Bunting, trifle dishes and Dubonnet set tills ringing for Jubilee celebrations

Sales of bunting, trifle dishes and royal favourite tipple Dubonnet are setting tills ringing as consumers ready themselves for a long weekend of Jubilee parties.

Shoppers are set to send sales booming from Wednesday ahead of the four-day bank holiday weekend, with Co-op predicting “a bigger sales period than Christmas”.

The grocer expects its wine sales to be 10% higher than the festive period and is preparing to sell double the amount of English sparkling wine and 30,000 bottles of Champagne as well, as 75% more Victoria Sponge cake than usual.

The naming of Jemma Melvin’s lemon Swiss roll and amaretti trifle as the official pudding of the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations is likely to be behind sales of large glass trifle bowls selling out at Lakeland, as have lines of the retailer’s Jubilee-themed tableware.

Waitrose said sales of the Queen’s favourite tipple Dubonnet were up 50% on last year, while searches for the ‘perfect Victoria sponge’ were up 176%.

At John Lewis, sales of Jubilee products had tripled in the past week with sales up 208% compared to the week before.

Sales of garden tables were up 58%, outdoor cushions up 90% and deckchair sales have increased by 1,965% as people prepare for outdoor parties.

The upmarket grocer also said afternoon tea-related sales were soaring, with teapots up 317% compared to last week.

Sainsbury’s said sales of English sparkling wine were up 51% from three years ago, with its own research finding that it was now considered a status drink by 32% of consumers.

Tesco predicted it would sell 60,000 rolls of bunting in the week leading up to the celebrations, as well as 50,000 Union Jack plates, 150,000 bottles of Pimm’s and four million bottles of gin.

The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) said it expected more than 90 million pints to be sold across the four days, equalling a £150 million boost to the industry.

BBPA chief executive Emma McClarkin said: “The Platinum Jubilee weekend is set to be a joyous occasion, with pubs in villages, towns, and cities up and down the country at the heart of celebrations in their communities.

“With the sun set to shine across the four days we’re hoping to see pub gardens filled with people raising a toast to Her Majesty the Queen and showing their support for two great British institutions.”

Retail analysts Springboard has forecast footfall will rise by 8% across all retail destinations this week.

British Retail Consortium economist Harvir Dhillon said: “The upcoming Platinum Jubilee should favour retailers, with improvements to footfall over the extended bank holiday period as people stock up for celebrations with friends and family.

“Fresh food, sales of alcohol and particularly items adorned with the Union Jack are expected to perform well.”

It is estimated that 39 million adults will be celebrating in some way over the weekend, with 4.1 million families expected to join a street party.

The New West End Company, which represents 600 retail, restaurant, hotel and property owners across London’s Bond Street, Oxford Street, Regent Street and Mayfair, forecast that sales over the four-day weekend will hit £80 million as an expected 2.6 million domestic and international visitors arrive in the capital.

Dee Corsi, from the New West End Company, said: “Uniquely British events, such as the Queen’s Jubilees or royal weddings, are a boom for high streets across the UK, with revellers coming out in force to eat, drink and shop over the long weekend.

“We strongly encourage the Great British public to come out, support their high streets and enjoy everything London has to offer as we celebrate Her Majesty’s historic reign.”