Christmas shoppers ditch branded food in favour of supermarket premium labels

Sales grew by 0.7% new data from Kantar Worldpanel shows

Supermarkets have seen a switch in demand from famous names to own brand products

Shoppers are ditching famous brands for supermarkets’ own premium labels in the run-up to Christmas, new data suggests. Morrisons’ ‘The Best’ and Asda’s ‘Extra Special’ ranges experienced growth of 35 per cent and 15 per cent respectively in the last twelve weeks, a report by Kantar Worldpanel has revealed.

Kantar’s Fraser McKevitt said that premium lines “will record their highest ever sales figures” over the Christmas period.

Despite the growth on premium own label ranges, year-on-year sales for the supermarket grew by just 0.7 per cent in the 12 weeks ending 4 December.

Branded products, which make up nearly half of all supermarket revenues, was the only area to experience a decline, with receipts down 1.1 per cent. This was enough to offset gains made by own label products and slow supermarket growth.

The report also revealed that, despite the 15 per cent slump in the pound's value since the Brexit vote, inflation hasn’t yet affected the average shopping basket with groceries 0.1 per cent cheaper than they were a year ago.

Supermarkets are expected to see profits squeezed after inflation hit its highest level since October 2014, according to November's Consumer Prices Index. Higher prices are expected to be felt on the shop floor in 2017.

A Morrisons spokesperson said on the supermarket’s positive results: “We introduced ‘The Best’ because customers told us they wanted premium products to complement their everyday shopping. Our ‘Best’ Meal Deal – where customers can buy a main course for two, side, dessert and bottle of wine or soft drink all for £10 – has proven very popular.”