No longer do we eagerly await the summer sale. Thanks to daily deals websites, online vouchers, and retailers’ desperation to sell, sell, sell, there's a sale nearly every day. But how does this permanent sale phenomenon affect the way people spend?

In a poor economic climate, Poundland, which currently has 450 shops, is expanding at a rate of 60 outlets per year. Yet much of the growth at discount retailers no longer comes from the poor, as more affluent consumers are becoming bargain-hunters.

With half of the UK population now passing through the doors of discount retailers and their sales showing double digit year-on-year growth, there’s certainly an appetite for discounted goods. But what’s behind this shift? And how is it affecting the UK’s retail landscape?

As UK shoppers adopt an increasingly frugal mindset, the perception towards value products is changing. Despite traditional ideals, the majority of Brits now consider supermarket own-label products to be on par, and two in five consider them better, than branded equivalents.