Morrisons has fired the opening salvo of a pre-Christmas price war, announcing it is cutting the cost of more than 650 products in store and online.
It has targeted “key volume lines” and cupboard essentials including chicken breasts, olive oil and enchilada meal kits, cutting the price by 18% on average. Products will remain on promotion for “at least four to eight weeks”.
Also included in the price cuts are Morrisons Special Flakes, which will fall by 40p to £1.95, and Morrisons Tricolore fusilli pasta, which will fall from 90p to 75p for a 500g pack. Meanwhile a nine-pack of Morrisons Toilet Tissue will be 60p cheaper, at £3.
Morrisons also hoped shoppers would “stock up ahead of the cold weather”, by including products like its own-label Max Strength Cold & Flu Day and Night Capsules, which will fall by 20p to £2.
It is also rolling out a number of revolving “market-leading” weekly special offers. The first wave of products includes Kenco coffee (£6,50/200g) and Tetley Teabags (£6.50/400-pack), as well as its ‘Wine of the Week’, Comte De Saint Emmanuel 2019 AOP Bordeaux 75cl.
The cuts would help shoppers’ budgets go further ahead of big spending moments like Christmas, the supermarket said. It will be supported by a nationwide TV print and digital campaign as well as new ‘Price Cuts’ signage in store.
Supermarket price war escalates
The cuts are Morrisons’ most significant investment into prices since it expanded its Aldi and Lidl price match across 500 lines in January. It’s a sign the much-speculated grocery price war, sparked by Asda chairman Allan Leighton’s promise to restore Asda’s price crown, is set to escalate as the golden quarter nears.
While Morrisons experienced an early bounce in performance following Rami Baitiéh’s arrival in 2023, the turnaround has slowed considerably since, as rivals have turned up the dial on prices.
Earlier this year the supermarket began a major programme to reinvigorate its Market Street format, under new group trading director Andrew Staniland’s Morrisons Magic strategy. It has involved a total range review – stripping out 2,500 SKUs – and the stepping up of multibuy offers and promotional ends. However, the changes are yet to fully bite.
Morrisons has delivered the cheapest basket just four times in the Grocer 33 pricing survey since the start of 2024. The most recent was in June this year.
The Grocer revealed last month that Lidl had overtaken Morrisons to become the UK’s fifth-biggest supermarket in food and drink sales in July, taking 7.7% of the market in the 52 weeks to 13 July, compared to Morrisons’ 7.6%.
It followed a separate report from The Grocer earlier in July that Morrisons had asked suppliers to bring forward millions of pounds of spending on promotions and retail media, in order to help it meet revised financial targets before the end of its third quarter.
Morrisons has not revealed how much it is investing in the latest round of price cuts.
“At Morrisons we believe great quality should be affordable for everyone, and we know the cost of everyday products really matters to our customers right now,” said Alex Paver, Morrisons pricing and customer director.
“That’s why we’re cutting the prices of over 650 items, from fresh favourites to cupboard staples, so our customers can trust they’re getting real value every time they shop with us. These price cuts mean customers can spend less on the essentials and still enjoy the great quality Morrisons is known for.”
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