Post-Christmas cheer for SuperValu in Ireland

The latest supermarket share figures from Kantar Worldpanel in Ireland, published today for the 12 weeks ending 2 February, show SuperValu performing strongly, increasing its market share to 20.1% from 19.9% despite a slowdown in overall grocery spend. Aside from Aldi and Lidl, SuperValu is the only grocer in growth.

Mark Thomson, business unit director at Kantar Worldpanel, explains: “Amid a challenging market backdrop, SuperValu continues to maintain solid growth ahead of the market at 0.7%. It has benefitted from welcoming around 30,000 new customers to its stores, with 63% of the Republic of Ireland now doing their grocery shop with the retailer. The store’s increased prominence is key as 24 Superquinn stores convert to the SuperValu fascia this month.”

Tesco’s market share has dipped from 27.7% to 26%, despite 87% of Irish shoppers frequenting its stores – more than any other retailer. Dunnes and Superquinn have both lost ground with shares standing at 23.8% and 5.1% respectively, while the discounters continue to thrive. Aldi has increased its share points by 1.3ppts to 7.2%, with Lidl holding 6.6% of the market.

Mark continues: “This slowdown in spending is partly linked to price inflation which has halved from the heights of 6% last year to 2.9%, slightly ahead of inflation in Britain which stands at 2.1%. The fall in prices across vegetables is still a contributing factor to the performance of the grocery market, with shoppers spending €12 less on fresh vegetables compared with the same period last year. Although levels of inflation are reducing in Ireland, the financial pressure on people’s budgets remains an important factor in deciding where people shop, and what they are buying.”

An update on inflation
Grocery inflation stands at 2.9%* for the 12 week period ending 2 February 2014, remaining at the same level we reported last period.

*This figure is based on over 30,000 identical products compared year-on-year in the proportions purchased by Irish shoppers and therefore represents the most authoritative figure currently available. It is a ‘pure’ inflation measure in that shopping behaviour is held constant between the two comparison periods – shoppers are likely to achieve a lower personal inflation rate if they trade down or seek out more offers.