Savvy Britons saved £1.3 billion – an average £46 per household – by hunting out supermarket deals in the past month, according to new research.
The rise of promotional prices, many linked to loyalty cards such as Tesco’s Clubcard and Nectar from Sainsbury’s, helped bring down grocery price inflation to 3.2 percent.
The figures come from retail analysts Kantar, who said the rate of supermarket price growth has been falling for 14 months in a row.
The figure of 3.2 percent for the four weeks to April 4 represents a sharp fall from 4.5 percent in the previous month.
Kantar said items bought on offer made up 29.3 percent of supermarket sales, the highest level outside Christmas since June 2021.
Researchers pointed to this year’s early Easter as a driver of record confectionery sales, as shoppers bought more than £100 million of sweets and chocolate in the seven days up to and including Easter Sunday.
The number of chocolate eggs sold in the period was 3 percent higher this spring than last, with 37 percent of consumers buying one during the week. Hot cross buns were even more popular, bought by 45 percent of Britons.
Despite the emphasis on deals, the prices of sweets and chocolate were among the fastest risers in supermarket aisles, along with chilled fruit juices and drinks, researchers said.
Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel by Kantar, said: “This emphasis on offers, coupled with falling prices in some categories like toilet tissues, butter and milk, has helped to bring the rate of grocery inflation down for shoppers at the till.”
The data comes after ONS figures last week showed overall inflation fell to 3.2 percent in March, driven in part by easing in food prices.
Ocado was the fastest-growing grocer, improving sales by 12.5 percent in the 12 weeks to April 14, ahead of the total online market which grew 6.8 percent.
Lidl was the fastest-growing supermarket, boosting sales by 9.1 percent over the same period, handing it a total market share of 8 percent.
Fellow discounter Aldi reclaimed the 10 percent market share it last held in September 2023, increasing sales by 2.8 percent.
Tesco and Sainsbury’s improved sales by 6.8 percent and 5.9 percent respectively while spending at Morrisons grew 3.8 percent.
Waitrose and Iceland both saw sales growth of 3.7 percent.
How loyalty cards are key to big savings
Shoppers who do not have the Tesco Clubcard or Nectar card from Sainsbury’s are paying a massive mark-up for their weekly shop.
A study published in December looked at 50 supermarket essentials. The ‘normal’ prices came in at £258.92 at while the figure using a Clubcard was £184.05 – a saving of £74.87 or 29 percent.
The ‘normal’ prices at Sainsbury’s added up to £262.60 versus £186.95 with a Nectar card – a saving of £75.65 or 29 percent.
