Discounters gaining ground as UK consumers face cost of living crisis 

UK customers are flocking in their droves to discounters as grocery inflation hits 5.9%, the highest level recorded since December 2011. The latest figures from Kantar show that Aldi is the country’s fastest-growing retailer over the 12 weeks to 17 April, with sales up by 4.2%, followed close behind by Lidl (+4%).

Kantar head of retail and consumer insight Fraser McKevitt said: “Over one million extra shoppers visited Aldi and Lidl respectively over the past 12 weeks compared with this time last year. Both retailers achieved record-breaking market shares, with Aldi now holding 8.8% while Lidl stands at 6.6%. Collectively, the two discounters account for 15.4% of the market – up from just 5.5% a decade ago.”

Tesco was the only other retailer to gain market share in this period, growing by 0.3% to hold 27.3% of total grocery sales. Sainsbury’s accounts for 15% of the market, followed by Asda at 14.1% and Morrisons at 9.5%.

Asda has recently invested £73 million in lowering prices across more than 100 family favourites in a bid to tackle the cost-of-living crisis. Additionally, Morrisons has cut the prices of hundreds of its own-brand lines as part of its bid to help consumers as they face up to the rising cost of living.