Discount grocery retailer Aldi is withdrawing from Greece, it was confirmed on Firday (16 July). The German retailer plans to dispose of 38 outlets in Greece and is currently in talks to sell the stores. The market exit is the first in the company’s history. Planet Retail analyst Milos Ryba said: “Aldi has had problems from the beginning. It could not find reasonably priced plots. It was opening stores close to Schwarz Group’s Lidl but was not able to compete on price.” Ryba... ...Read more »

The latest grocery market share figures, published by TNS Worldpanel for the 12 weeks ending 5th October 2008 confirm that the growth of value-based grocery retailers continues apace. Total Grocers grew at 6.7% year-on-year which reflected food price inflation rather than any real growth. Aldi continue their strong run with growth of 22.1% for the latest 12 weeks, which is a record as the share reaches 3.0%. The German discounter has also begun to make inroads within Australia, as many consumers... ...Read more »

The latest TNS Worldpanel grocery market share figures, for the 12 weeks ending 13th July 2008 reveal that the success of the UK discounters is continuing. The discount supermarkets now account for a 5.9% share of Grocery Spending, higher than ever before reported, and they are also the fastest-growing sector of the market. The total grocery market continues to grow strongly (+7% year-on-year), fuelled partly by food price inflation and also by better performance for Supermarkets than other Retail... ...Read more »

Switzerland’s largest supermarket operator, Migros, has announced a new scheme to ensure they can beat their competition on price. The plan involves paying consumers to call a hotline when they notice a price of a competitor being lower than that available at Migros stores. The consumer is given a voucher of CHF10 (A$10.12) if the product is found to cost less at the rival store. The deal applies to 302 products and, if the price of a similar product is cheaper, Migros will lower... ...Read more »