The average weekly value of convenience store shoppers decreased by 25% during the four weeks ending May 30 this year, according to the latest data from the Lumina Intelligence Convenience Tracking Programme.
Despite a stable visit frequency (2.6 visits per week), shopper value decreased as average spend fell from £29.09 in the previous four weeks to £21.68. This decline was driven by a drop in basket size, which fell by 0.6 items per trip, as the proportion of shoppers on a planned top-up mission declined by 6.6 percentage points to 22.6% and those on a food-to-go mission increased by 2.4 percentage points to 15.0%.
With restrictions easing and hospitality dine-in reopening, shoppers are becoming more transient and on-the-go and the share of meals consumed in-home is reducing. A shift to a more on-the-go society that is less time rich is reflected by an increase in the proportion of shoppers using a delivery service (up 1.7 percentage points), which further indicates that the shift towards delivery is permanent and not just a lockdown phenomenon.
Commenting on the results, senior insight manager at Lumina Intelligence, Katherine Prowse, said: “As expected, the reopening of hospitality outlets and fewer travel restrictions has resulted in a change in shopper behaviour. There will continue to be a rebalancing in the share of occasions between in and out of home, as shoppers return to their favourite pubs, bars and restaurants.”
“Greater freedom of movement has also resulted in a shift to more transient, on-the-go shopper trends. Food to go has grown its share of missions, with these lower ticket missions impacting spend, despite visit frequency remaining consistent.”
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