“Treading water” the new norm for the Big Four

Richard Lim, Chief Executive, Retail Economics said: "Sainsbury’s latest figures are in line with expectations of a grocery market suffering from prolonged food deflation and rapidly evolving consumer habits.

"Treading water to stem the loss of market share to the discounters (Aldi and Lidl) is being hailed as success in today’s grocery landscape. On the one hand we’ve had falling food prices since July 2014 making it increasingly challenging for food retailers to deliver any value growth. On the other, a structural shift towards more convenience and top-up shopping has changed the retail economics of running a grocery business.

"New market entrants, digital technologies and changing consumer habits has left the UK grocery sector in a period of instability."

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