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    Lidl close to overtaking Morrisons as UK’s fifth-biggest supermarket
    United Kingdom

    Lidl close to overtaking Morrisons as UK’s fifth-biggest supermarket

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    33 Comments

    1. MidlandPark on

      I’m surprised it wasn’t already. Then again, there’s hardly any Morrisons down here (fortunately)

    2. Wretched_Colin on

      I think the Morrisons in London were all previously Safeways or something similar.

      As a result, it feels like shopping in the 1980s.

      I’m told that in the North, where they have purpose built stores, it’s a lot better.

      Lidl is great because it’s small. 3 or 4 aisles. Not too much choice. You can get in and out quickly. Although the customer base seems to have descended to a new level of ineptitude when it comes to using self checkouts. I think they should offer some form of self checkout training and not let anyone use them unless they know how to perform this simple task.

    3. will_scc on

      I don’t know if this is a unique experience, but I absolutely hate being in Lidls… They make me feel weirdly anxious and stressed for some reason, that I don’t get with other supermarkets.

      Maybe it’s just the really small aisles and the chaotic mess everywhere in the local one I sometimes use…

    4. Working_Bowl on

      The Morrisons near me (far south) was only built about 10 years ago. Yet, it is the most souless shop around. It used to have the best fresh fruit and veg and bakery. Not sure what changed. There is hardly ever anyone in there. It’s also started selling loads of tat around the shop which looks even worse.

    5. discoveredunknown on

      Morrisons is absolutely awful by me. Genuinely full of the most unpleasant people in the town, constantly dirty, crap stock, hate their lay out, that awful music they play. The whole thing feels like I’m in Safeways with my Nan in about 2001.

    6. No_Poet_1279 on

      Shit went downhill fast after ken left the family business to lesser ‘business leaders’

      Absolute shitbirds

    7. a-hthy on

      My local Morrison is utter trash. Dirty, freezers leaking or completely stacked with ice, empty shelves and barely any staff. It’s also become very expensive to what it was a few years ago. I used to shop there a lot but I don’t anymore. Have switched completely to Lidl and I really like it. Plus their rewards app is actually decent and they regularly do the spin to win thing. Have had so much free bakery and fruit items in the past 6 months.

    10. Y_Mistar_Mostyn on

      I’ll go against the grain of the thread here but Morrisons near me is fantastic, cheaper and way fresher than Tesco. Great bakery, fishmonger, butcher, and deli counter. Always friendly and this is just in a town for 11,000 people

    13. Simple_Joys on

      This isn’t particularly surprising to me. I honestly couldn’t tell you what really distinguishes Morrisons from the competition in a very crowded groceries market. I don’t even know what Morrisons themselves would say their USP is.

      Tesco and Sainsbury’s are the ubiquitous _big two_ anyway, but the Clubcard / Nectar Card rewards are nice USPs.

      ASDA is the third sort of mid-range option alongside the above two, and the brand carries a big association with the _ASDA Price_ slogan.

      M&S and Waitrose are the two more middle-class brands with a focus on quality food.

      Aldi and Lidl have carved out a very clear niche of being the budget options.

      But Morrisons are sort of just… there? I don’t associate them with being competitive on cost in the same way I do with Tesco / Sainsbury’s / ASDA. But I also don’t associate them with quality or luxury food in the same way I do with M&S.

    14. jvlomax on

      Lidl have really been hitting it lately for me. I’ve got so much stuff free on the Lidl plus app (7.5kg of potatoes for free last week!). Free bakery stuff each time I shop for the past couple of weeks too. And they seem to have *just* that little more variety than Aldi when it comes to branded stuff. It’s saved us a few trips to Tesco lately.

    15. Racooning on

      I worked on Morrisons as a contractor for a while and it’s being asset stripped by a new private equity firm.

      They won’t be around for much longer and the only reason their smaller daily shops had any footfall was because of the post office.

      The state of the shops is absolutely outrageous, would not be surprised if they fall in 5/10 years.

    16. aaaaaaaa1273 on

      Morrisons is the closest shop to mine and even then I usually walk further for others, there’s just fuck all in there now

    17. Daver7692 on

      I went to Morrisons the other day and the “deals” other supermarkets had just seemed like you had to buy vast quantities to get them rather than just a regular amount.

      Like laundry detergent. Massive tub was £9 or 2 for £9 but I literally don’t have space for two xl family sized tubs in my house.

      Jumbones for the dog I get as a treat are usually 2 for £2 in most places but 5 for £5 in Morrisons.

