The supermarket sales in the UK declined by 0.5% in the 12 weeks leading up to July 14 compared to the same period last year. The discount giants Lidl and Aldi and online supermarket Ocado were an exception to this trend. This was reported by Kantar Worldpanel.

The fastest-growing supermarket in the UK at the moment remains Ocado, which realised a growth in turnover of 11.9% compared to 2018. The discounters Aldi and Lidl also continue to gain ground on the Big Four (Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda and Morrisons). Aldis market share rose to 8.1% and Lidl grew to 5.8%. The Big Four saw their market share decline further and their sales figures dropped by an average of 2.1%.

A next step in the growth strategy of Aldi and Lidl is to open smaller locations to compete with local convenience stores. In March this year, the first Aldi Local opened in the London district of Balham and seven more of these stores are planned in the capital. Lidl announced they were opening 40 stores in London in the same period, including locations of a smaller size.