Evaluation: Health will develop into ‘a lifestyle aim’ | Evaluation

Affordable, elevated experiences, simplified sustainability and well being as a way of life driver are the highest 4 developments set to form UK grocery and shopper behaviour in 2026, in response to the IGD developments forecast.

Supermarkets will stay the most important channel, adopted by comfort, whereas on-line is anticipated to be the quickest rising channel.

The IGD’s UK pattern experiences for 2026 embrace a grocery retail and shopper perspective, in addition to European channel forecasts for 2025-2030.

“The UK leads the European online grocery market, with over a tenth of all grocery sales occurring through this channel,” mentioned IGD insights supervisor, Sneha Haria.

“Retailers and suppliers should study this leading market for best practices and inspiration on how to successfully expand and gain market share in an increasingly digital landscape.”

The 4 key developments for 2026: 

1. Affordable and accessible

As financial pressures persist, worth will stay a high precedence. Shoppers will search services that ship high quality at a good value, balanced by the rising expectations for immediate gratification.

Shoppers are remaining cautious of their spend however nonetheless count on high quality and comfort. They’re savvy, skilled, and count on inexpensive choices that don’t compromise on high quality or ease.

2. Elevated experiences

In a world of selection, expertise is an more and more essential differentiator. While value nonetheless issues, buyers can be drawn to retailers and types that provide one thing memorable, creating alternatives to construct deeper emotional connections.

These connections drive trade-up, particularly as an alternative choice to out of residence events. Provide personalised offers and an elevated in-store expertise to allow this.

3. Sustainability simplified

Shoppers count on authorities, retailers and types to steer on sustainability. Making sustainable decisions seen and their advantages clear can be key to driving engagement with buyers. In addition, buyers count on management quite than complexity they usually need retailers and authorities to prepared the ground.

4. Health as a way of life driver

Living healthily is evolving from a objective to a lifestyle. Health and wellness will develop into a way of life purpose, and built-in into on a regular basis decisions, quite than a distinct segment objective, and buyers need easy, clear steering and merchandise that assist their evolving wants.

Available to IGD members, the complete UK developments 2026: the patron and grocery retail experiences could be discovered here and here, whereas the ‘European channel forecasts 2025 – 2030’ report could be discovered here.