Aldi UK boss Giles Hurley has accused rival supermarkets of “duping” shoppers with loyalty discounts that he claims can begin from “unrealistically high prices”.

Aldi, which remains the only major UK supermarket without a loyalty scheme, said promotional pricing should deliver genuine savings, rather than create the impression of a bigger discount.

Hurley said: “Promotions can supplement everyday low prices when they’re meaningful, when they’re real and when they show realistic reductions.

“However, when promotions start with unrealistically high prices and come down to prices which aren’t that competitive and dupe customers, we would view that as loyalty that isn’t supportive, that isn’t transparent and doesn’t help customers plan and budget.”

His comments come despite a Competition and Markets Authority investigation into supermarket loyalty pricing finding little evidence that retailers were routinely inflating standard prices to make member discounts look more attractive.

The watchdog analysed around 50,000 loyalty-priced products across Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Co-op and Morrisons and found that 92 per cent offered a genuine saving against the usual price.

It said shoppers typically saved between 17 per cent and 25 per cent on loyalty-priced products at the supermarkets examined.

However, the CMA also stressed that loyalty prices were not always the cheapest available across the market and advised shoppers to continue comparing prices between grocers.

Hurley’s intervention came as Aldi reported group sales across the UK and Ireland rose five per cent to a record £19bn in 2025, while operating profit edged down to £432.9m as the retailer absorbed higher wage bills and continued investing in prices, stores and infrastructure.

The Aldi chief insisted the grocer was continuing to win new shoppers and said its strategy remained focused on “everyday low prices, not short-lived offers that disappear the following week”.

Aldi said it has invested £340m in price cuts this year as it looks to reinforce its value credentials amid intense competition across the grocery sector.

However, Aldi has faced stronger competition from both the traditional supermarkets and Lidl.

Reuters reported that Aldi’s UK market share stood at 10.6 per cent in September, while its sales growth has recently lagged the wider grocery market.

Lidl, meanwhile, has continued to post faster growth as the two discounters battle for shoppers.

Former Asda buyer and retail consultant Ged Futter told the BBC that Hurley’s criticism was a “distraction” from increasing competitive pressure on Aldi and argued that the price gap between the discounter and mainstream supermarkets had narrowed.

Aldi is nevertheless stepping up its expansion plans, committing £900m to its UK business in 2027.

The investment will fund 40 new supermarkets as well as further spending on its distribution network, as it works towards a longer-term target of 1,500 UK stores.

It currently operates 1,092 stores and is preparing to open 30 new locations in the coming weeks.

Aldi is also looking to expand the proportion of products sourced through long-term agreements with British suppliers, with Hurley warning that droughts and geopolitical disruption had highlighted vulnerabilities in global food supply chains.

He said increasing domestic food production should become a national strategic priority to help shield UK consumers from future supply shocks and food price inflation.

Aldi said its investment programme, supplier agreements and store expansion were aimed at making affordable food available to more households, with Hurley arguing that food security and affordability were increasingly intertwined.

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