Morrisons has reduced prices on more than 500 everyday groceries, including beef mince, coffee, and biscuits, as it seeks to recover from a sales slump. The supermarket chain, which has been the worst-performing among the big four grocers according to industry data, is facing increased competition from discounters Aldi and Lidl.
The price cuts, averaging 15%, apply to staples such as a four-pack of baking potatoes, now 50p, and British beef mince at £1.50 for 500g. Morrisons claims this is the best price in the market. Commercial director Andy Atkinson said the reductions are not a gimmick but part of a plan to make products more affordable and prices stable for customers, with hundreds more cuts scheduled in the coming weeks.
Morrisons shares have fallen 17% in the past year, and the company narrowly avoided losing its place in the FTSE 100. The retailer had a disappointing Christmas and is due to report annual results next week. Earlier this year, it announced plans to cut 3,000 middle management roles while creating 7,000 hourly-paid positions to improve customer service and reduce shelf gaps.
Kantar data for the 12 weeks to 23 February shows Morrisons sales fell 2% year-on-year, with its market share dropping from 10.4% to 10.2%. In contrast, Lidl and Aldi saw sales growth of 11.4% and 5.7%, respectively. Tesco, the market leader, recently launched an Aldi Price Match campaign to counter the discounters' threat, matching prices on hundreds of branded and own-label goods.
