The British arm of German retailer Lidl reported a 7% rise in sales over the four-week period before Christmas, with demand for holiday staples such as turkey and pigs in blankets pushing its turnover to a record high.
The company, which has 960 stores across the UK, said turnover exceeded £1 billion (€1.21 billion) in the four weeks to December 24 for the first time in its 30 years in Britain.
Lidl, Britain's sixth biggest supermarket chain, was the fastest growing bricks-and-mortar grocer in the year to end-November, with sales up 6.6% year-on-year, research company Kantar said last month.
The company, owned by Germany's Schwarz retail group, said Dec. 23 marked its busiest day of the festive season, as it reported its "most successful Christmas yet".
Analyst Comment
Commenting on Lidl's performance, Aliyah Siddika, retail analyst at GlobalData, said, “Lidl recognised the growing consumer preference for British products during the holiday season and responded by expanding its British supply base by 20% this festive season. Subsequently, the discounter was a destination for turkeys, with shoppers attracted by the assurance of local sourcing, high quality, and good value. This strategy effectively captured the spending of consumers who may have shopped elsewhere for turkey but opted to buy other items at Lidl.
"With consumer confidence rising, Lidl may face competition from premium grocers for special occasions this year. To counter this, Lidl must retain its focus on innovating within its food offer and utilise the Middle of Lidl for seasonal decorations and occasion-specific products to drive footfall.”
Store Openings
In the run up to the festive period, Lidl GB announced the opening of six stores on one day (5 December) – including four new openings in Shinfield, Bovey Tracey, Downham Market, and Stirchley, as well as a replacement store in Connah’s Quay and a refurbished outlet in Chessington.
The discounter plans to open a total of 40 new outlets over the course of 2025, including eight stores at the start of the year.
"This milestone reflects our unwavering commitment to delivering affordable, high-quality products to more households across the country, especially at a time of year when value matters most," Richard Taylor, chief development officer at Lidl GB, commented at the time. "Our teams are relentlessly pursuing expansion opportunities and, with every store we open, we’re taking another step towards making this vision a reality.”
News by Reuters, additional reporting by ESM
