Sales growth at the multiple retailers in the UK slowed to 5.4% year-on-year in the 12 weeks leading up to 4 October 2008, new Nielsen figures have said.
Yet Tesco’s share of the market now stands at 28.3%, the research company revealed, as it saw a sales growth of 4.8%, while Asda grew its share to 15.4%.
Sainsbury’s has a market share of 13.9% and Morrisons 10.3%.
The latest TNS market share statistics showed a similar picture this week, with Tesco sitting at the top of the pile but Aldi witnessing growth of 22.1%.
Senior manager of retailer services at Nielsen Mike Watkins asserted that shoppers are now more than ever attempting to seek out the best value for money in the economic downturn.
He commented: “Shoppers are still trading down. The ‘cascade of custom’ from those retailers with a premium proposition to those that have a heritage in value for money and price continues.”
And he suggested that the foray by Tesco into the discounter sector could well be an astute move.
“Whilst it’s too early to fully assess the impact of the launch of the new Tesco Discount Brands, first insight from Nielsen shows that 4% more shoppers, this equates to over 660 thousand more people, came into Tesco in the 4 weeks to 4 October when compared to the same period last year,” he said.
Yet he said that the true picture is only likely to be seen in the next 4 weeks if the increase in shoppers at the retailer will boost spend at tills.
