Aldi UK boss Giles Hurley has backed government plans to crack down on misleading supermarket promotions, claiming loyalty prices and continual discounts can obscure the true value shoppers receive.
Hurley said ministers were “right” to target misleading discounts and promotions as part of efforts to ease cost-of-living pressures, arguing shoppers were increasingly confronted with offers that appeared more attractive than they were.
“For too long, shoppers have been bombarded with discount signs and loyalty prices that can give the impression they’re getting a great deal, when the price they pay at the till can still be higher than elsewhere,” he said.
His comments follow Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s pledge to clamp down on “fake discounts” as the government announced its response to the cost-of-living crisis.
Hurley took particular aim at loyalty pricing schemes such as Tesco Clubcard Prices and Sainsbury’s Nectar Prices, arguing they could encourage consumers to focus on the size of an advertised saving rather than the final amount they pay.
He said: “The problem with loyalty pricing is that it encourages shoppers to focus on how much they’ve supposedly saved, rather than how much they’ve actually spent.
“Taking £2 off a £6 product doesn’t make it good value if you can buy it for £3 somewhere else.”
The Aldi boss also questioned promotions that remain in place for extended periods, adding: “When so-called special prices are running week after week, shoppers are entitled to ask what the real price actually is. A permanent promotion isn’t the same as a permanently low price.”
Supermarkets hit back at ‘profiteering’ claims
Hurley’s comments land amid a wider row between the government and Britain’s biggest retailers over grocery prices and alleged profiteering.
The government announced plans earlier this year to strengthen the Competition and Markets Authority’s powers to investigate sharp price rises during periods of economic or supply disruption, including greater scrutiny of company profit margins.
Retailers have pushed back against suggestions that supermarkets are exploiting consumers, pointing to the sector’s slim margins and intense competition.
British Retail Consortium corporate affairs director Jim Bligh said it was “not helpful” for ministers to portray retailers as potential profiteers, arguing that grocery is one of the UK’s lowest-margin industries.
The government previously explored asking supermarkets to voluntarily cap the price of staples such as bread, eggs and milk, although it ruled out mandatory price controls following a backlash from the sector.
Food inflation has meanwhile remained considerably weaker than had been feared earlier this year. Food and non-alcoholic drink prices rose 1.7 per cent in the year to June, the lowest rate since August 2024, as fierce supermarket competition and cost-cutting helped retailers absorb some inflationary pressures.
Aldi and Lidl have played a significant role in keeping pressure on the traditional supermarkets, prompting rivals to invest heavily in price-match schemes and loyalty offers to defend market share.
The discounters have themselves attracted closer regulatory scrutiny as they grow.
The CMA this month proposed bringing Aldi and Lidl under the same supermarket land agreement rules as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and other major grocers, arguing their scale and national reach meant they should face the same restrictions.
Aldi said the proposed change would not affect its expansion plans and that it remained committed to opening hundreds of new UK stores.
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