Take-home sales for groceries increased by 6.4% in the four weeks to 3 November 2024, to reach €1.16 billion, making it the biggest sales month of the year so far, according to Kantar.
The market researcher added that grocery inflation stands at 3.3% – down by 6.15 percentage points versus the same time last year.
Irish households shopped more often in October – up by 2.6%, compared to last year – as they stocked up for Halloween, the bank holiday, the school midterm break, and Christmas.
Overall, this led to a 5.4% increase in volume sales.
In terms of products, pumpkin sales increased by 4.5% (€63k), while sales of Brussels sprouts surged by 43%, as shoppers spent an additional €149k on the traditional holiday staple.
Promotions
Over the last 12-week period, shoppers spent an additional €40 million on promotions, compared to the previous period, as they embraced deals.
The share of products sold on promotion sits at 18.5%.
Branded products outperformed own-label alternatives for the third consecutive 12-week period, suggesting that brand luck is reversing, after high inflation and price hikes drove customers away from brands to cheaper options.
A 2.6-percentage-point gap between branded and private-label products developed, as shoppers boosted branded value sales by 7%.
Online sales rose by 11.8%, year on year, with shoppers spending an additional €21.5 million through this channel.
Over the latest 12-week period, the number of online shopping trips increased by 16.5%, adding €29 million to the channel.
Speaking about these results, the head of retail at Kantar, Eimear Faughnan, said, “October was an important month for Irish shoppers, as they prepared for the first school holiday of the new term and Halloween, enjoying above-average temperatures that delayed the need to don winter woollies.
“Shoppers stocked up on Halloween treats, spending a ‘frightening’ €8.9 million more than last year on chocolate confectionery, €2.4 million on savoury snacks, and €1.6 million on sweets, but it’s clear Irish households are also preparing for the holiday season.
“Shoppers spent an additional combined €774k on flour, fruits and nuts, icing and cake mixes, as they ready their Christmas cakes.”
Market Share
Dunnes Stores continues to lead the grocery retail market with 24.5% of Ireland’s share, as shoppers increased their trip frequency by 7.3%, adding €55.9 million to its overall performance.
Tesco Ireland came next, at 23.4%, with 9.6% year-on-year growth, as shoppers increased their in-store trips by 6.7%.
SuperValu holds 19.7% of the market and saw 2.3% growth, as consumers made the most shopping trips to the grocer, with an average of 24.4 trips over the latest 12 weeks.
The increased number of shopping trips and additional items picked up per trip contributed €28.8 million to SuperValu’s performance.
Lidl came next, with 13.5%, followed by Aldi, at 11.5%. Both retailers grew – by 6.3% and 1.2%, respectively.
Read More: UK Grocery Inflation Edges Higher In Christmas Build-Up – Kantar
