Australia

Aldi continues to rise while Woolworths’ fortunes stay in the doldrums

By RJ Whitehead

- Last updated on GMT

© iStock
© iStock

Related tags Roy morgan research Wal-mart

Aldi’s share of Australia’s A$90bn (US$67bn) supermarket budget continues to grow, at the expense of both Woolworths’ and IGA’s slices of the market.  

The latest Supermarket Currency report from Roy Morgan Research shows Australia’s grocery buyers spent A$32.2bn at Woolworths—35.7% of the market, down from 36.3%—in the year to September 2016. IGA’s share also fell to 9.3% from 9.8%, while Coles remained unchanged at 33.2%.

Meanwhile, Aldi’s slice grew to 13.2% from 12.5% in a market in which each 0.1% increment is equal to nearly A$100m in gross revenue lost or gained.

Measuring a retailer’s market share is especially critical at the moment in Australia, where German discount chain Lidl and its big box parent Kaufland, along with Amazon Fresh, all all rumoured to be setting up shop this year.

Shares of the $90.3 billion spent at Supermarkets in 12 months to March 2017
Shares of money spent at supermarkets in 12 months to March 2017

The latest retail figures show how Aldi has again hit a new high, while Coles in now just 2.5 percentage points behind Woolworths, having narrowed the gap from 8% over recent years.

According to Michele Levine, Roy Morgan’s chief executive, Aldi’s growth in market share reflects its continuing strong performance in delivering customer satisfaction, having last year picked up its fourth consecutive customer satisfaction award for Supermarket of the Year.

The latest data show Aldi retaining the lead among the Big Four supermarket chains, satisfying over 90% of its customers overall, with—perhaps surprisingly—particular strength in meat and fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as the general merchandise, which is a distinguishing feature against competitors​,” said Levine.

Moreover, its in-house catalogue is now the most read of its kind in Australia, with 5.1m customers checking out its special offers each week. 

With industry-leading satisfaction and catalogue reach, Levine believes Aldi’s market share will continue to climb. 

Coles, Woolworths and IGA, as well as smaller chains, will need to work to safeguard their shares against an ascendant Aldi and any new game-changing arrivals​,” she added.  

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