Aldi UK has reported what it noted was its ‘best Christmas ever’, with sales of more than £1.6 billion (€1.93 billion) in the four weeks to Christmas Eve.
The discounter noted that UK shoppers traded up in the weeks leading to Christmas, turning to premium private-label products, while sales of seasonal Christmas items went up by 100%, year on year, and sales of its Specially Selected range rose by 12%.
‘Ongoing Mission’
“We dropped hundreds of prices last year, as part of our ongoing mission to make outstanding-quality affordable food accessible to everyone,” commented Giles Hurley, Aldi UK’s chief executive.
“Our offering of outstanding-quality British products at unbeatable prices was a winning combination yet again this Christmas, as customers wanted to celebrate in style after an uncertain year, but with more challenges ahead, they wanted to do it without breaking the bank.”
According to the retailer, Aldi shoppers commenced their Christmas purchasing early, with some spreading the cost by purchasing Christmas cakes and pudding as early as September.
Some 50 million mince pies and 25 million ‘pigs in blankets’ were sold by the discounter in the run-up to Christmas, as well as a record 350,000 fresh British turkeys, more than 400 tonnes of beef, and close to three million Brussels sprouts.
The discounter served some three million shoppers across its stores on 23 December, its busiest day of trading.
The Year Ahead
Looking ahead to the coming year, Hurley added that many households remain nervous about their financial situation, and the retailer will do what it can to offer good value to hard-pressed shoppers.
“Our mission remains clear: we will not only remain the UK’s lowest-priced supermarket, but we will ensure the price gap between ourselves and the traditional full-price supermarkets is as big as ever,” he said, “because, with so much uncertainty, what our customers want to know is that, whatever they need, they will make significant savings week in, week out, by shopping at Aldi.”
