French retailer le Groupement U saw its market share grow by a percentage point to 11.5% in the most recent four-week period, outperforming its rivals, according to Kantar.
The retailer's performance was driven by both positive in-store and online sales, Kantar said.
The data, for the period from 17 May to 13 June (P6 2021), also showed that Carrefour continued its recent dynamism in the marketplace, growing market share by 0.5 percentage points, with loyalty and customer appreciation also on the rise. Its Carrefour Market arm grew share by 0.2 percentage points, while its online service continues to make progress, Kantar noted.
Elsewhere, Lidl achieved a 0.5 percentage point gain, to sit on 6.9% market share, with the discounter seeing its level of customer loyalty increase (by 1.1pt), along with customer perceptions of value and choice.
Other retailers to see growth included Aldi, which recruited an additional 600,000 customers over the period, linked to its takeover of the former Leader Price stores. This increase in shoppers helped the retailer achieve a 0.2 percentage point increase (to 2.7%), while also enhancing its customer appreciation and value perceptions.
Le Groupement Les Mousquetaires also saw a 0.2 percentage point increase in the P6 period, driven by the performance of the Intermarché banner, which grew both in-store and online, Kantar said.
French Consumers Reducing Spend
French shoppers spent 5.7% less during the period than at the same time last year (at the height of the 'first wave' of the coronavirus pandemic), however the market 'remains dynamic' compared to P6 2019, as it is 4.6% higher, said Kantar. The number of transactions is lower compared to two years ago, however the level of spend per basket is 'significantly' higher.
The online channel continues to make gains, growing by 0.8 percentage points in the P6 2021 period, to 9.1% of the overall market. This is a considerable increase on the 6.2% share it recorded in P6 2019.
On a longer-term perspective, the online channel has gained 2.15 million additional customers in the first half of this year compared to the corresponding period in 2019, while loyalty has also increased. [Pic ©Pierre-Olivier Clement-Mantion/123RF.COM]
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. For more Retail news, click here. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
