Aldi's booming babycare sales ignite nappy & wipes price war

Aldi’s growing dominance of infant care sales has ignited a price war over British babies’ bottoms.

Nearly £30m, or 4.6%, has been wiped off the nappies and baby wipes market [Kantar Worldpanel 52 w/e 9 October 2016]. Average prices are down by 9.4% to less than £5 a pack.

“Aldi now has almost three million nappy and wipes shoppers, more than Sainsbury’s, Morrisons or Boots - impressive considering Aldi’s lack of branded offerings,” said Kantar analyst Gareth Gwynne. 

Sales of Aldi’s Mamia infant care range have passed £90m, overtaking Asda’s Little Angels range to become Britain’s second-bestselling own label offering after Tesco Loves Baby.

“Mamia appeals to shoppers because it is tried, tested and trusted by millions of parents across the UK,” said Aldi’s MD of corporate buying Tony Baines. “A key factor behind the success is our Mamia Parent Panel, where we work directly with customers to test and review the range on a regular basis.”

Pampers has been hit hardest by Mamia’s growth, crashing £45.4m (15.4%) on volumes down 8.4% [IRI 52 w/e 26 November 2016], as the supermarkets have slashed prices to compete with the discounters.

But, as the price parents pay for wipes and nappies falls, they are spending more on feeding their babies. Babyfood sales are up 7.6%. “Parents remain reluctant to compromise on the quality of the food they give to little ones,” said Annabel Karmel, founder of the eponymous babyfood brand.

Price competition is set to stiffen as the discounters increase their babyfood offerings, with Aldi launching a range of infant milk formula and upping its pouched food product count under the Mamia brand. Lidl, meanwhile, is currently trialling the Lidl’uns range of babyfood it soft launched last year.