Tesco’s £1bn Christmas sales lift amid supermarket boom

Tesco recorded a 3.1% rise in sales in the three months ending December 31, according to the latest Kantar Worldpanel UK grocery market share figures.

Comparatively Asda’s sales grew by 2.2%, Morrisons by 2.1%, and Sainsbury’s 2%.

Kantar reported that Aldi and Lidl attracted nearly one million additional households to their stores during the past three months.

Increasing their market share to  6.8% and 5% respectively.  

Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Kantar Worldpanel, said: “Overall supermarket sales increased in value by 3.8%, with an additional £1 billion ringing through the tills compared to the same festive period last year. Shoppers parted with £747 million on 22 December alone, making the Friday before Christmas the busiest shopping day ever recorded.”

Online supermarket sales rose 4.9% year-on-year, with Ocado leading the segment and increasing sales by 8.4% to account for 1.3% of the grocery market, a 0.1% increase.

Sales at Waitrose and Iceland increased by 2.3% and 2.9%, but their market shares dipped 0.2% and 0.1% to 5.8% and 2.2% respectively.

The Co-op was the only supermarket to record a decline in sales, dropping 0.2%, with its market share also dipping 0.1% to 5.2%.