Successive waves of heat and unusual amounts of sunshine saw shoppers splashing out more on suncreams and deodorant while sales of alcohol, energy drinks and salty snacks also benefited from the good weather, according to spending data published at the start of a week that promises a return to a more traditional Irish summer. The fresh data from retail analysts Worldpanel by Numerator suggests that the pressure on consumers has eased slightly, with inflation across supermarkets falling to the lowest level recorded since the spring of 2025. The figures show an increase of 4.2 per cent in the price of groceries when compared with the same period last year.That is close to 2 per cent lower than Worldpanel noted this time last month. Take-home grocery sales in Ireland increased by 6.3 per cent over the four weeks to July 12th, with a wave of warm weather and big sporting events prompting shoppers to stock up and celebrate at home. Branded goods performed strongly last month, growing by 10.6 per cent in value terms while own label grew more modestly at 3.4 per cent.“Irish shoppers made the most of the hot spell and big sporting occasions, while an easing in grocery price inflation, now increasing at the slowest rate since February 2025, was another cause for celebration,” said Worldpanel’s business development director Emer Healy.“Shoppers clearly felt like they had a little more room to trade up, which explains why branded goods and premium ranges both grew faster than own label this period,” she said.Irish shoppers continued to hunt for value, reflected in sales on promotion accounting for 23.4 per cent of value share over the latest 12-week period and rising by 14.2 per cent year on year. At-home snacking prompted increased sales on promotion across categories including antipasti, crisps, chilled ready meals and energy drinks, with sales jumping by more than 20 per cent in those categories. Online also benefited from the summer sun with more shoppers opting to have their groceries delivered to their doors, leading to a year-on-year bounce in online sales of 23 per cent. Over July, other categories benefiting from the warm weather included alcohol, which was up 11.5 per cent. Soft drinks saw a bounce of 8.7 per cent while sales of prepared fruit climbed by 4.2 per cent.Shoppers also spent an additional €3.7 million on deodorant and suncare over the period as they battled the heat. In the store wars, Dunnes continues to dominate with a market share of 23.7 per cent, marginally in advance of Tesco’s 23.5 per cent.SuperValu lags on 19.6 per cent, while Lidl grew its market share to 15 per cent, with Aldi holding 11.1 per cent of the market.