Hot Easter helps drive stronger UK grocery sales, Kantar says

Total UK grocery sales increased 2% to £27.3bn in the 12 weeks to 21 April as consumers gorged on Easter eggs and chocolate, a survey by Kantar found. High temperatures over the holiday break pushed up sales of ice cream by 8% and hay fever remedies by 27% in the last four weeks of the period.

Fraser McKevitt, Kantar’s head of retail and consumer, said: “Shoppers indulged in £335 million worth of Easter eggs and seasonal chocolate during the 12 weeks and the average household took home 10 such treats during the longer build up from February to the holiday weekend.”

German discounters Aldi and Lidl continued their strong growth during the period. Aldi was the fastest-growing supermarket as store openings sent sales up 11.6% to £2.2bn. Lidl, whose sales rose 8.6% to £1.6bn, was the next fastest grower.

All the major supermarkets had rising sales except Sainsbury’s where customer spending fell 1.2% to £4.2bn. The competition regulator has blocked a proposed merger between Sainsbury’s and its nearest rival, Asda, raising questions about both retailers’ strategies in a highly competitive market.

Online growth helped Sainsbury’s edge ahead of Asda to become the second-biggest supermarket with 15.4% of the market compared with 15.2% for Asda. Despite the rise of Aldi and Lidl, Tesco’s position as Britain’s biggest grocer was little changed as sales rose 1% to £7.5bn, giving it a 27.3% market share.

Co-op’s sales rose 4.5% as shoppers visited local outlets during the warm weather.