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(Alliance News) -Â UK grocery sales growth accelerated as Britons were forced to stay at home by the reintroduction of national lockdown restrictions, research agency Kantar said Tuesday.
Kantar said take-home grocery sales rose 12% in the 12 weeks to January 24, marking an acceleration during the Christmas period and immediate aftermath, as fresh virus restrictions forced the closure of restaurants and pubs.
In early January, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson imposed the toughest national lockdown in England since March as the country tackled a more transmissible coronavirus variant.
In January alone, shoppers spent GBP1 billion more on supermarket food and drink items compared to the same four-week period last year.
'Veganuary' at the start of the year helped sales of vegan ranges, while 'Dry January' boosted spend on no-alcohol beer.
"However, many sought to indulge and keep spirits high during a tough winter month and alcohol sales grew overall by GBP234 million, an uplift of 29% on last year," said Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Kantar.
McKevitt added: "We expect to see strong growth for all the grocers fall off as we reach the anniversary of the first national lockdown in March. Sales will then be measured against the high volumes recorded in spring and summer 2020. With the vaccine rollout underway, there's also hope that the hospitality sector will re-open, meaning demand for take-home groceries is likely to subside."
In the 12-week period, Wm Morrison Supermarkets PLC recorded the fastest sales growth of the 'Big Four' UK grocers, recording an increase of 14% while its market share edged up to 10.4% from 10.3%.
Tesco PLC had another strong month with sales rising by 12%, in step with the overall market to maintain its market share at 27.3%. J Sainsbury PLC posted a 12% sales increase but its market share edged down to 15.7% from 15.8%.
Asda's sales grew 9.9% in its best performance since July, Kantar noted, though its market share eased to 14.6% from 14.9%.
Ocado's sales surged 37% - making it the fastest growing retailer in the period - and its market share rose to 1.7% from 1.4%.
Morrisons shares were down 0.4% at 179.20 pence in London on Tuesday, Tesco up 0.4% at 244.26p, Sainsbury's down 0.3% at 241.50p and Ocado up 0.3% at 2,835.99p.
By Lucy Heming;Â lucyheming@alliancenews.com
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