Supermarkets
Supermarkets examines the strategies, performance, and operational challenges facing the UK grocery retail sector. This section reports on trading results, pricing strategy, supply chain management, sustainability initiatives, and consumer trends influencing supermarket performance. Retail Sector’s Supermarkets coverage provides analysis and insight for retail leaders, buyers, and suppliers, exploring how competition, regulation, and innovation are shaping profitability and long-term growth across the grocery landscape.
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Jan- 2024 -2 January
Aldi and Lidl see record-breaking Christmas
Discount supermarkets Aldi and Lidl have both experienced record-breaking Christmas periods. Aldi posted sales over £1.5bn in the four weeks to 24 December, an 8% increase year-on-year, while Lidl sales jumped 12% year-on-year. Aldi reported that Friday 22 December was its busiest trading day with over 2.5 million customers visiting…
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Dec- 2023 -20 December
Asda’s interest bill to exceed £400m
Asda is set to see its debt interest bill exceed £400m by early next year as a result of rising interest rates. The company’s chief financial officer Michael Gleeson told the Business and Trade Committee that its debt bill would rise by up to £30m by February. This is because…
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20 December
Lidl becomes first grocer to double paid maternity leave
Lidl GB will be introducing 28 weeks full pay for staff on maternity or adoption leave starting from 1 January 2024, making it the first supermarket to do so. The announcement is part of the retailer’s new employment benefits, which will also be introducing paid leave for those undergoing fertility…
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19 December
Asda opens 81 Express stores ahead of Christmas
Asda has opened a record 81 new Asda Express stores in December in a bid to bring Asda value to even more communities ahead of Christmas. The conversions of its recent acquisition of Co-op and EG UK sites, alongside the opening of eight standalone Asda Express stores, brings the total…
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18 December
Aldi creates national real estate team amid growth plans
Aldi has created a new national real estate team as it looks to deliver its plan to open 500 new UK stores. The UK’s fourth-largest supermarket recently announced a long-term plan to operate 1,500 UK stores – and the distribution network to service them – to meet growing demand from…
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12 December
Total till sales slow as shoppers save to spend £5bn on Xmas week
Total Till sales at UK supermarkets slowed +6.8% in the last four weeks ending 2 December 2023, according to new data released today by NIQ. NIQ said the slowdown in growth is due to shoppers prioritising saving and delaying spending to take advantage of seasonal promotions during the week of…
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11 December
Asda lorry strikes could lead to Xmas food shortages, union warns
Asda may face food shortages over the festive period following strike action amongst its lorry drivers. It comes as Unite confirmed that around 80 HGV drivers, employed by Wincanton on an Asda contract, will strike over the Christmas period at the supermarket’s Rochdale operations hub. The union confirmed drivers will…
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8 December
Lidl scraps ‘use by’ dates on dairy products
Lidl has ditched ‘use by’ dates in favour of ‘best before’ ones on all its yoghurt and fresh milk ranges, in a move to help customers reduce food waste at home. The grocer’s updated milk packaging has already started filtering into stores across England and Wales, while customers can expect…
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7 December
Morrisons and M&S made ‘unlawful’ land deals to block rivals, CMA finds
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has taken action after finding that Morrisons and Marks and Spencer made unlawful anti-competitive land deals to block rivals. The regulator confirmed the retailers have now agreed to address 65 anti-competitive land agreements which prevented competitors from opening nearby. According to the CMA, the…
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5 December
December to see £13bn in grocery sales for first time, Kantar says
Take-home grocery sales are expected to surpass £13bn for the first time ever this December, according to marketing data and analytics company Kantar. It comes as its latest figures found that sales grew by 6.3% over the four weeks to 26 November 2023 to reach £11.7bn. Kantar said the cost…
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