- Weather affected the nation’s buying habits across all seasons
- Home was where the heart was in Spring
- Celebrating was top of the agenda influenced by sport, seasonal events and the Royal family
LEEDS, England, 2015-12-30 — /EPR Retail News/ — As the year draws to a close, leading supermarket Asda looks back at what drove the nation’s shopping habits in 2015. Online sales continued to grow with George.com receiving over 12,000 transactions per day and over 10% of customers shopped via mobile or tablet. Convenience shopping was key whilst the weather steered choices.
Fiona Lambert, Vice President of Brand Development and Design, Asda, recaps the events that fuelled retail in 2015.
Spring – Home is where the heart is
While spring was on the horizon, Valentine’s Day celebrators chose affordable luxury for their special meal. Deals on steak, wine and desserts for two, saw a huge increase in sales as home romance was favoured over restaurant prices.
As spring skipped into gear, it was all about domestic re-invention. Sales of bedding and accessories grew as people looked for a quick way to spruce their home interiors without breaking the bank; contributing to George Home outperforming the homeware market by +4.8% in its first year. Meanwhile, when it came to the garden, warm weather created an almost 10% rise YoY rise in spending on gardens, plants and flowers.
Summer of celebration
The sun had its hat on – some of the time. Unpredictable weather drove customers to the supermarkets at the weekends with Saturday being the busiest trading day. Sales of BBQs increased by +140% YoY and charcoal by +200% YoY, while garden furniture was up +180% YoY, solar lights +120% YoY and paddling pools +250% YoY.
Brits showed that their love for festivals still runs strong. Channeling the 70s vibe, George’s tassel waistcoat beat sales predictions by 44%, and crochet dresses, blouses and vintage style kimonos were key performers. The changeable weather left festival-goers taking no chances, Pac A Mac sales beat expectations by 32%.
Autumn –Sport and spookiness
October saw England swiftly leave the Rugby World Cup, but the success of the other home nations kept the UK’s spirits buoyant. This celebratory mood saw a surge in sales of party products, including; pizza, wine, beer, and snacks. Prosecco was the unexpected hero of the Rugby World Cup with sales up 20%.
While Halloween was bigger than ever in the UK, with an estimated spend of £250 million and a sales increase of 12% YoY. Asda prepared by stocking 259% more costumes than last year and introducing new spooky foods such as bumpkins, ‘putrid’ purple chilies and green swede. Halloween costumes for pets were also introduced – having spotted an opportunity the previous Christmas when Asda sold in excess of 120,000 dog jumpers.
Winter heat
Despite December being the mildest in 70 years, festive jumpers were still high on the agenda. The Christmas jumper phenomenon continues to grow; sales were up 1,105% since 2012, and sales of Asda’s pet costumes spiked by 45% YoY – driven by ‘pet parents’ ensuring their ‘babies’ looked the part for the festivities.
Christmas celebrations were high on everyone’s agenda with two million bottles of fizz being sold in December alone and three bottles of Prosecco being popped for every bottle of Champagne.
Commenting on the year’s retail trends, Fiona Lambert, Vice President of Own Brand Development and Design, Asda said. “We’ve needed to remain flexible this year to meet the demands of the weather and what our customers needed season to season. It’s been about reacting in the right way to maximise convenience for them across food, home and clothing.
“Our teams are working round the clock to ensure innovation and trends are being discovered and new products are landing on shelf each season. The unpredictability of this year has meant a tough ride for most retailers but we’ve got everything in place to make sure our customers can find what they need in store and online year round, come rain or shine.”
SOURCE: ASDA