Sainsbury's beats Asda to become UK's second biggest grocer

A resurgent Sainsbury’s has managed to stem the flow of falling sales

Simon Neville
Wednesday 29 July 2015 16:34 BST
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Sainsbury’s has overtaken Asda to become the country’s second biggest grocer
Sainsbury’s has overtaken Asda to become the country’s second biggest grocer

Asda’s downfall was laid bare today as Sainsbury’s overtook the supermarket to become the country’s second biggest grocer for only the third time in 12 years.

The Walmart-owned supermarket has struggled this year with its lack of convenience stores and more customers heading for Aldi and Lidl, while a resurgent Sainsbury’s under chief executive Mike Coupe has managed to stem the flow of falling sales.

The latest industry data from Kantar Worldpanel showed that Asda’s sales fell 2.7% in the 12 weeks to July 19 compared with a year ago, giving it a market share of 16.4%, while Sainsbury’s saw a 0.3% fall in sales but its market share now sits at 16.5%. Tesco still accounts for the majority of the market, at 28.5%.

Asda has also steadfastly refused to enter the major couponing its rivals have embarked over the last year, with discounts for new customers offered virtually every week elsewhere.

There were also signs that Morrisons was turning a corner under new boss David Potts, as sales dipped just 0.1% - the smallest fall of the Big Four supermarkets. The Co-operative also managed to pull back from endless falls in sales, recording a rise of 1% - up for the first time in 12 months.

But none could stop the endless rise of Aldi and Lidl, which went back to strong sales growth, up 16.6% and 11.3% respectively over the period. Some had suggested that the German discounters’ growth had peaked as its store openings slowed down.

There were also signs that customers had taken advantage of Waitrose’s new loyalty offer, where shoppers can pick ten items that they will always receive 20% off. Sales rose 3%, with its market share now at 5%.

Sainsbury’s traditionally overtakes Asda at Christmas when shoppers trade up and took second spot in January but has not overtaken Asda outside of Christmas since 2003.

Overall, there was a small amount of growth across the sector – up 0.8%, however, the falling oil prices and the ongoing price wars mean a typical shopping basket is now 1.6% cheaper than a year ago.

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