The UK food and grocery convenience sector is set to grow to by more than a quarter in five years time, according to IGD’s latest figures at its Convenience Retail Conference today (10 November).
It will increase to GBP42.2bn (US$67.30bn) in five years time from its current value of GBP33.6bn. Convenience’s share of the food and grocery market is expected to increase to 22.9% by 2016, compared to 21.4% by the end of this year.
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IGD’s director of retail insight Nick Everitt said: “The convenience sector is doing well in challenging conditions and outperforming the wider grocery market.”
He said that the main reasons behind this includes an ability to adapt to the changing demands of the population in the UK.
“Shoppers are, for example, increasingly favouring a ‘little and often’ approach, and convenience operators are responding by offering a wider range of product choices, including more fresh and chilled foods, such as fruit and vegetables.”
Convenience stores are benefiting from people cutting down on their car usage due to high petrol prices and deciding to shop locally, he added.
