Aldi and Lidl to grab more sales from supermarket stores
The amount of money spent at Britain’s larger supermarket stores is set to shrink over the next five years, new figures show, as competition from discounters, convenience stores and online gathers pace.
According to research released yesterday by the industry body IGD, the value of the UK grocery market is set to rise by 16 per cent to £203bn, but consumers will spend four per cent less at hyperstores and superstores.
Their share of grocery market sales is expected to decline from 42.2 per cent to 34.9 per cent, IGD said.
The decline highlights the challenges facing the UK’s big four grocers such as Tesco. The group has been attempting to overhaul space in its larger stores and introduce features such as restaurants and bakeries to boost visitor numbers.
Sales from discounters such as Aldi and Lidl are forecast to double over the five years to £21.4bn – giving them a 10.5 per cent share of the market compared to 6.2 per cent today.
Online sales are set to enjoy the fastest growth – more than doubling in value to £17bn – while spending in convenience stores such as Sainsbury’s Local is expected to grow by a third.
The changing nature of the grocery market means online, convenience and the discount sector will overtake superstores and hypermarkets for the first time by April 2019.