19 Mar 2008


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UK shoppers set to spend £8bn over Easter

Seasonal

Easter

The eight days of Easter 2008 are expected to be worth £8bn to UK retailers, up by 3% on last year, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC).

Galaxy Easter egg

Some £4.4bn will be spent in the four days (Monday to Thursday) up to Easter, with a further £3.6bn over the Easter weekend (Good Friday to Easter Monday).

Consumers are likely to spend £4.2bn on food and drink across the eight days, over £500m more than in an average eight-day period.

BRC director general Stephen Robertson said: “The early Easter could be a mixed blessing. Overall, Easter is retailers’ second most important sales season; though for some it matters even more than Christmas.

“With personal finances under pressure and evidence that customers are cutting back on non-essentials, retailers are eager for the Easter boost. But the predicted poor weather is likely to mean a March Easter is weaker than last year’s warm and sunny April one.”

Nielsen data for supermarkets and convenience stores shows that:

Nearly £280m will be spent on Easter eggs this year.

Hot cross bun sales are likely to exceed £20m in the six weeks of Easter. Sales were up by 10% in the first two weeks of the six week run-up to Easter this year, when compared with the same two weeks a year ago.

But Easter egg sales grew by only 9% this year, compared with 16% in 2007 and 17% in 2006.

Chocolate novelties (such as bunnies) are becoming increasingly popular. Sales have grown by 9% so far this year, up on last year’s 1% growth.

Mike Watkins, senior manager for retailer services at Nielsen, said: “This year it’s difficult for retailers to know how strong Easter trading will be with consumer spending being squeezed.

“Easter growths are considerably slower in a number of sectors compared with the first two weeks of Easter in 2007.

“It’s possible that any last-minute rush to buy food and indulgences will be less marked than last year when the weather was unseasonably warm.”

Large stores (over 280sq m) are not allowed to trade on Easter Sunday in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. There are no such restrictions in Scotland.

For more on Easter sales and products, see our Seasonal channel

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