Poundworld has boosted its grocery sales a whopping 88% over the past year by ramping up the size of its food and drink offer and increasing its store numbers.

This week, the fixed-price discounter revealed to The Grocer that sales had soared since it decided to offer consumers a “decent food shopping basket” last year by introducing canned goods, pasta sauces and bread as well as a chilled offer including cheese, Bacon and sausages.

“We have seen very strong results from the expansion of our groceries offering in the past year, with a 13% like-for-like rise in grocery sales,” said trading director Chris Edwards Jr.

“The recession, coupled with a 60% increase in stores, has seen our grocery sales up 87.7% year-on-year to May 2012. In this tough climate, consumers are seeking more for their money and we have accommodated that demand with an increase in choice, brands and promotions.”

The company, which also operates under the Poundworld Express and Discount UK fascias, was now planning a strategic drive towards offering promotions on brands, Edwards Jr added.

“It’s our next challenge,” he said. “We want to continue to offer fantastic deals across the most popular brands as well as introduce some lesser known brands to compete with the supermarkets’ own labels.”

Poundworld was also attracting new customers, he said. “We have seen the demographic of our shoppers shift - we are attracting a wider audience of customers who may not previously have come to a Poundworld store,” he said. “We are very excited about welcoming even more cost-conscious shoppers in the next year.”

Before it was expanded, Poundworld’s grocery offer had extended no further than confectionery, soft drinks and biscuits.

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