Waitrose takes £20m hit with mass price cuts on products

The UK supermarket giant has nine stores across Oxfordshire, including two in Oxford, as well as shops in Abingdon, Banbury, Henley, Thame, Wallingford, Wantage and Witney.

According to the Financial Times (FT), Waitrose is reducing the prices of around 160 everyday own‑brand items.

This includes staples such as fruit, vegetables and meat, with cuts averaging about 12 per cent.

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The move is aimed at attracting more affluent customers who have drifted towards rivals Marks & Spencer and Ocado in recent years, the FT reported.

This new round of reductions takes the total Waitrose has spent on price cuts to about £140m since 2023, but the chain has still found it difficult to grow its market share.

Its grocery share is understood to be about 3.8 per cent, while M&S food sales have risen by nearly 12 per cent over the past year, lifting that rival to roughly 4.1 per cent of the UK market.

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The FT added that the latest price moves come against a backdrop of consumers reining in spending as energy bills rise and inflation is expected to tick up again over the summer, putting further strain on household budgets.

Recent industry data cited by the article showed overall supermarket till sales growing by only a fraction in the three weeks to mid‑May, with shoppers increasingly relying on promotions and discounts to manage costs.

The FT also reported that new John Lewis chairman Jason Tarry, a former Tesco executive, plans to invest around £1bn in refurbishing Waitrose branches.

This sum will also go towards opening more stores as the business attempts to sharpen its offer and compete more aggressively in the premium grocery market.