According to the Guardian newspaper (February 7, 2017), Aldi has overtaken the Co-op to become the UK’s fifth largest grocer alongside ASDA, Sainsbury's, Tesco and Waitrose.
25% increase
Innovative Bites supplies products to ASDA, Sainsbury's, Tesco and Waitrose as well as the Co-op and Morrison's.
Vishal Madhu, founder, Innovative Bites, said in the past 12 months, it has increased its foothold within the Big 5, adding 1,000,000 cases of product to its annual orders - a 25% increase on 2016.
"We are delighted to see such substantial growth and we continue to invest in our core confectionery business, which includes sweets such as Twinkies and Baking Buddy Mega Marshmallows, finding new on-trend opportunities to expand our product portfolio,” he added.
Thanks to its success, Madhu says the company can improve efficiencies, to become more competitive with its pricing which leads to an increase in orders.
Innovative Bites acquired Hancocks, a UK supplier of wholesale sweets, this month from H2 Equity Partners and management. It is its second acquisition in 12 months after acquiring Bonds of London last year. It also moved into new 105,000 sq. ft premises, and has expanded its product portfolio.
The company now supplies branded and own label products to more than 7,000 customers across the UK.
"Our acquisition of Hancocks aligns with our aspirations to significantly grow Innovative Bites' scale in the UK and across Europe. Our businesses are highly complementary and differentiated in our products, geography and approach, so we are hugely excited about our combined potential," said Madhu.
Battle of the supermarkets
The Guardian reported Aldi and Lidl now control nearly 11% of the UK grocery market after the major players Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda all lost share.
It claims the rise of the discounters, which stock a much smaller range of goods than in most rival stores, has led to price cuts across the sector as the traditional supermarkets try to win back shoppers.
Despite being overtaken by Aldi, Co-op sales rose by 2% also well ahead of its bigger rivals, continuing a run of growth stretching back to July 2015, helping it maintain a 6% market share.
Of the big four supermarkets, only Morrisons gained market share in the period, taking it to 10.9%.