Lidl has overtaken Asda to become the third largest supermarket in London, hitting a market share of 9.1 per cent in the capital.
The German discount supermarket chain has been expanding rapidly in the city and now trades from more than 100 stores within the M25.
Asda had a London market share of 8.7 per cent in the 12 weeks to October 1, according to the latest data published by Kantar, the market researcher. Asda moved down to fifth place in the rankings, behind Waitrose, which has a market share of 9 per cent.
Tesco and Sainsbury’s remained the biggest supermarkets in London, with market shares of 26.6 per cent and 24.3 per cent, respectively. Morrisons had a market share of 5.4 per cent and Aldi one of 4.1 per cent.
Ryan McDonnell, chief executive of Lidl GB, said that becoming the third largest supermarket in London “reinforces our dedication to ensuring that everyone can eat affordable, high-quality food, no matter where they live. We know convenience plays a huge factor when choosing where to shop in the city, which is why we’re pushing on with plans to bring many more locations to the capital in the future.”
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This year Lidl GB published a list of 247 desired locations for new stores in Britain, with sites in Chelsea, Kensington, Mayfair, Westminster and Knightsbridge among potential locations in London. It has a target of having 1,100 UK stores by the end of 2025. The chain, which opened its first stores in Britain in 1994, has about 900 stores nationwide and employs 23,000 people.
Lidl UK sales have climbed to £9.3 billion, up nearly 19 per cent on the £7.8 billion of the previous year.
Asda said it was “not surprising” that Lidl’s market share had risen as it had “more than double” the number of stores in the capital. The supermarket said it planned to expand its profile inside the M25 by opening 17 more Asda Express convenience stores between now and the end of March. They will be a mixture of standalone stores and sites it acquired from the Co-op and is in the process of converting. Asda bought 132 sites from the Co-op last year in a £438 million deal.
