It is a crazy world in UK retail right now.
In the week that seemingly popular Wilko died, another big-name supermarket announced losses despite increasing sales and market share.
The German-owned Lidl supermarket has announced pre-tax losses of £76m for the year to 28 February against profits of £41.1m the previous year as it also invested heavily in the business.
Sales up
Sales jumped by 18.8% to £9.3bn over the year and the group said it increased its share of the supermarket sector. But it said the losses came as it faced a “challenging inflationary environment which led to an increase in costs across the board” and made significant investments in the chain.
The group “held firm on its promise” to keep price tags low for shoppers, spending £100m on prices, while it also invested nearly £50m in wage increases for staff and opened 50 new stores across the UK.
Keeping prices low
Ryan McDonnell, chief executive of Lidl’s British business, said: “The entire retail market has seen inflation, and we are no exception.
“However, for us, what is important is that our price gap to the traditional supermarkets is as strong as it has ever been.
A very challenging year
“We’ve invested in keeping our prices low for customers in what has been a very challenging year for most.”
Lidl, which marks 30 years in the UK in 2024, said it had opened a further 20 stores in the first half of its new financial year, with ambitions for “hundreds of new stores across Great Britain”.
