Waitrose beats supermarket rivals and is crowned UK’s favourite supermarket
Market Force Information asked participants to rate their satisfaction with their most recent grocery shopping experience
Waitrose continues to build consumer loyalty with its exceptional service, quality, diversity and availability of foods according to an independent study by worldwide leader in consumer intelligence solutions, Market Force Information. A survey of 6,800 consumers in April 2015 asked customers of their supermarket shopping habits including brand preference, brand engagement, experience and technology/social media use.
For the rankings, Market Force Information asked participants to rate their satisfaction with their most recent grocery shopping experience and their likelihood to refer that grocer to others. The results were averaged to rank each brand on a Composite Loyalty Index.
Co-operative scores lowest in attributes that drive satisfaction and loyalty
Waitrose took the lead in five of the six attributes for delivering consumer satisfaction. Whilst ALDI took lead in checkout speed, Waitrose and Marks and Spencer clearly deliver excellence across the board with cashier courtesy, store cleanliness, item availability, item location and specialty departments. When supermarkets commit to delivering excellence in all six attributes it is guaranteed to drive loyalty.
‘The competition between supermarkets is extremely fierce,’ says Cheryl Fink, Chief Strategy Officer for Market Force Information. ‘Our research clearly shows that one in three shoppers reported that brands did not execute well on any of the six drivers; but when they do on all six, satisfaction improves dramatically (by 89 per cent). Furthermore, when supermarkets deliver across all six attributes, shoppers are almost three times more likely to recommend it to others. That’s a huge increase and one that supermarkets need to pay attention to in today’s market conditions.’
‘Click and Collect’ Service is on the rise, with Tesco taking the lead
Consumers are now going online to pre order their goods in order to save time. 24 per cent have said that groceries were bought in this way and over 75 per cent have been happy with the service. The service is still burgeoning in the UK, but of those who have used it, 59 per cent did so more than once. Tesco is also rated top for online ordering (64 per cent) followed by ASDA (54 per cent) Sainsbury’s (48 per cent), Waitrose (47 per cent) and then a sharp drop for Marks and Spencer to 22 per cent followed by Morrisons at 21 per cent and lastly, Co-operative at 9 per cent.
Out of those surveyed, almost 40 per cent use supermarket mobile apps to solely compare prices before purchasing items. Technology is playing a vital role in driving in-store spend and for claiming discount vouchers.
Consumers love ready meals, but prefer organic and locally sourced produce
Ready meals are ever-popular with 86 per cent choosing this option down to convenience more than value over the past 90 days. Over 35 per cent eat a ready meal once a month with 25 per cent eating it once a week. Despite this growth, 52 per cent of consumers find importance in organic and locally sourced products.
Supermarket own branded items are the preferred choice for consumers
Private labelling is very popular with consumers and Waitrose beats its rivals with 89 per cent knowing about its own brand products, followed closely by Marks and Spencer (85 percent). There is little differentiation of awareness between Sainsbury’s, Co-operative, ASDA and Tesco. When asked if respondents preferred to buy a national brand or supermarket own brand, supermarkets won hands down on fresh produce, but national brands won for packaged goods and personal hygiene.
