The rise and rise of supermarkets
Shaping our shopping habits
Over the past decade supermarkets have grown much faster than the rest of retail, resulting in a significant increase in share of both our food & grocery and total retail spending.
Supermarkets account for 86% of our spending on food & grocery, so it’s unsurprising that there is so much controversy regarding their dominance every time a new one is opened. Yet despite this we continue to flock to them because they cater for all our needs and fit our modern lifestyles.
This strategy, combined with more stores and a wider product range, has attracted more shoppers. Indeed, according to Verdict’s annual survey of UK shoppers, ‘How Britain Shops’, over eight million more UK consumers regularly shopped at supermarkets in 2008 than in 1998, double the four million growth in the overall population.
This means eight out of every ten adults shops in a supermarket, an almost 10% increase from a decade ago, highlighting their growing role in our shopping habits. Furthermore, the biggest increase is among men – 5.3 million more of them are shopping for food & grocery now than ten years ago, a reflection of lifestyle and attitudinal changes. The female family shopper is no longer the ‘typical’ target for supermarkets.
