SuperValu and Tesco tie for position of Ireland’s largest supermarket

Tesco is now tied with SuperValu as Ireland's largest supermarket group, according to market share figures released on Monday.

Both the Musgrave-owned retailer and the UK grocer now have a 22 per cent market share while Irish rival Dunnes Stores saw its figures drop by 0.1 points to 21.9 per cent. SuperValu was previously top of the ranking with a 22.4 per cent share.

The grocery market shares figures from Kantar Worldpanel for the 12 weeks to October 8th show that Tesco’s sales growth of 4.2 per cent has propelled them into joint top spot while Supervalu’s 0.5 per cent growth wasn’t enough to see it losing ground in the ranking.

"Both retailers have benefited from customers spending more each time they shop. Though SuperValu has seen consumers spend an additional 40 cents per basket on average, Tesco has encouraged its shoppers to add an extra €1 to every shop," said David Berry, director at Kantar Worldpanel.

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German discount retailers Lidl and Aldi both increased their market share as sales volumes grew. Lidl's share increase to 11.7 per cent while Aldi's rose to 11.6 per cent – both small increases on the same period last year.

Christmas period

However, their growth in the final few months of this year could slow, as shoppers could switch back to brands over the Christmas period.

“There’s now some good news on the horizon for brands. This time last year sales of branded items dropped by 0.5 per cent compared to the year before, however, we’re now seeing a return to form – with sales up 1.3 per cent,” Mr Berry explained.

While supermarket sales have increased in the past year, the price consumers are paying for goods has dropped slightly. Grocery market inflation for the 12 week period to October 8th stood at -0.1 per cent.

As the busiest period of the year nears, Mr Berry suggests its not clear yet who will take the top spot for 2017. “With the festive period just around the corner – the time of year when sales spike and shoppers aren’t afraid to spend that little bit extra – the competition shows no signs of abating,” he said.

Kantar Worldpanel Ireland monitors the household grocery purchasing habits of 5,000 households in the Republic to form its results.