fine food news
Aldi and Lidl are bringing a new level of competition to the Christmas market
Indies facing festive threat as
discounters enter deli territory
FINE DISTINCTIONS:
Piers Adamson of
Empire Bespoke
Foods says delis
need to push the
superior quality
message – for
example, stocking
premium ‘elisen’
lebkuchen over the
‘oblaten’ grade
sold in price-led
supermarkets
By PATRICK McGUIGAN
Fine food retailers will have to
up their games this Christmas to
fend off the twin threat of top
end supermarkets and German
discounters.
That’s the view of industry
experts, who said delis and farm
shops face tough competition this
year on speciality lines from either
end of the supermarket sector.
While the Big Four supermarkets
are still mired in a price war,
upmarket retailers Waitrose
and M&S have launched more
sophisticated speciality food ranges
for Christmas.
Aldi and Lidl will also be strong
in areas that are traditionally
profitable for delis, such as smoked
salmon, gingerbread and panettone.
“They are absolutely moving
into deli territory and the challenge
for the delis is to stay ahead of
them,” said Richard Perks, director
of retail research at analysts Mintel.
“Aldi and Lidl have introduced
a premium offer, so it’s a mistake
to look at them as trading at the
bottom of the market. They draw
customers from across the whole
range. At the same time, Waitrose
has always done a good job. I went
to the launch of their Christmas
range and it was impressive.”
At Mimosa deli in South
London, co-owner Patricia Peacock
echoed these comments: “The
supermarkets are muscling in on
the speciality sector but at the
same time I still think there is room
for everyone,” she said. “We can
diversify and do things differently.”
To this end, the retailer makes its
own products, such as mince pies,
and stocks unusual festive lines that
can’t be found in the supermarket,
such as French cider and Moroccan
ceramics.
“People still want to shop
locally,” Peacock said. “They have
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October 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 9
to drive for 15
minutes to go to
their nearest Waitrose
or Aldi, which isn’t
convenient, and
people want to support
their local businesses.”
Convenience is a major
advantage for the independents
in the run-up to Christmas, said
Mintel’s Perks. “We’re seeing many
more households living in rented
accommodation because it’s hard
to get on the property ladder. These
people aren’t really in the position
to do a weekly shop because they
don’t have a car and don’t have
storage, so they shop on an ’as
needed’ basis and more locally.”
This trend was confirmed by
distributor Cotswold Fayre, which
said it was gearing up for a bumper
Christmas as shoppers ‘top up’ their
big shop with fine food items from
independents.
“There’s no doubt that there
has been a huge shift in consumer
buying habits
over the
past year,”
said chief
executive Paul
Hargreaves. “We have
seen our average orders increase by
15% year-on-year and we expect
our Christmas orders to reflect this
growth too.”
Wholesaler Empire Bespoke
Foods has also received
strong Christmas orders from
independents, said head of product
development Piers Adamson, who
added that they must convey the
superior quality of their products.
“They can’t compete on price
with Aldi and Lidl, so indies have to
deliver quality and ‘wow’ factor,”
he said. “The discounters will sell
lebkuchen at a cheaper price, but
it will be the lower ’oblaten’ grade.
Delis have to get the message across
that their lebkuchen is the top
‘elisan’ grade, which has a higher
percentage of nuts.”
Clique and
deliver
The award-winning Norfolk Deli in
Hunstanton is launching an online
subscription service as a way of
differ V