Brits to spend seven times their weekly grocery budget on festive food

LONDON – 6 December 2018 – Brits will splash out on festive indulgences this year, spending an average of £166 per person on their Christmas groceries. The research from shopping and fundraising platform, Give as you Live, has found that the amount is seven times more per person than the average weekly spend on household food and drinks*.

View ‘Britain’s biggest festive food spenders’ table here: https://www.realwire.com/releases/Brits-to-spend-seven-times-their-weekly-grocery-budget-on-festive-food

Merry men and lavish Londoners spend the most

The survey also revealed that men are likely to want a few more pigs in blankets than women, as they are expected to splash out an average of £177 per person on food during the festive season, above women’s £154 per person.

Across the cities, London and Bristol are the biggest Christmas food spenders with residents forking out £199 and £188 per person respectively, whilst those in Nottingham and Norwich are more modest when it comes to spending on food, with both cities spending an average of £122 per person, the lowest spend of the cities surveyed.

Christmas ads do work after all

Whilst the survey suggests that Brits expect to be spending big, it also highlights that Brits may change their usual supermarket of choice based on Christmas adverts. According to the results, almost half of Brits (44%) say that supermarket Christmas adverts prompt them to buy their festive food items at a different grocery store to their usual one.

Festive adverts aren’t the only thing that influences how we grocery shop. The survey questioned Brits on what inspires their weekly shopping list, finding that online recipes (37%), cooking TV programmes (29%), and videos on Facebook and YouTube (18%) are the top sources of inspiration.

Greg Hallett, managing director at Give as you Live, commented, “Whether it’s cooking for the family on Christmas day, eating out with friends or hosting festive dinner parties, food at Christmas time brings people together. But it is also expensive, which is why it’s important to budget and plan during the festive season, such as with pre-paid grocery cards, online deals, and bulk buying. These can all help keep the costs down and ensure everyone can enjoy indulging without worrying about the cost too much.”

Give as you Live surveyed 2,000 British consumers on their grocery shopping habits in October 2018.

Editors notes

*Average food and drink weekly expenditure is £23.34 per person according to ONS figures