FDBusiness.com

The latest Irish supermarket share figures from Kantar Worldpanel for the 12 weeks ending 17 March, show Superquinn growing ahead of the market for the first time in five years – increasing its sales by 1.9%.

David Berry, commercial director at Kantar Worldpanel, explains: “Things have started to look up for both Superquinn and the grocery market as a whole. The 1.9% sales growth posted by the retailer is good news, particularly as it is the first time it has beaten the market, which is currently growing at 1.5%, since 2007. This growth has been driven by people buying more items each time they shop at Superquinn, with fresh and chilled foods proving particularly popular.”

He adds: “Discount supermarkets Aldi and Lidl are continuing to perform well, growing at 30.7% and 5.8% respectively, matching their highest ever combined market share of 12.6%.”

Meanwhile, growth at Dunnes and Tesco has continued to stall. Falling back from a peak of 4.6% in January, Dunnes has posted growth of 1.4%. Despite this, the retailer has managed to maintain growth by increasing the amount its shoppers are buying each time they visit. Tesco has performed behind the market for the third consecutive month and now sees its sales declining by 1.3%.

The grocery market continues to move on an upwards curve, from growth of 0.3% in December, 0.6% in February, to 1.5% in March. Shoppers are buying fewer items compared with last year but are spending on average €18.20 more, a trend driven mainly by the high rate of inflation.

Irish grocery inflation stands at 5.7% for the 12 week period ending 17 March 2013, down slightly from the 5.8% seen last period.