Delivering the goods: Sales at Ocado in the 12 weeks to March 23 were 13% higher than a year earlier while M&S was up 11.2%,
Ocado and Marks & Spencer have been named the country’s fastest growing supermarkets as they win back middle-class shoppers.
Sales at Ocado in the 12 weeks to March 23 were 13 per cent higher than a year earlier while M&S was up 11.2 per cent, according to industry group Nielsen.
It is the latest sign well-heeled shoppers are returning after they opted for cheaper stores in the cost-of-living squeeze. And it offers further evidence that the tie-up between M&S and Ocado is bearing fruit.
The Ocado Retail 50-50 joint venture allows Ocado customers to buy M&S groceries online.
After struggling in recent years, Ocado Retail boss Hannah Gibson said the company ‘hit the ground running’ after Christmas.
Lidl also performed well, with sales 9.4 per cent higher, while Sainsbury’s saw a 7.9 per cent gain and Tesco was up 6.3 per cent.
Morrisons and Waitrose are growing faster than Aldi – up 4.7 per cent, 4.1 per cent and 3.9 per cent respectively – but Asda has ground to a halt with sales up just 0.8 per cent.
The figures raise fresh concerns over Asda since its takeover by the Issa brothers and TDR Capital.
With Ocado and M&S on the rise, Waitrose yesterday cut prices for the second time in two months, reducing more than 200 products by around 7 per cent.
Even so, industry experts believe M&S, which has 3.4 per cent of the market, could leapfrog Waitrose (3.6 per cent) this year.
Nielsen said there was ‘intense competition’ between supermarkets with price war around Mother’s Day and Easter.
Total grocery sales in the four weeks to March 23 were 5.4 per cent higher than a year earlier.
Food prices are 3.7 per cent higher.
Nielsen’s Mike Watkins said: ‘Encouraging more visits is likely to be the next battleground for retailers.’
