Dunnes has reclaimed the title of Ireland’s top grocer and holds 23% of the market, with year-on-year growth of 11.1%, research shows.
The latest figures from Kantar in Ireland show that Dunnes saw a strong boost in new shoppers – up by three percentage points, year on year – which is the strongest boost in new shoppers out of all the retailers.
Tesco holds 22.6% of the market, with year-on-year growth of 11.5%.
Tesco saw the strongest frequency growth among all retailers, once again – up by 16.1%, year on year – which contributed an additional €96.1 million to overall performance.
SuperValu holds 20.6% of the market, with growth of 4%, the data indicated.
SuperValu sees shoppers visit its stores most frequently, compared to all other retailers, making 21.3 trips on average.
Lidl holds 13.6% share, with year-on-year growth of 11.6%.
More frequent trips contributed to an additional €37.1 million to overall performance.
Aldi holds 12.5% share, with year-on-year growth of 5.6%, with a strong boost in new shoppers and more frequent trips contributing an additional €25.1 million to overall performance.
Take-Home Grocery Sales
Kantar’s latest data shows that take-home grocery sales in Ireland increased by 7.9% in the four weeks to 3 September 2023, as the average price per pack increased by 8.8%. Shoppers visited stores more often this month, making one additional trip versus last month, however, they bought, on average, one item less per month.
Grocery price inflation, which stands at 11.5% in the 12 weeks to 3 September, is the main reason for the increase in value sales, despite it falling to the lowest level since September 2022.
Emer Healy, business development director at Kantar, commented, “This slowdown in grocery inflation is welcome news for consumers. This is the fourth month in a row that there has been a drop – down 1.3 percentage points, compared to last month – which is encouraging for both shoppers and retailers.
“Although the rate of inflation is still relatively high, it is the lowest level we have seen in the last 12 months, and we expect it to continue to fall over the coming months.”
The percentage of packs sold on promotion dropped slightly, by 0.6 percentage points, compared to the same period last year, while the percentage of sales sold on promotion currently stands at 24.1%.
Sales of own-label products went up by 11.9% in the latest 12 weeks – more than double the sales growth of brands, at 5%.
Value own-label ranges had the strongest growth – up by 17.8% – with shoppers spending an additional €10.3 million, year on year, as they look to save money at the tills.
Own-label value share hit 47.9%, while brands hold a value share of 46.6%.
Back To School
Regardless of rising costs, parents had to prepare for the end of summer and schools reopening at the start of the month.
“This is an important time for many consumers, with parents stocking up and getting ready for the return of the packed lunch. As a result, shoppers spent an additional €7.4 million on biscuits, €1 million on breakfast cereals, €2.2 million on cheese, and €947,000 on bread,” Kantar’s Healy added.
“Online sales were strong over the 12-week period – up [by] a significant 18.5%, year on year – with shoppers spending an additional €27 million on the platform, with more frequent trips – +11.3% – and 17.4% of Irish households buying their groceries online.”
With back-to-school preparations in full swing, young families went online for their groceries, spending an additional €13 million, compared to last year.
