‘Sales poised to rise in 2024 with significant uptick in grocery’

Retailers are set for a more lucrative 2024 with sales forecast to rise from £342.08 billion in 2023 to £352.92bn this year, with groceries projected to see a significant uptick, a recent report has stated.

According to 2024 Spending and Saving Report by VoucherCodes.co.uk, all retail categories will see sales rise this year, with groceries the third highest, up 3.4 per cent from £186.23bn in 2023 to £192.58bn, only behind sportswear which is set to rise by 6 per cent and health & beauty with a 3.7 per cent rise.

Whilst spending is being driven up by inflation, consumers will have more to spend over 2024, with a quarter expecting their disposable income to increase during the year (24 per cent).

On a household level, consumers are set to spend 2.8 per cent more at retail stores this year with total spend averaging £12,310. Most of the household budget is set to go on groceries with households spending £6,717 on food and drink, a 3 per cent rise versus last year. Households will also spend a significant amount on fashion at £1,606 (+2.2 per cent YoY), and home and garden at £1,410 (1.3 per cent YoY).

Whilst the inflation rate has declined since its 11.1 per cent peak in October 2022, it still remains relatively high, hitting 4.2 per cent in December 2023. As a result, nearly nine in 10 people say they’re concerned about inflation rates over the next year (86.2 per cent). Whilst this is a drop of 3.8 per cent versus last year, when 90 per cent of people were concerned about inflation, there is still a significant number of people concerned about how inflation will impact their lives. With rates expected to stay high throughout 2024, driving up household budgets, mortgages and other types of borrowing, it’s hardly surprising that this is a key worry as we head into the new year. 

The report further adds that whilst inflation is the key concern over the next year, there’s a number of other factors that are chipping away at consumer confidence. With food prices rising 27 per cent over the last two years, this continues to be a major worry for 63 per cent of consumers, overtaking energy prices as the most worrying factor. Whilst energy prices are also concerning with 61 per cent saying so, this is 15 per cent less than last year when 76 per cent of people were concerned about energy prices. 

With costs continuing to rise and the cost of living crisis still very much a feature of everyday life, 88 per cent of Brits say they will be changing their shopping habits in 2024.

The main way Brits will adapt to rising costs is by looking for cheaper products, such as buying own brand items instead of branded (46 per cent). Over one-third of people plan to shop around more to see if they can get the same product cheaper elsewhere (36 per cent), and another third will look for discount codes and coupons to stretch their budgets (35 per cent).

Just under one-fifth will wait until their desired item is discounted (23 per cent), and 20 per cent will choose to buy second-hand. With Christmas being the most expensive time of year, one-tenth of consumers plan to bring their Christmas spending forward to spread the cost (10 per cent).