Small-basket supermarket and discounter trips are pulling share from convenience stores, according to the latest research from TWC’s Channel Track programme.
TWC defines small-basket trips as shopping occasions where less than £20 is spent. Symbols, independents, franchises and other convenience operators account for 57% of the market, while supermarket convenience stores represent 12% and small basket supermarket and discounter trips make up 31%, found TWC.
The firm estimated that almost £22bn is spent on small basket supermarket trips each year. These purchases account for 20% of supermarket spend and 59% of all supermarket transactions.
“People are going to the supermarkets to do the big weekly shop, but also to do the top up and the convenience and the impulse shopping as well,” said TWC Director of Insight Jayne Webb.
She said that supermarkets, discounters and supermarket convenience stores over-indexed against independents for fresh and chilled, frozen and grocery purchases, while independents and symbol stores remained strongest in “legacy footfall-driving categories” such as tobacco and alcohol.
However, she noted that tobacco and alcohol were among the categories currently in decline.
TWC said suppliers and wholesalers could use Channel Track to identify the biggest growth opportunities and help independent retailers win more shopping occasions.
Development Director Tom Fender said: “£22bn worth of convenience sales go through supermarkets. Wouldn’t it be great just to get 5% of that back?”
Channel Track combines billions of debit and credit card transactions from more than 10 million UK consumers across 225,000 convenience and foodservice outlets to provide insights into shopper behaviour and channel performance.
