Key drivers for confidence

The increase is driven by restored confidence within the over-55s, which appears to be a direct result of the vaccine roll-out. Trust in the food industry is also at an all-time high, thanks to the industry maintaining supply, focusing on health and supporting local communities and suppliers.

Key changes

• Shopper confidence fluctuated slightly across the month and dropped to -7 in early January following the new national lockdown and ‘stay at home’ message, combined with the rising number of COVID-19 cases, hospital admissions and deaths
• The index rose to -4 at the end of the month as the UK passed the halfway point towards its mid-February target of administering at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine to 15m people
• Confidence has increased the most among those aged 55+ (-3 vs -9 last month) – a priority group to receive the vaccine
• Confidence has improved slightly across all major regions
• With news of the progress on the vaccinations programme, 19% expect to be better off in the year ahead (+2% vs last month) – the highest level since July 2020
• Just under a third (31%) expect to be worse off financially in the year ahead (-1% vs. last month)
• Trust in the food industry has increased to the highest level recorded, with a focus on the provision of healthy products, supporting local suppliers, farmers and local communities

The future

The uncertainty surrounding the length of lockdown, the economic downturn and potential supply chain issues around the EU trade deal will mean that confidence will remain fragile for the foreseeable future, but it will be interesting to see the results in February, when the government is on course to reach its target of vaccinating 15m people.

The full IGD Shopper Confidence Index is available to subscribers on IGD ShopperVista

More economic news and analysis