Alex Trelinski
HIPERCOR owned by department store chain El Corte Ingles has been ranked as Spain’s ‘most-valued’ national supermarket retailer.
The verdict comes in a customer survey compiled by the OCU consumer organisation.
Catalunya regional Esclat-Bon Preu came out on top, with Hipercor leading the nationwide rankings.
Condis, Dia, and Spar got the lowest appreciation from customers.
The OCU stressed that lower marks did not mean that outlets were viewed as bad, but it was a simply a means of comparing customer experiences.
The all-round rating was achieved by ranking opening hours and product availability in addition to offers and fresh food selection, and overall price levels.
There were variations within each category with BonArea and Lidl coming top for low prices with Esclat and El Corte getting the highest ratings for fresh produce and the range on offer.
Esclat and Hiper Usera had the shortest checkout waiting times, while Lidl, Hiperdino, Supersol and La Plaza de Dia had the worst ratings for delays.
The overall customer satisfaction index saw Esclat lead the field with 84 points followed by its Catalan stable-mate Bon Preu on 83.
BonArea, with 525 stores in northern and central Spain as well as the Valencian Community, gets a 79 rating along with Hipercor which leads the nationally-available chains.
El Corte Ingles, Hiper Usera, Aldi, Supercor and Consum stand on 78 points, with Alcampo, Lidl, Froiz and Gadis all on 76.
Eroski, Mercadona, and Salvanas notched up 75 points and Carrefour got 73.
At the other end, La Plaza del Dia got the lowest rating of 69, while 71 was recorded by Condis, Spar, Dia Market/Dia Maxi, Carrefour Market and the Eroski Center and City outlets.
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