Waitrose & Partners has scaled back a price-matching scheme with Tesco.

Waitrose, part of the John Lewis Partnership, has reduced the number of branded products on which it matches Tesco from 8,000 to 1,200, The Sunday Times reported.

Waitrose started matching Tesco on prices in 2010, and went on to incorporate 8,000 products two years later. The grocer described the initiative as its distinct take on John Lewis’ ‘Never knowingly undersold’ price promise.

The change has taken place amid fiercely competitive grocery market conditions, following the reinvigoration of Morrisons and Tesco and the continued rise of value supermarket groups Aldi and Lidl.

The most recent Kantar Worldpanel data showed that shoppers made an additional 14 million trips to Aldi and Lidl in the 12 weeks to November 4 as the industry geared up for the crucial Christmas period.

Aldi’s sales climbed 15.5% during the period, and Lidl’s advanced 10.2%.

However, Waitrose’s sales declined 1%. It was the grocer’s first sales fall since February 2009.

Topics