Brits set to stock up ahead of the long weekend

Zilch, the intelligent payments platform, has analysed its UK transaction data from grocery and home & DIY retailers around past late May Bank Holidays, to determine consumers’ spending habits and highlight what could be in store for retailers this weekend.

The Zilch data shows that:

• Friday proved to be the key “stock-up” day for grocery shoppers, with spending peaking on the Friday before the long weekend in each year analysed. In 2025, grocery spend on the Friday before the Bank Holiday peaked at over £1.7 million, around 40 percent higher than the average day that year.
• Spending surges into the Bank Holiday weekend, as grocery spend peaked at over £1.7 million on the Friday before the late May Bank Holiday in 2025, highlighting the scale of the “stock-up” moment for retailers in the run up to the long weekend.
• Home & DIY spending follows a slightly different pattern, building into the weekend and often peaking later than grocery – typically on Saturday rather than Friday. This is reflected in stronger overall Bank Holiday uplifts, with spend up 8 percent in 2025, following growth of 10% in 2024 and more than 36% in 2023, as consumers use the long weekend to take on garden, home, and outdoor living projects.

The picture is clear for grocers, garden centres and home & DIY retailers, and this year’s warm forecast makes it particularly compelling. Our data shows sunshine is a significant amplifier of Bank Holiday spending. When the UK enjoyed warm, dry conditions over the late May Bank Holiday in 2023, Home & DIY spending surged more than 36 percent above the daily average. Contrast that with May 2024, the warmest May on record but accompanied by above-average rainfall, where the uplift was a more modest 10 percent. When the sun comes out over a Bank Holiday weekend, Brits head straight to the garden.

Grocery spend is front-loaded and purposeful, peaking on the Friday as households stock up for BBQs, picnics and hosting. Garden and Home & DIY follows a different rhythm, building into the weekend as shoppers use the extra day to tackle outdoor projects or refresh their outdoor space. With warmer weather forecast across much of the UK this weekend, the conditions are in place for a strong trading window, particularly for garden centres and outdoor living brands.

Commenting on the data, Andreas Andreou, Chief Revenue Officer at Zilch, said: “What’s striking in our data isn’t just that spending rises ahead of Bank Holidays – it’s how purposeful that behaviour is. Grocery shoppers are front-loading their spend on the Friday, stocking up for BBQs and hosting, while DIY purchases reflect a longer-term mindset of people planning projects and making the most of the extra day. For retailers in both categories, this is a predictable, high-intent window – and it’s exactly the kind of real-time spending signal that Zilch Intelligent Commerce is built to act on, helping brands reach the right shopper at exactly the moment they’re ready to buy.”

Zilch works with thousands of retailers, including Tesco, Asda, Iceland, Morrisons, and Dunelm. This data analysis was based on Zilch transaction spending across major grocery merchants and home & DIY merchants.