The Battle for Britain's Baskets: What over 2,000 Articles Tell Us About Supermarket Reputation
Omniscan ยท
Something interesting is happening in the UK's supermarket industry. After trawling through millions of data points across the web and analysing 2,039 articles across 150 media outlets this quarter, we've uncovered a fundamental shift in how British supermarkets are perceived - and it carries significant implications for communications teams.
Want to dive straight in? Download the full report here
Here are three findings that stood out:
The discounters have won the narrative war
Aldi and Lidl now occupy a position no traditional grocer has managed to achieve: high visibility and high sentiment. Aldi leads with a sentiment score of +0.27, whilst Tesco - despite commanding the most media mentions at 782 - sits at just +0.12.
The scatter plot below tells the story. The "Winners' Circle" in the upper right quadrant belongs to the discounters. The Big Four cluster in the high-volume, moderate-sentiment zone - visible, but under scrutiny.
Figure 4: Volume-Sentiment Paradox scatter plot
For comms professionals at traditional grocers, this poses an uncomfortable question: is your share of voice working for you, or against you?
Data breaches have turned technology into a liability
M&S and Co-op entered 2025 hoping to tell innovation stories. Instead, they're managing crisis narratives. Our Innovation Perception Score - which combines positive framing around digital leadership minus problematic coverage - shows M&S at -49 and Co-op at -21. Every other retailer sits in positive territory.
Figure 2: Innovation Perception Scores
The culprit? Data breaches, accounting for 63 and 66 mentions respectively. Technology coverage has transformed from opportunity to liability overnight. For both retailers, rebuilding digital trust must now precede any return to innovation messaging.
Greedflation framing reveals a credibility chasm
With 44% of all coverage touching cost of living themes, how supermarkets are positioned in the "profiteering vs helping" debate matters enormously.
Aldi achieved something remarkable: 222 "helper" framings with zero "profiteer" instances. A clean sweep. Meanwhile, Tesco carries the highest greedflation exposure at 2.1%, and Sainsbury's faces the most "profiteer" accusations among traditional grocers.
The lesson? Disciplined, consistent messaging around value pays reputational dividends. And the timing of profit announcements relative to visible value initiatives deserves careful choreography.
What this means for comms teams
The rules of supermarket communications are changing. High visibility no longer guarantees positive perception. Premium positioning invites harsher scrutiny. And a single cyber incident can undo years of innovation storytelling.
Our full report dives deeper into each of these themes, plus analysis of Christmas advertising performance, own-label taste test victories, ESG greenwashing risk, and specific recommendations for communications leaders.