The latest IGD research predicts that food-to-go will continue to be the key driver in retail sales growth over the next five years.
The UK’s food-to-go sector is in rude health and will be worth £23.5bn by 2022, up from £17.4bn in 2017, according to IGD, as shoppers’ preference for eating on the move shows no signs of slowing down.
IGD’s food-to-go research splits the market into five segments, with the organisation’s latest forecasts suggesting particularly strong growth among specialist food-to-go retailers (e.g. Greggs, Subway, Pret, EAT and Leon), which are set to overtake quick service restaurants (QSRs) to become the biggest part of the market in the next five years.
| 2017 value (£bn) | 2022 value (£bn) | CAGR 2017-2022 | |
| Food-to-go specialists | 5.1 | 7.7 | 8.4 |
| Quick service restaurants (QSRs) | 5.4 | 6.3 | 3.4 |
| Coffee specialists | 2.9 | 4.2 | 7.4 |
| Convenience, forecourt & other retailers | 2.7 | 3.6 | 6.1 |
| Supermarkets & hypermarkets | 1.3 | 1.7 | 5.9 |
| Total | 17.4 | 23.5 | 6.2 |
Gavin Rothwell, Senior Insight Manager at IGD, said: “As shoppers become more sophisticated in their tastes and demands, so too does the UK’s food-to-go market. Across all our five market segments we’re seeing some highly innovative product and menu development, much of this inspired by shopper trends towards health and wellness and global flavours and tastes. Many operators are looking to tempt shoppers with ranges tailored to different times of day, while also improving the quality of their fresh food and coffee offers.
“Food-to-go specialists are really setting the pace on product innovation and range development, as well as expanding quite rapidly outside London, which is why we’re forecasting them to become the biggest part of the food-to-go market by the end of 2022. In addition to the well-known high street names, there are several new players emerging in this segment as well. Health and wellness is a particularly big focus for these specialists, with three-quarters (76%) of shoppers satisfied with the choice of healthy options available in-store, higher than any other segment of the food-to-go market.”
Convenience and forecourt retailers have spotted a great opportunity in the food-to-go market and are now becoming increasingly active in this area, either through their own ranges or by teaming up with well-known brand names to add credibility. Younger shoppers are particularly likely to drive growth in these stores, with 18-25-year-olds twice as likely to buy food-to-go in convenience stores compared to their older counterparts.
Rothwell added: “It’s common for shoppers to visit more than one store to complete their food-to-go shop. Suppliers therefore have a great opportunity to work closely with retailers and specialists to create winning ranges that will ultimately meet more shoppers’ needs.”
