Aldi overtakes Morrisons to become fourth biggest supermarket

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Aldi celebrates ‘best Christmas ever’ with sales of £1.6bn



Aldi has reported its “best Christmas ever” after Britain’s fourth-biggest grocer said it made sales of more than £1.6bn in the four weeks to Christmas Eve, thanks to shoppers trading up to its premium range and new store openings.

The supermarket chain said total sales for the crucial holiday period increased by 3.4% year-on-year, helped by a 12% increase in its Specially Selected own-label products.

Sales were also boosted by the addition of about 3.5% space from new stores, according to the Shore Capital retail analyst Clive Black, indicating flat underlying sales and a potential drop in the number of items sold once inflation is taken into account.

The last three months of the year are known as the golden quarter in the retail industry as households go on a spending spree for presents and food. Aldi said Monday 23 December 2024 was its busiest-ever trading day, with 3 million customers visiting. Its previous busiest day was Friday 22 December 2023.

Its fellow German-owned rival, Lidl, also reported record Christmas sales of more than £1bn. Lidl sales rose by 7% for the period, albeit after it increased its floor space by 3%. The two German chains have changed British spending habits by emphasising lower prices over extensive choice.

Aldi, with more than 45,000 staff across 1,020 stores, overtook Morrisons in 2022 to become the fourth-largest grocer by market share. It now has 10.3% of UK spending, according to Kantar. Aldi claims it has overtaken the No 3 supermarket Asda in terms of shopper numbers, although Kantar data suggests it is two percentage points behind in spending terms.

However, Aldi has been put under pressure byTesco and Sainsbury’s, which have won back customers by pledging to match prices with the generally cheaper rival. Aldi said last year it had made £100m in price cuts to try to maintain its position.

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Aldi hails record Christmas as hard-up shoppers ditch ‘big four’ supermarkets



Aldi has had its best-ever Christmas as hard-up shoppers ditched Britain’s “big four” supermarkets to find cheaper groceries.

Sales at the German discounter hit a record £1.65bn in the four weeks to Christmas Eve, marking a 3pc increase on last year.

Aldi said customers spent a total of £500m in the final week before Christmas Day, with 57 million transactions in stores taking place across the entire festive period.

The discounter said it gained millions of shoppers from rivals such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Asda over Christmas, as many were seeking “to make their money go further during the festive season”.

Giles Hurley, Aldi’s UK and Ireland chief executive, said the record Christmas performance came during what was “a challenging time for many”.

Aldi is typically able to set lower prices than rivals because it stocks fewer different products, allowing it to secure better deals from suppliers. It claimed to be selling the UK’s cheapest Christmas dinner last month.

The figures from Aldi mark the first in a flurry of festive trading updates from retailers, with Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Marks & Spencer due to report later this week.

Investors will be watching closely for signs of pain among retailers after warnings that households were set to spend less over Christmas owing to weaker consumer confidence.

Figures from Barclays last month showed that UK shoppers cut spending at the fastest pace since the pandemic began in November.

On Boxing Day, footfall data suggested many people were staying away from town centres and shunning high street sales. By 3pm, high street footfall was down 1.5pc on last year, according to MRI Software figures.

A separate KPMG study found that two thirds of Britons fear the UK economy is going backwards.

It has fuelled concerns about a tough January for retailers, with the fallout from the Budget expected to spill over into weaker spending.

Experts have suggested that Labour’s freeze on income tax thresholds – which will push millions into higher tax bands – will prompt people to reduce spending and save more.

Jenni Matthews, of MRI Software, said: “We know consumers were feeling an air of caution in the lead-up to the Budget being announced, and it could be resulting in consumers looking to start saving their pennies now. But we’ll feel the full impact of that as we head into 2026.”

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/01/05/aldi-hails-best-christmas-shoppers-ditch-big-supermarkets/

I didn't buy anything extra from Aldi although with hindsight I would have bought some smoked, streaky-bacon as Morrisons ran out again.