Sainsbury’s: A British Supermarket Staple with Ambition
Sainsbury’s, officially J Sainsbury plc, is one of the UK’s oldest and biggest supermarket chains, founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury and his wife Mary Ann in London. From its first shop at 173 Drury Lane, it’s grown into a retail giant with over 1,400 stores – 600 supermarkets and 800+ convenience shops – employing around 152,000 people. In 2025, it holds a 15.7% share of the UK grocery market, trailing Tesco but neck-and-neck with Asda, and posted £33.8 billion in revenue for the 2023/24 fiscal year, per company reports. I popped onto sainsburys.co.uk once to check it out – decent deals and a clean layout.
The journey started small – that Drury Lane store sold butter, milk, and eggs, focusing on quality at fair prices. By the 1920s, they were pioneering self-service in Britain, and in 1997, they launched Sainsbury’s Bank, now fully owned after a 2014 buyout from Lloyds. Today, they’re more than groceries: Argos (bought in 2016 for £1.4 billion), Habitat furniture, Tu clothing, and Nectar, their loyalty scheme with 18 million users, round out the offer. In March 2025, they’re pushing value hard – CEO Simon Roberts told Retail Gazette “nothing trumps value” amid a price war with Aldi and Lidl. Their Smart Charge EV hubs, aiming for 100 stations by year-end, show they’re eyeing the future too.
It’s easy to use. Walk into a store – say, the big one in Richmond, West London – and you’ll find aisles of own-brand staples (a 400g loaf for £0.75), fresh produce, and Argos counters for gadgets like a £99 kettle. Online at sainsburys.co.uk, you order – I saw a 2kg chicken for £6.50 – and pick delivery (from £1) or click-and-collect. The app, with 5 million downloads, tracks Nectar points – 200 points (£1) per £200 spent. On X, folks praise the vibe – “feels like Waitrose but cheaper,” one post said – and a March 3 update noted NewDay taking over their Argos card portfolio, a £720 million deal per Reuters.
Sainsbury’s shines in spots. In 2024, they planned new stores in old Homebase sites, like Dumfries, promising 100 jobs, per the BBC. They’ve held Christmas sales steady despite rivals’ dips, with £600 million in festive groceries last year. But it’s not flawless: X users moan about stock shortages – “no eggs again” – and a £720 million loan in 2023 raised eyebrows, though it’s dwarfed by their £2 billion cash pile. A mate swears by their Taste the Difference range – “best sausages for the price” – and I get it: my quick pizza order (£4.50) was tasty enough. If you’re in, hit the site, snag Nectar deals, or pop into a local – it’s reliable, even if it doesn’t blow you away.
