Morrisons has kicked off a sixth wave of price cuts since the start of the year as it battles to win back shoppers from its rivals and halt the decline in its market share.
The latest cuts have been applied to 47 high-volume products, including mince, tomatoes, butter, squash, cereal and summer picnic items like pitta breads and scotch eggs.
The average reduction is said to be over 25%, with the new prices being held for a minimum of eight weeks across its 499 supermarkets in an investment worth a claimed £26m.
Last month, Morrisons reduced or held the price of a further 1,000 products, which will remain locked low until mid-July.
The Morrisons price-cutting programme has been accompanied by the relaunch of its More Card loyalty programme, which includes the roll-out of exclusive offers for members.
Rachel Eyre, the retailer’s Chief Customer and Marketing Officer, commented: “Providing great quality products at affordable prices for our customers is a key priority at Morrisons. Our steady flow of deep and broad price-cutting programmes, together with our new More Card loyalty scheme, are helping customers save money on their weekly shop.”
In recent weeks, other supermarkets in the UK have been cutting the price of everyday items such as milk, bread, sunflower oil, and pasta to reflect falling commodity costs.
Marks & Spencer announced today that it was cutting the price of 70 staple products, such as beef mince, Greek-style yoghurt, salmon fillets, chickpeas and tortilla wraps, by between 3% and 25%. The group is also locking the prices of 150 products until the autumn, including pork sausages, Cheddar cheese and coleslaw.
Alex Freudmann, Managing Director at M&S Food, said: “We know value is everything to our customers right now, and while they’re looking forward to a great summer, they’re also looking for certainty on spending. Our latest price investment across 200 products upholds our trusted value promise and delivers on that certainty.”
NAM Implications:
- Retail being a ‘try-it-and-see’ environment…
- …Morrisons And M&S will have to drop prices and extend to extra products…
- …until the cuts make a difference.
- (making it key that suppliers of these lines keep eyes wide open…)
