A new survey has suggested that a higher proportion of well-off households shop in discounters Aldi and Lidl than those on a lower income.
According to new research from Mintel, 77 per cent of households earning £50,000 or more have purchased goods from the stores, compared to 73 per cent of this on an income of less than £15,000.
A further 71 per cent of those surveyed said the quality of food at Aldi and Lidl was as good as it is at more expensive rivals, while two thirds of people rated their premium ranges as equally as good.
“The post-recession success of leading discount food retailers has been built on a softening of their hard discount roots and bringing in ranges which appeal to a wider variety of consumers,” Mintel senior analyst Nick Carroll said.
“A part of this success has been the introduction of more premium ranges, something that is clearly going over well with shoppers.”
Yesterday it was revealed that Aldi and Lidl’s sales growth over the last quarter was roughly seven times the growth seen by the Big 4, as the countries long established grocers continue to struggle to compete.
The ongoing price war brought on by the presence of the discounters is thought to be largely responsible for a raft of job cuts across the sector.
This morning, Sainsbury’s announced 2000 job cuts amid an cost cutting overhaul, while Tesco and Asda have also recently revealed hundreds of redundancies.
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