LONDON: Cut price German supermarket chain Aldi has overtaken Waitrose, once a firm favourite among British middle class shoppers, to become the UK’s sixth biggest supermarket.
According to data from Kantar Worldpanel, Aldi now claims 5.3 per cent of the UK grocery market, which has become a fierce battleground, as the traditional supermarket chains lower prices to compete with both Aldi and Lidl, which have taken the market by storm since the financial crisis.
Waitrose has been nudged into seventh position, with a 5.1 per cent share of the market.
Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Kantar Worldpanel, said:
Aldi has recorded double-digit sales growth for the past four years and is now Britain’s sixth largest supermarket with 5.3 per cent of the market.
Growth has been fuelled by over half a million new shoppers choosing to visit Aldi this year and average basket sizes increasing by 7 per cent. The German discounter’s sales have increased by 16.8 per cent in the latest period, still high compared to other retailers but slower relative to its recent performance.
Waitrose may have moved down the ranks but it was one of only three grocers to increase sales ahead of the market in the 12 weeks to March 29, according to Kantar. Waitrose succeeded in growing sales 2.9 per cent during the period compared to the same time a year earlier, meaning it has recorded unbroken sales growth since March 2009.
Aldi’s rival Lidl was the only other grocer to grow sales ahead of the market, with sales increasing 12.1 per cent during the period. Lidl now lays claim to 3.9 per cent of the market.
March brought some relief for Sainsbury’s, which returned to growth for the first time since August 2014, according to the Kantar data, increasing sales by 0.2 per cent. It continued to lose market share, however and now has 16.4 per cent of the overall market.
Beleaguered supermarket giant Tesco, which remains the market leader with a 28.4 per cent share, continued to provide evidence of a return to health following its annus horribilis in 2014. Its sales edged up 0.3 per cent during the period, although this was much lower than the 1.1 per cent growth registered during the 12 weeks to March 1.
The losers during the period were Asda and Wm Morrison, which suffered a 1.1 per cent and 0.7 per cent decline in sales respectively.
Kantar said that groceries are now 2 per cent cheaper than they were a year ago as a result of the fierce supermarket wars.
