Aldi has again led the grocery market in terms of growth over the past three months, according to new data from Kantar Worldpanel.
The German-owned discounter racked up growth of more than 25% over the 12 weeks to 2 October. That was five times the growth of the market as a whole, which expanded by 5.1% over the period – behind the 5.7% rate of general inflation.
Aldi grew its market share to 3.5% over the period, up from just 3% for the equivalent period last year. Fellow discounter Lidl also took market share, up from 2.4% to 2.5%.
Tesco’s share slipped from 30.9% of the market to 30.6%, with growth well behind inflation at 4.2%. Morrisons’ share edged up from 11.5% to 11.6%, while Waitrose also took business from rivals, up from 4.2% of the market to 4.4%.
Kantar said the figures showed the market was still divided into ‘two nations’.
“The gap between inflation and growth has become a major feature of the grocery market as shoppers trade down to cheaper products and retailers strive to convince consumers they are combating inflation,” said Kantar director Edward Garner.
“As a result, those retailers with a low-price message are the driving force in the market, with Iceland and Lidl enjoying sales growth of over 10% year-on-year and Aldi leading the market.”
Garner added: “Morrisons posted the strongest growth of the big four this period, but all of these retailers are responding to stretched household budgets with promotional initiatives. While it is too early to see the effect of these campaigns in the figures, future performance will be critical.”
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