Aldi and Lidl cheer record Christmas as shoppers snap up cut-price roasting joints and champagne

German-owned discounters release festive trading figures ahead of grocery sector’s Big Four.

Aldi and Lidl have enjoyed record festive trading as cash-strapped shoppers continue to flock to the German-owned discount supermarket chains.

Hailing its “best ever” Christmas performance, Aldi posted UK sales of more than £1.5 billion for the first time in the month leading up to Christmas. The chain, which has more than 1,000 stores across the UK, said sales lifted 8 per cent year on year in the four weeks to December 24.

Fellow German-owned rival Lidl also claimed its best festive trading period to date, reporting year-on-year UK sales growth of 12 per cent for the four weeks to Christmas Eve. The chain, which has more than 960 stores in the UK, said it saw around 4.5 million more shoppers come through its doors and cheered its busiest ever trading day on Friday December 22.

Aldi has been one of the fastest-growing retailers in Scotland and now has scores of branches across the country. Picture: Michael Gillen

But inflation accounted for some of the firms’ growth in sales value, with recent official figures showing food prices rose by an annual rate of 9.2 per cent in November, though this was down from 10.1 per cent in October.

And despite the bumper trading, the two retailers’ sales growth was down sharply on the gains seen around Christmas 2022, when inflation was running at a 45-year high, with food inflation well into double-digit territory. A year ago, Aldi posted a 26 per cent jump in sales over December, while Lidl saw sales surge by 24.5 per cent in the four weeks to Christmas Day 2022.

The grocery disruptors are the first out of the stalls with their festive trading figures, with the Big Four supermarkets yet to report. Two of them - Tesco and Sainsbury’s - are scheduled to reveal their sales performance next week, on January 11 and January 10 respectively, while Marks & Spencer is also due to post its festive trading update on January 11.

Aldi said its record performance “capped a remarkable year” for the group, which now has a 9.6 per cent share of Britain’s supermarket sector according to recent Kantar data, and it pledged to cut prices further this year.

Lidl has claimed its best festive trading period to date.

Giles Hurley, chief executive of Aldi UK and Ireland, said: “As we look ahead to 2024, our promise to customers is that they will always make significant savings on every shop with Aldi because we have the lowest grocery prices in Britain.”

The firm said alternative roasting joints were particularly popular, with strong sales of its Specially Selected wagyu rib joint and a 25 per cent jump in sales of its Specially Selected crackling gammon joint. It added that 42 million pigs in blankets were also sold in the weeks leading up to Christmas.

Lidl also claimed it saw its “best Christmas yet”, with shoppers increasingly trading up to its premium own-label products over the season, as sales across its Deluxe range jumped 11 per cent year on year between September 10 and December 24.

Ryan McDonnell, chief executive of Lidl’s UK operations, said: “I’m incredibly proud of our performance this Christmas in what was the busiest trading period in our history. Deluxe proved to be a standout winner this Christmas with record-breaking sales as we saw customers not only start their festive celebrations early but trade up to premium lines across all categories.”

Both supermarket chains have been ramping up their presence in Scotland in recent years. Last week, Aldi outlined plans for new stores and expansions at some existing premises north of the Border amid high demand for purse-friendly prices. It is investing tens of millions of pounds in expanding its presence in Scotland, creating 500 jobs in the process, ahead of the 30th anniversary of it opening its first branch north of the Border.

Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: “Aldi recorded its best festive run up with sales rising 8 per cent to surpass £1.5bn for the first time in the four weeks to Christmas Eve. Meanwhile, Lidl also enjoyed a strong festive season. The German discounters which are best known for their rock bottom prices have enjoyed a stellar Christmas amid the cost-of-living crisis as price sensitive consumers trade down to Aldi and Lidl’s attractively priced offering.

“Also, in an attempt to keep shopping bills low, consumers have been switching away from branded to own label cheaper products, something that has also helped spur demand for Aldi and Lidl’s unbranded ranges. One Lidl champagne for example was voted better than Moet and Chandon and was recently reduced in price to under £10 a bottle versus Moet which typically costs around £36 a bottle.”

She added: “The two chains have intensified price competition in the UK, prompting other supermarkets to offer discounts and promotions and think of innovative ways to drive customer demand such as a renewed focus on their loyalty schemes.”

The discounters have been ramping up the pressure on the so-called Big Four players - Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons - in the supermarket sector this year, with shoppers increasingly looking to make savings in the face of high inflation. The latest data from Kantar showed that Lidl was the fastest-growing grocery firm in the 12 weeks to November 26, with its market share rising to 7.8 per cent from 7.4 per cent a year ago.

Lidl said it sold a British turkey every two seconds in the week before Christmas, with 2,000 tonnes of potatoes and 1,600 tonnes of carrots also snapped up by customers. The group said Christmas merchandise also proved popular, with jumper sales up 40 per cent in the month to December 24 and Christmas socks becoming the best-seller in the range.