UK Grocery Brands Growth Prospects

The UK’s Top 100 grocery brands grew by only 0.6% over 2021, according to recent analysis by The Grocer magazine, as they have had to deal with raw material inflation, Brexit related supply issues, energy costs – and a clampdown on HFSS (high fat, sugar, salt) products from retailers ahead of legislation.

This is against a context of a bumper year in 2020 where the top brands added £2billion in sales, before the gradual re-opening of foodservice and other spending opportunities attracted consumers in other directions.

Own label has managed to grow its value share of total fmcg from 52.1% to 52.4% with volumes now up to 61.3% of the total market (NielsenIQ). And with inflationary pressures only accelerating in the UK, brands can expect even tougher competition in the coming year.

That said, 20 of the top brands did manage double digit sales increases. These included energy drink behemoths Red Bull and Monster, while high end ready meal specialist Charlie Bigham’s added £36m in sales having managed to appeal to many new shoppers during the pandemic and by increasing their range with product innovation.

Smaller, more agile suppliers had a tough time in the early phase of the pandemic as retailers favoured larger brands to manage supply chain issues. But many of them now have good opportunities to grow, especially if they can offer good value alternatives.