The discounters are storming ahead in household, particularly their own label lines, with sales up 14.4% over the past year adding a cool £7.1m to sales [Kantar 52 w/e 28 February 2016].

Meanwhile, sales of branded auto dishwash, surface cleaners, hand dishwash and aircare in the big four have fallen by 4.9%, wiping £31.4m off the category’s value.

“Both Aldi & Lidl have looked to hurt the big homecare manufacturers such as P&G and Reckitt Benckiser by emphasising both the quality of their own products as well as the savings shoppers can make thanks to the low relative pricing,” explains Andrew Zarb, Kantar Worldpanel analyst. “Magnum, Aldi’s dishwashing brand, in particular has been a focus, winning Which! awards for product performance over established brands like Fairy.”

“Both Aldi & Lidl have looked to hurt the big homecare manufacturers such as P&G and Reckitt Benckiser by emphasising both the quality of their own products as well as the savings shoppers can make thanks to the low relative pricing…”

Hand dishwash contributed the most to Aldi and Lidl’s growth, adding £2.3m while brands lost £4.7m. This was far from the biggest loss for brands in the big four, though, with £14.1m wiped off aircare while the discounters gained £1.4m.

“We’ve worked hard in improving the range of products available in our household category and this has resulted in a growth,” explains Helen Watkins, senior buying manager, Lidl UK. “We’ve also worked on the quality and visual of these lines. Products have been performance-tested with a number Good Housekeeping approved. This has helped the growth. We’re always looking to improve the offering within the limited range we offer.”

Brands are fighting back though as Nikki Hepburn, Unilever’s commercial manager for household care, believes there are two areas in which they have the advantage over own-label products.

“Only a fifth of consumers tend to purchase the cheapest cleaning products available, with consumers looking for high quality and performance when making their purchasing decisions,” she says. “A quarter of consumers are also searching for innovation and for NPD when selecting their household cleaning products, with consumers looking for products which offer different cleaning solutions and properties for their home and something that is new to the market.”

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10 Things You Need To Know About... Household