groceries hit a record high. On average, shoppers spent £460 on their festive haul which saw take-home sales for businesses rise by 2.1% in that month compared to the same period last year.
With Brits in the mood to celebrate and spend, supermarket sales surpassed a staggering £13 billion during the four weeks of December, the highest to date according to analysts Kantar.
The soaring figure of grocery price inflation evidently did not hold shoppers back despite rising to 3.7% in December, its highest level since March 2024. At the same time, new research shows the average household made nearly 17 shopping trips last month to ensure their Christmas went without a hitch.
Fraser McKevitt, head of retail & consumer insight at Kantar, said it was a “solid Christmas”.
On average, Brits spent £460 on their Christmas shopping. (Image: Getty)
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She said: “In contrast to reports of disappointing footfall across the rest of the high street, it was a very different story in the world of grocery. The average household made nearly 17 separate shopping trips this December, delivering the busiest month for the retailers since the pre-lockdown rush in March 2020.
“As anticipated, Monday 23 December was the most popular shopping day of the year, with sales a whopping 30% higher than any other day during 2024.”
Not only were Brits spending more, but they were opting for the premium products too. Sales for branded goods accelerated to 4.2%, while premium own-label lines jumped by an incredible 14.6%. The latter was bought by nine in 10 households as at least one of these items could be found on the dining table in December.
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Tesco holds the highest grocery market share at 28.5%. (Image: Getty)
No Christmas is complete without a glass of fizz was clearly the mindset of Britons this festive period too as sparkling wines and champagne were found in the majority of drinks trolleys. Reports by Kantar show that a sales growth of 4.4% was achieved across the month at a total of £187million.
Many UK supermarkets reached new targets in December, with Sainsbury’s, Lidl and Aldi breaking records. However, Britain’s largest grocer Tesco garnered 28.5% of the grocery market share over the 12 weeks to 29 December, with an increase in sales by 5%. Sainsbury’s stands in second place with 16% of the market share, its highest since 2019.
With the convenience of online shopping rising in popularity, spending for the month reached a record of £1.6 billion using this method as 5.6 million UK households opted for either delivery or click and collect at least once.