Irish consumers are most likely to identify themselves as ‘loyal Tesco shoppers’, but are increasingly shopping more in Aldi and Lidl, according to the ‘Where We Shop 2014’ report, produced by Checkout in association with Ignite Research.
The report, which surveyed 3,000 Irish consumers on their shopping habits, found that 30% see themselves as ‘loyal Tesco shoppers’, compared to 18% that see themselves as ‘loyal Aldi shoppers’, 14% as ‘loyal Dunnes shoppers’, 11% as ‘loyal Lidl shoppers’ and 11% as ‘loyal SuperValu shoppers’.
The study also asked respondents which supermarkets they were shopping ‘more’ and ‘less ‘in over the past 12 months, with Aldi (37%) and Lidl (29%) making the most gains, followed by Tesco (16%), SuperValu (12%) and Dunnes (9%).
Despite recording a high number of ‘loyal’ shoppers, more than a third (35%) of respondents stated they were ‘shopping less’ in Tesco over the past year, with a further 29% saying they were shopping less in Dunnes, 19% in SuperValu, and 16% in Marks & Spencer.
Respondents were also asked which supermarkets they felt were ‘best at promoting Irish products’. Of the 3,000 respondents surveyed, one third of shoppers (33%) cited SuperValu as the leading supporter of Irish producers, followed by Dunnes (23%), Aldi (12%), Tesco (11%) and Lidl (6%).
Interestingly, more female (37%) than male (29%) respondents felt SuperValu was a strong supporter of Irish products. Respondents outside Dublin (Connacht/Ulster 37%; Munster 36%; Rest of Leinster 36%) were also more likely to name SuperValu as the lead supporter of Irish products, than those in Dublin (26%).
“The consumer and retail landscape in Ireland has undergone transformative change in the past half a decade,” said Mark Nolan, managing director, Ignite Research. “This change has be driven primarily by economic forces, and has changed the consumer and therefore the retailing environment irrevocably. As we stand precariously balanced on the cusp of recovery it is clear that regardless of the reasons for change, the consumer and Irish grocery shopper has indeed changed for good.
“At Ignite we are delighted to have partnered with Checkout on this detailed review of the Irish grocery shopper. This study acts as a detailed and thorough review of the current mindset of shoppers, and gives insight into not only where and how we shop, but arguably more importantly, why we shop in this way.”
Methodology: An online survey of 3,000 consumers aged 18+ living in the Republic of Ireland was conducted from the 3rd of April to the 27th of May 2014. This survey is nationally representative of the adult population of the Republic of Ireland based the latest Central Statistics Office (CSO) data using interlocking quotas of age, gender, region and social class. A combination of quantitative and qualitative (open ended) questions were asked during this survey to produce the final results.
