LOW-cost supermarkets have grabbed a record market share as shoppers hunt for cheap groceries and bargainous deals.
Mercadona, Lidl and Aldi close the year with a combined market share of 35.9%, according to new data by Worldpanel by Numerator (formerly Kantar).
This share was a record for the trio.
The news reflects the wider shopping trend that has seen people lean towards supermarket chains that primarily stock their own brand goods due to their financial concerns.
All three of the aforementioned stores account over 80% of their shopping lines to these products and, perhaps as a result, were the supermarkets that grew the most in 2025.
Out of the three it is Mercadona that sits in first place in terms of market share – the Valencian company run by Juan Roig dominates 27% of the market.
Mercadona has been dominating for some time yet it continues to add more buyers and build loyalty with its customers.
Despite its existing success, Mercadona is pushing for more – now the chain is testing a new way of shopping, named T9, which replaces staffed fish counters with self-serve fridges.
Even before this new implementation, Mercadona alone accounted for 19.7% of total Spanish consumer spending on food and beverages, this is 8% more than that of bars and cafes and 13% more than the next largest distributor, Carrefour.
Carrefour is perhaps trailing behind Mercadona due to the way that the latter supermarket is leading shoppers to buy large baskets instead of shopping at hypermarkets.
The rise of Lidl has also contributed to this trend – now at a market share of 6.9%, Lidl has over 700 Spanish stores and plans to open almost 50 more this year.
More than half of their customers use their loyalty points programme.
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