On Friday, Tesco, the supermarket conglomerate, announced its intention to decrease the presence of branded products in crucial product categories within its convenience stores. This move comes in response to financially strained individuals in Britain showing a growing preference for more affordable store-brand options.
As the cost-of-living crisis enters its second year, Britons are actively searching for ways to save money and navigate the challenging financial situation.
Industry data reveals that UK consumers encountered a persistent grocery inflation rate of 14.9% in July. Additionally, they have been contending with a series of 14 consecutive interest rate hikes since December 2021.
Tesco, the largest food retailer in the UK, has announced a comprehensive revamp in its network of over 2,000 Express convenience stores. This initiative involves substituting more than 50 essential everyday products with more affordable alternatives, a significant portion of which will be from the store’s own-brand range. Some of these replacements will be priced at less than one-third of the cost of the products they are replacing.
“The move comes in response to the supermarket’s internal shopping data, which shows that price-conscious customers are increasingly turning to own-brand products,” Tesco said.
Data released by market researchers NIQ in May 2023 revealed that sales of store-brand products in British supermarkets have surged at a rate twice as fast as that of branded goods.
As part of the new range of store-brand products, Tesco will introduce its penne pasta priced at 85 pence ($1.08) and smooth peanut butter priced at 1.85 pounds. These items will be available at half the cost of the previous branded alternatives previously stocked.
Likewise, bags of Tesco frozen garden peas will be priced at 1.65 pounds, offering an almost 40% reduction in cost compared to the branded product they are replacing.
Tesco said the new products will be delivered to stores in the next two weeks, with the change-over complete by the end of August.
In June, Tesco said Britain’s food inflation had peaked. ($1 = 0.7865 pounds)