Supermarket sales down as shoppers go local for festive treats
Sarah VizardSupermarkets’ Christmas sales are down compared to last year as shoppers buy their mince pies, brussel sprouts and champagne elsewhere, according to new figures.
Supermarkets’ Christmas sales are down compared to last year as shoppers buy their mince pies, brussel sprouts and champagne elsewhere, according to new figures.
Aldi is outspending the big four supermarkets in terms of ad spend in the run-up to Christmas as the discounters look to steal more market share.
Despite millions of social media views for ads from John Lewis and Sainsbury’s it is Lidl’s Surprises ad featuring a blind taste test of its Christmas products that is most likely to make people buy over the festive period, according to new research.
The official Christmas trading period started on 17 November but so far supermarkets are yet to get a festive sales boost, according to new figures.
Black Friday sales bargains helped lift John Lewis to its highest ever weekly sales as industry figures suggest it could surpass Boxing Day as the biggest shopping day of the year.
John Lewis and Marks & Spencer’s have retained their positions as the top two retailers in the Christmas ad battle with their integrated campaigns that put social ‘at the heart’ beating out rivals, according to a new report.
Sainsbury’s Christmas ad has avoided a ban from the Advertising Standards Authority despite 727 people complaining about the campaign, with the ad regulator ruling the ad is unlikely to cause serious harm or offence.
Argos has just launched the first ‘swipe-to-like’ shopping web app but expect other retailers to follow suit as they look to find out ever more information about their customers and personalise online shopping.
Asda’s marketing chief Steve Smith gives his opinion on retailer’s Christmas ads.
Asda wants to do more experiential marketing events in key markets where it is looking to expand, such as London, as it looks to change customer perceptions of the quality and provenance of its products.
Lidl has quietly launched a pop-up restaurant in London, a move that comes as rival Aldi also preps its own one-off restaurants, as both try to convince consumers of the quality of their food in the run-up to Christmas.
Waitrose’s Christmas campaign #bakeitforward is the latest sign of the upmarket grocer moving to a social-first marketing strategy as it looks to tap into a social media revolution that head of marketing Rupert Ellwood claims has “completely changed” the way people engage with food.
Strong engagement helped John Lewis see off strong competition from both Marks & Spencer’s and Sainsbury’s in the first week of the Christmas ad battle but Asda and Lidl had a disappointing start.
John Lewis is not the only brand to feel the benefits of its Christmas ad campaign with sales of McVitie’s Penguin biscuits also soaring.
Sainsbury’s World War 1-themed Christmas ad could face an investigation after 135 people complained about the campaign to the ad watchdog.