Sainsbury’s moves into second place as discounters take 10pc share of market

Leeds-based Asda is battling against the rise of discounters Aldi and Lidl, which have sparked a fierce supermarket price war and stolen market share from the major players.

The Kantar figures showed that Aldi and Lidl now control 10 per cent of the grocery market, having doubled their share in the last three years.

Asda saw its market share drop to 16.4 per cent in the 12 weeks to November 8 from 17.1 per cent a year earlier. Sainsbury’s was the only big chain to see its share increase as it continues to put in a robust performance, rising to 16.6 per cent from 16.4 per cent a year earlier – the first share gain registered by any of the big four retailers since October 2014.

Sainsbury’s is expected to hold on to second place for the next few months as it traditionally increases its market share over Christmas.

Kantar retail insight head Fraser McKevitt said: “Sainsbury’s has seen its fourth consecutive period of growth, flying in the face of tough market conditions.”

Market leader Tesco saw its share slip to 27.9 per cent from 28.7 per cent a year ago, with Morrisons also sliding to 10.8 per cent from 11.1 per cent.

All the major supermarkets are under pressure, as separate data from analysts Nielsen highlights, showing the 10 biggest players – excluding Aldi and Lidl – saw their worst performance for more than a year, suffering a 1.2 per cent drop in sales during the four weeks to November 7.

Mr McKevitt said Aldi and Lidl attracted one million additional shoppers in the last 12 weeks compared with last year.

“The discounters show no sign of stopping and, with plans to open hundreds of stores between them, they will noticeably widen their reach to the British population,” said Mr McKevitt.