Lidl enjoyed an eight per cent year-on-year sales rise over Christmas, boosted by a 33 per cent rise in revenue from its premium range, Deluxe.
The discounter said customers switched more than £58 million of spend to Lidl fromWaitrose, M&S and the big four supermarkets in the six weeks to 30December, with the retailer’s busiest day falling on Saturday 22December.
Sales of Deluxe turkeys, crisps, mince pies and brioche bun burgers were the best sellers in the range, but several fresh produce items also performed well. Sprouts trees, cavolo nero and speciality broccoli helped double sales of Lidl’s premium fruit and veg.
While sales growth at Lidl was significantly higher than at any of the big four retailers, albeit from a smaller base, it was German rival Aldi that performed strongest in the Christmas trading period, seeing revenue rise by 10 per cent to almost £1 billion.
Lidl UK chief executive Christian Hartnagel said: “We have continued to expand our footprint across the UK over the past year, and it is no surprise that this contributed to more customers than ever before shopping with us in December and over the Christmas period.
“In the context of a tough trading environment facing all grocery retailers, we are particularly pleased with the performance of our ‘Deluxe’ premium range of products, which registered strong sales increases and proved a major draw for new and existing customers.
“We understand that shoppers are increasingly conscious of cost and for that reason, we not only continued to invest in our low prices - as is seen in our 19p veg offers - but also innovation across our premium range, all to enable our customers to have the best possible seasonal celebrations.”
This year, Lidl also launched a Christmas dinner donation initiative in partnership with food donations charity Neighbourly to help tackle hunger and loneliness. The discounter donated 3,000 full Christmas dinners, with all the trimmings, to 131 local charities hosting meals over the festive period.
Looking to boost its market share in the UK, Lidl’sstore expansion continued at pace in the final months of 2018, with seven new branches opening during the Christmas period.
To support this growth, Lidl has committed toinvesting a further £1.45bn across 2019 and 2020, with a new RDC set to open in Doncaster in early 2019.
