German supermarket chain, Aldi, has more than tripled its marketshare in Australia from 3.1 per cent to 11.6 per year, over the last 10 years, while heavyweights Woolworths Group and Coles Group have seen their share decrease, the latest findings from the Roy Morgan Research Supermarket Currency Report reveal.
As it did a decade ago, Woolworths holds the largest slice of the market, but this has declined slightly from 40.3 per cent in the 12 months to March 2006 to 38.5 per cent as of March 2015. Coles’ share has decreased more markedly, from 37.0 per cent to 31.8 per cent.
While Aldi remains a distant third, the figures come as the value supermarket operator gears for an extensive store roll out in South Australia and Western Australia. Aldi is planning to open its first stores 20 stores in SA early next year, while its initial 20 stores planned for WA are now expected to open between June and December 2016.
According to Roy Morgan, in an average four weeks, 35.1 per cent of Australian grocery buyers shop at Aldi. The retailer has been particularly successful in Victoria and NSW, with more than 47 per cent of each state’s grocery buyers shopping in Aldi stores any given four weeks. In the last two years alone, Aldi’s share of the Victorian market has grown from 13.3 per cent to 15.5 per cent.
Over the same time period, Coles’ slice of the pie has declined from 36.0 per cent to 31.6 per cent, while that of Woolworths has remained static at around 35 per cent.
It’s a similar story in NSW, with Aldi gaining ground (from 13.4 per cent to 15.9 per cent), Coles losing ground, and Woolworths flat-lining.
Michele Levine, CEO, Roy Morgan Research, said, the expected arrival of Lidl is set to shake up Australia’s grocery market, with Aldi to be impacted by the retailer’s similar value offering.
“The planned entry of German discount supermarket chain, Lidl, into Australia, with its first store most likely to be in Melbourne, means all eyes will be on Victoria,” Levine said.
“While the threat of a new entrant with global buying power, expertise and experience will be a challenge, the main players in Australia are well placed with large existing customer bases. However, with its regular shoppers placing such importance on price and value, Aldi will need to be vigilant — once its old rival Lidl opens its doors in Australia, there will likely be some customer crossover,” Levine said.
“In any case, we expect to see Aussie supermarkets focusing more on ‘customers’ than ever – understanding who they are, what their needs and drives are, and how to communicate with them and engage their loyalty. Supermarket credit cards are one example of how they are already doing this; another is pre-paid mobile phone services such as Aldi mobile.”
