By Geoff Percival

Dunnes Stores has overtaken SuperValu and Tesco Ireland to become Ireland’s best-performing supermarket chain, boosted by a spike in consumer grocery spending around the time of Storm Ophelia in mid-October.

Shoppers have continued to spend more at supermarket tills even with an easing in price reductions, new figures show.

Tesco saw its strongest sales growth at its Irish operations in five years in the past three months despite grocery prices continuing to fall.

Shopping for groceries may seem like an ordinary task of day-to-day life, but how and where we shop, as well as what we choose to buy, is changing.

Irish shoppers are choosing to buy homegrown brands despite the continued rise of own-label products.

SuperValu kept its lead in the supermarket wars over the key Easter period when shoppers spent €2.4bn on groceries despite a big sales surge by rival Dunnes, according to the latest snapshot of Irish grocers.

SuperValu has gained an edge over its supermarket rivals just as the grocery market has slipped into deflation for the first time in two years.

Dunnes Stores has fought off SuperValu to retain the top spot in the latest supermarket share figures — the first time it has been on top for two consecutive months.

Consumers are set to benefit further as tightening competition in the grocery sector is set to keep a lid on rising prices.

Dunnes Stores has overtaken Tesco as the second largest player in the Irish grocery market, new figures show.

Tesco’s position as the country’s second largest supermarket has come under renewed threat after a period of strong growth from Dunnes Stores saw it draw level with the UK retailer.

Consumer spending on grocery products enjoyed a further strong rise in the past three months; a period also notable for Tesco Ireland further eating into SuperValu’s market share lead.

Supervalu remains the country’s biggest supermarket as it continues to capitalise on consumers’ growing preference for healthier products.

Irish consumers’ grocery shopping spend rose by 3.6% over the past 12 weeks — despite rising prices — providing further evidence that household finances are strengthening.

The Musgrave Group-owned SuperValu chain has strengthened its position in the supermarket sector, new figures show.

SuperValu has re-emerged as the leading player in the Irish grocery market, after enjoying its strongest sales quarter for two years.

The Irish grocery market enjoyed its best quarterly period in more than five years, in the past 12 weeks, with combined sales across the main players rising by 2.1% on an annualised basis.

Competition in the retail grocery market intensified in the last quarter, with Tesco continuing to narrow its sales declines, Dunnes closing the gap on its rivals, and the German discounters maintaining their combined record high share of the market.

Tesco Ireland has managed to narrow its sales decline in the last few months, but it has been German discounter Lidl which has stolen a march on the competition in the Irish grocery market during the summer.

SuperValu has replaced Tesco at the top of the Irish supermarket food chain, with 18 months of consecutive growth in customer numbers helping it surpass the British retail giant at the top of the pile.

Latest grocery market share figures show that Dunnes was the big winner over the past 12 weeks, while SuperValu has almost drawn level with Tesco as market leader.

Fierce competition in the run-up to Christmas has led to grocery price inflation falling to 1.9%, meaning that the staple food items for this time of year are costing less than 12 months ago.

Grocery sales increased by 1.1%, year-on-year, during the 12 weeks to November 9. Those figures resulted in an additional €23m being spent by shoppers in the main supermarket retailers.

Hard-pressed families are flocking to Aldi and Lidl as the discount stores continue to increase their share in the Irish market.

Consumers are the big winners in a price war between the supermarket giants, with staple grocery items such as milk, bread and vegetables costing up to 10% less than a year ago.

The use of branded and rounded-up euro promotions helped Dunnes Stores increase over-the-counter sales 2.6% and boost its share of the Irish grocery market to 21.2% over the past 12 weeks.

Dunnes Stores ‘round euro’ pricing promotions helped it to marginally increase its grocery sales in the three months to the end of last month — the only one of the major multiples to do so.

The German discounters have continued to grow their share of the Irish grocery market, with Aldi and Lidl now commanding a combined 15.6% slice of the sector.

The rise of Lidl and Aldi has continued, as the discount retailers increase the consumer spend they are attracting at the expense of established supermarkets like Tesco and Dunnes.

SuperValu has become the second largest grocer in the Irish market after its re-branding of 24 Superquinn stores last month.

Student Colin Bradley from Mallow, Co Cork, is the main driver behind an initiative at University College Cork he hopes will drive home the message “it’s ok not to feel ok, and it’s absolutely ok to ask for help.”

Aldi and Lidl have continued to increase their shares of the grocery market as shoppers look for value.

Irish people have drastically cut their consumption of wine following the introduction of the 50c levy in the budget.

Dunnes has won the back-to-school battle successfully managing to get consumers to spend more money in their shops, according to the latest Kantar Worldpanel survey.

The summer heatwave proved a boon for supermarkets as figures show shoppers snapped up greater quantities of barbecue food — particularly sausages.

All 24 Superquinn stores across the country are to be rebranded as SuperValu in a major shake-up of the Irish retail market.