A lockdown booze and barbecue bonanza saw shoppers splash £2.5billion more on alcohol and meats this year, according to a study of 2020 s fastest-growing products revealing how coronavirus has overhauled Britain s buying habits.
An extra £791million was spent on lager alone, with sales of Stella Artois, San Miguel and the aptly-named Corona among the biggest risers.
Tobacco and cigarette sales also boomed by almost £1billion, according to The Grocer magazine s annual Top Products ranking.
But £300million was wiped off the personal care market as the new age of working from home saw people increasingly let themselves go.
Cosmetics, hair styling, deodorant and even toothbrushes suffered the biggest sales declines.
18th December 2020
Alcoholic drinks were amongst the winners in the grocery market during 2020, alongside fresh meat. But personal care items such as cosmetics and deodorants were the biggest losers as people stayed at home during the pandemic.
Data from Nielsen for The Grocerâs annual Top Products survey shows British consumers put an extra £2.5bn worth of booze and meat in their supermarket trollies this year as they were left unable to visit restaurants and bars.
This figure included an extra £2.1bn being spent on lager, wine, and spirits. The fastest-growing grocery category of 2020 was lager, up £791.9m to be worth £4.4bn. And despite its name, Corona was one of the lager brands to see the largest growth â up by £68m.
By Adam Leyland2020-12-18T17:08:00+00:00
It’s the last issue of The Grocer this year. And as ever it’s an opportunity to look back. We’ve chosen not to dwell too much on the more negative aspects of what’s been a traumatic, calamitous, tragic year. (They are both well rehearsed and in many cases unresolved.)
Our focus instead is on the performance of the leading brands and products and the most important grocery categories in our Top Products Survey.
The survey offers incredible insight into the events of the last year. Taken in isolation the data from our research partners Nielsen speaks to an extraordinary year, with huge increases in sales of meat, drink and (among other veg) potatoes. But it reflects a swing in consumption from out of home to in the home. And in many cases those gains that have been made have not been enough to offset losses. A case in point is AB InBev. Sales of lager are up £792m. And its three leading brands: Stella Artois, Budweiser and Corona�
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