Shops offering everything for £1 or less have become a magnet for wealthier shoppers who have also flocked to Aldi and Lidl , a new study revealed today . Almost half of all people who have visited discounters such as 99p Stores , Poundstretcher , B & M Bargains and Wilkinsons are middle class and among the country 's highest earners , research has found . A new report says 57 per cent of adults in the UK claim to use a discount store like Poundland every week because the 'stigma ' of shopping in budget stores has ended , experts have said . Of those 53 per cent are in the top A/B social class , who on average earn more than £35,000-a-year , a significant increase from the 37 per cent figure a year ago . Shopping habits : Almost half of all people who have visited discounters such as 99p Stores , Poundstretcher , and Wilkinsons are now middle class and among the country 's highest earners , new research has found . The news comes on the back of the massive rise in popularity of Aldi and Lidl , which are attracting increasing numbers of middle class shoppers , dubbed the 'Lidl class ' . Last week Aldi 's growing share of the grocery market saw it overtake Waitrose to become Britain 's sixth biggest supermarket . But the latest research by retail consultancy group 'Him ! ' found that variety discounters selling everything from sweets to stationery for £1 or less are also booming , especially with wealthier shoppers . B & M bargains grew its sales by 66 per cent to £1.3 billion last year and Poundland 's sales grew 13 per cent to £998 million in the same period . 77 % are attracted by cheap prices . 7.73 - number of items bought per visit . £8.93 - average spend per visit . 33 % have visited a variety discounter once a week in the past month . 31 % use variety discount stores for top-up shopping . Source : Retail consultants Him ! Katie Littler , communications director of Him ! , said : 'There has been a considerable shift in higher income households using variety discounters , just as we have seen them using Aldi and Lidl regularly . 'Any stigma is slowly disappearing and they are becoming just another retailer , albeit trusted for a more limited range of missions and categories . ' The report , revealed by The Grocer magazine , said people who most use variety discounters also tend to be young . Nearly a third ( 30 per cent ) are under 34 and two in three ( 66 per cent ) of 18 to 24 year olds say they have visited a variety discounter . Poundland has been especially successful in attracting young shoppers with 31 per cent visiting a branch in the past week , up from 26 per cent a year ago . Men are increasingly visiting cheap chain stores - 44 per cent of men said they had visited a Poundland branch in the previous week , up from 37 per cent a year ago . More popular than ever : Poundland 's sales grew 13 per cent to £998 million last year as more people head to the store . Experts say the variety discounters have successfully taken over the gap left on high streets by Woolworths , which sold a range of general merchandise from pick and mix sweets to hardware and CDs . The Him ! report says most people visiting a variety discounter do so for so-called top up shopping , but grocery items are crucial . Some 57 per cent of shoppers buy confectionary , 54 per cent go for food , 48 per cent for health and beauty , 40 per cent household items and 40 per cent crisps and snacks . Katie Littler said : 'The food and drink items bought are much less about fresh and chilled , which have become the big footfall drivers for Aldi and Lidl . However , the report found that average basket spend at variety discounters is just £8.93 , the lowest for any grocery retailer and behind £11.81 in a convenience store and £31.30 in a supermarket . The Grocer commented : 'Posher , younger and with a sweet tooth , loyal shoppers have been successfully pulled in by variety discounters . 'The key to continued growth will be getting those shoppers to splash more of their cash . '
Number of Britain 's highest earners going to pound stores is now up 31 % . More than half of all shoppers say they head to pound shops each week . Experts say they are topping up their weekly shop , often from Lidl or Aldi .