Three weeks after the start of the war in Iran, German grocery retailers are already feeling the impact on sales. Rising energy costs and the threat of further price increases have pushed consumers to shop more at discount chains, data from market‑research firm Accurat show, as reported by “Handelsblatt”.
During calendar week 12 (beginning 16 March), Aldi Nord and Aldi South saw a noticeable rise in the share of customer visits compared with the week just before the outbreak. Aldi Nord increased its share by 0.7 percentage points, while Aldi South’s share grew by a full percentage point. “Such a clear change is unusual; we haven’t seen it before” said Maarten Vander Beken of Accurat.
Although the percentage shifts look small at first glance, they can have significant financial consequences. Germany’s food retailers turn over more than €200 billion a year, so a one‑percentage‑point gain in market share translates into roughly €2 billion of additional revenue.
The biggest losers, according to the data, are the large supermarket groups. In week 12, Edeka’s share of visitor numbers fell by 0.6 percentage points, Rewe by 0.7, and Kaufland by 0.5.