      Like I don’t need enough food to feed the 5000 just to trigger all the reduced cost deals.

      However, I’m assuming that’s the point.

      I get people have a gripe with the Tesco club card pricing structure but at least with that you can get away with buying what you actually want.

    18. wkavinsky on

      I mean Morrisons (like Asda) has had shit quality (and expensive!) food since it was bought out by PE.

      Surprised Lidl isn’t already bigger than Morrisons though

    19. pickindim_kmet on

      Morrisons is probably the only big supermarket that I don’t have anywhere near me. There’s about five Lidl before I reach a Morrisons. So it’s not much a surprise to me.

    20. No-Air6709 on

      I used to love Morrisons but the enshittification has ruined it, the fruit bread and chicken was awesome from morrisons and it’s all gone to shit. I went to LIDL once decade ago and then recently started going again recently and i’m impressed with the cost/quality ratio.

    21. Ill_Consideration605 on

      They deserve more than 5th place but they  probably sell more Isr.  products than any  other supermarket

    22. Emuoo1 on

      There’s a Morrisons Daily near me which is tiny and pretty sad (doesn’t really sell that much) but there’s a proper big Morrisons store a few miles away that’s great. We get our shopping from Aldi though so I don’t go there often.

    23. nmd87 on

      I must be the only one that doesn’t particularly rate the Lidl bakery. I don’t think the Lidl breads are a patch on the breads from M&S and it’s barely any cheaper. Sainsbury’s breads are better than Lidl’s, too. It’s particularly noticeable with the baguettes.

      Lidl does have the cheap pastries but they don’t taste as good as those from actual bakeries or other supermarkets so I’d rather spend slightly more to get something better.

      The fresh produce in Lidl is also quite poor in quality.

    24. Calelith on

      Not shocked.

      Big Morrisons near me used to be amazing place to shop, now it feels like Aldi but without the value or actual good deals.

      The main things it has over the local supermarkets closer to me is the ‘trade’ counters (fishmonger, bakery, cheese counter, butcher etc) everything else they sell is either overpriced or just not worth it.

    26. hansonhols on

      I find Morrisons to be very expensive. You must have the MORE card to get halfway decent prices but i’m them buying bulk to catch the ‘deals’ which i don’t need.

      Lidl are killing it at the moment. I like Aldi too but the prices are sneaking up.

    27. nobody_you_knowof on

      Feel like folks are being a bit harsh on Morrisons here! They’re deffo not the cheapest but they have a great deli counter, bakery, butchers, hot food section, salad bar etc. All at a time where the other big supermarkets are scaling them down / closing them.

    29. rabbitthunder on

      I used to love Morrisons and do love Lidl but it seems like a bad idea for Lidl to take them over. Lidl’s strengths are a lack of choice (this is the brand of spaghetti we stock, take it or leave it) and a small footprint which makes the whole shopping experience easy, fast and convenient. Morrisons strengths were the fresh counters, decent quality produce and being large enough to offer a range of choices. I don’t really see how the two are compatible. A Morrisons sized Lidl would ruin what is good about Lidl and Lidl sized Morrisons (i.e. their convenience stores) are overpriced and crap. Unless Lidl intends to run them as something other than Lidls I just don’t get it.

    30. LemmysCodPiece on

      I have never liked Morrisons, a trip to my local one always left me with the urge to kill. I have recently moved over to Lidl, as Sainsburys have really pissed me off.

      I have got to say I am actually liking Lidl. Our local one is very new and quite modern. My only criticism is there are no self service tills or scan and go. As with Aldi they don’t stock certain items, so I am forced to go to Tesco or Waitrose.

    31. Bonodog1960 on

      The slogan was more reasons to shop at Morrisons
      Now it’s NO reasons to shop at Morrisons

    32. SojournerInThisVale on

      Depressing. Morrisons just to be so nice and Lidls is an absolute dump. You feel like you need a shower after going inside

    33. mobrains on

      Morrisons lost its “market street” soul the moment the counters went and the PE firm started stripping assets.
      Lidl isn’t just lucky though – the model works in 2024/25:
      Own-label dominance = better margins + shoppers don’t care about brands when bills are high.
      Heatwaves/inflation keep pushing people to discounters for bottled water, ice cream, quick meals.
      Less choice = less faff. 3–4 aisles, in and out.

      Morrisons feels like it doesn’t know what it is anymore. Lidl knows exactly what it is – and shoppers reward that.