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Sainsbury’s Sees Decline In Sales In Latest Kantar Worldpanel Market Share Figures

By Steve Wynne-Jones
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Sainsbury’s Sees Decline In Sales In Latest Kantar Worldpanel Market Share Figures

UK retailer Sainsbury’s posted a 1.0% decline in sales in the 12 weeks to 24 February, the only Big Four retailer to see a decline, according to the latest market share figures from Kantar Worldpanel.

Sainsbury’s sits on 15.7% market share – just ahead of third-placed Asda, which saw a 1.0% increase in sales, to sit on 15.5% share.

Tesco continues to lead the market, with a 1.3% increase in sales, putting it on 27.7% market share for the period.

Commenting on Sainsbury’s performance, Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Kantar Worldpanel, said, “Sainsbury’s sales fell by 1.0%, reducing its market share by 0.5 percentage points, to 15.7%. Despite this, its premium Taste the Difference range proved popular – sales rose by 4%, and the products found their way into a quarter of all Sainsbury’s shopping baskets.”

In terms of the retailer’s would-be merger partner, Asda, McKevitt added, “Asda continued its run of uninterrupted growth since April 2017, increasing sales by 1.0%. Own-label lines at the supermarket continued to outperform brands, and an increase in the number of online shopping trips helped boost growth overall.”

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Discounter Strength

The strongest performer, according to the figures, was Aldi, which achieved double-digit (10.0%) sales growth in the period, to sit on 7.6% market share.

Fellow discounter Lidl also outperformed the market, with growth of 5.4%, putting it on 5.2% market share.

As McKevitt noted, Aldi’s strength in the period was boosted by its focus on Valentine’s Day promotions.

“In the past, there may have been a bit of a stigma about treating your loved one from a discounter – that just isn’t the case any more,” he said.

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“Planning for the perfect date night, 10% of the population bought chocolate, wine, steak, shellfish or a chilled dessert from Aldi during the week of Valentine’s Day, helping it increase market share by 0.6 percentage points, to 7.6%,” he added.

Overall, supermarket sales were up 1.9% in the 12-week period.

© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.

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