Lidl attracts £58m more spending from big four grocers

Discount grocer Lidl claimed in an update on Thursday that British shoppers had switched £58m worth of spending from the ‘big four’ supermarkets - Tesco, J Sainsbury, Asda and Wm Morrison - to its cut-price aisles over the last month.

The company, part of the Germany-based Lidl group which is privately owned by the billionaire Schwarz family, cited Kantar data as it added that “nearly 60%” of households were choosing to shop at the 935-store chain.

It also published its accounts for the UK operation, with revenue rising 1.5% year-on-year for the 52 weeks ended 28 February to £7.8bn, and ahead 13% on a two-year comparator.

Profit before tax surged to £41.1m from £9.8m, with earnings before interest and tax 80% firmer at £79m.

Lidl UK said it had a total investment of £653m on land and fixed assets, up from £498m in the 2021 financial year.

“As the cost-of-living crisis deepens, we are more focused than ever on supporting our colleagues, our customers and the communities we serve,” said Lidl GB chief executive officer Ryan McDonnell.

“This year alone we have invested £50m raising hourly pay rates making us the highest paying retailer, we’ve donated 5m meals, and we’re serving over 770,000 more customers a week compared to last year.

“As a discount supermarket we are in the best possible position to support people through these challenging times, and it’s our absolute priority that we continue to do so.”

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.