The convenience channel’s share of the grocery market has fallen by 5.4% year on year, according to the latest figures from Worldpanel by Numerator.
Total consumer spend in symbols and independents reached £500m over the 12 weeks to 17 May 2026, representing a 1.4% share. This is down from £528m (1.5%) in the same period in 2025.
Total grocery take-home sales increased by 1.5% over the four weeks, while inflationary pressures eased for shoppers, with like-for-like grocery prices rising by 3.1% – the slowest rate of increase since December 2024.
Shoppers leaned on promotions to keep costs down, with 30.3% of sales including a deal, up from 28.4% a year ago. Spending on promoted items rose by 9.5%, while full-price spending was virtually flat, increasing by just 0.1%.
Grey skies over the early May bank holiday weekend contrasted sharply with the current heatwave, weighing on seasonal categories. Volumes of summer essentials fell, with suncare down 28% and ice cream down 3%, while warming staples performed strongly, with soup up 9%, fresh pies up 4% and coffee up 5% year on year.
Sales at Tesco increased by 3.2%, with market share rising to 28.2%, up from 27.9% in 2025. Sainsbury’s share rose by 0.1 percentage points to 15.2% as sales grew by 3.1%. Asda now holds an 11.5% share, ahead of Aldi at 10.8%.
Lidl reached a record market share of 8.6% over the 12 weeks to 17 May, up 0.5 percentage points year on year. The discounter has now moved into fifth place, pushing Morrisons into sixth at 8.3%.
