SHOPPING trolleys are being increasingly filled by consumers in Northern Ireland as the grocery market continues to grow - despite continued price deflation.
The growth has been driven by households buying extra items, with the average shopping basket increasing in size, according to the latest grocery market share figures from Kantar Worldpanel.
In Northern Ireland most of people's grocery shopping in done in the big multiple (Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Lidl and 'others' including M&S) cornered 83.5 per cent of the market in the 12 weeks to May 21, Kantar says.
Tesco led the way with 34.8 per cent of the market share, with Asda and Sainsbury's virtually neck-and-neck on 17.4 per cent and 17.3 per cent respectively. Lidl's share over the period grew to 5.4 per cent.
The symbols - that includes the likes of Spar, EuroSpar and Mace - command a total 8.5 per cent slice of the overall Northern Ireland grocery market while other symbols (made up of Boots, greengrocers, butchers etc) took the remaining 8 per cent share.
In Ireland as a whole, the value of the grocery market increased by 2.2 per cent during the past quarter compared with last year, making the sector worth €2.37 billion (around £2 billion) over the 12 weeks – up €50 million (£43.5m) on last year.
David Berry, director at Kantar Worldpanel, says: “With the average price per pack falling slightly, growth has been driven by households buying extra items, with the average shopping basket increasing in size. Retailers’ own brands continue to lead the way, growing sales by 3.8 per cent and accounting for 54 per cent of grocery purchasing.”
SuperValu remains in the top spot in the Republic with a clear 0.5 percentage point lead over Tesco in second place. Sales at SuperValu increased by 1.2 per cent as shoppers added more items to their trolleys, spending an additional €1 on average per trip compared with this time last year.
Edging ahead of Dunnes Stores by 0.1 percentage points, Tesco has moved back into second place during the past quarter for the first time since September 2016, capturing a 22 per cent share of the RoI market.
While value sales increased only slightly by 0.3 per cent, volume sales continue to tell a more positive story – up 4.6 per cent year on year as shoppers visit Tesco more regularly.
