COLUMBUS, OH--(Marketwire - May 5, 2009) - Shoppers continue to look for ways to stretch their grocery budget and Walmart reaps the benefits. The discount giant maintains a lead in the Groceries category among all adults nationwide (16.6% say they shop there most often), according to the April Retail Ratings Report from BIGresearch (http://www.bigresearch.com). But how does the competition play out on a regional basis?

Northeast
                Share   Share   Share
                Apr08   Apr09   +/-     CEI
Shoprite       10.3%    10.6%   0.3     102.88
Stop 'n Shop    8.5%    8.5%    0.0      99.76
Walmart         6.1%    7.7%    1.6     126.99
Giant           4.6%    5.5%    0.9     118.94
Shaws           4.3%    3.8%   -0.6      86.65

South
                Share   Share   Share
                Apr08   Apr09   +/-     CEI
Walmart        24.4%    25.3%   0.9     103.66
Kroger          8.4%    10.3%   1.9     122.07
Publix          8.6%    10.2%   1.6     118.98
Food Lion       4.3%    3.9%   -0.4      90.47
HEB             4.0%    4.3%    0.3     107.53

Midwest
                Share   Share   Share
                Apr08   Apr09   +/-     CEI
Walmart        15.0%    16.2%   1.2     108.01
Kroger          9.6%    10.1%   0.5     105.18
Meijer          7.7%     8.8%   1.1     113.81
Jewel           3.7%     3.8%   0.1     102.90
ALDI            2.8%     4.1%   1.3     145.30

West
                Share   Share   Share
                Apr08   Apr09   +/-     CEI
Safeway        10.6%    11.5%   0.9     108.32
Walmart         9.7%    10.6%   0.9     108.75
Albertsons      6.3%    6.6%    0.3     104.11
Fry's           3.4%    4.5%    1.1     131.87
Vons            3.9%    3.2%   -0.7      81.81

Source: BIGresearch Retail Ratings Report, Apr 09

*CEI measures growth in share of consumer preference year over year. An index of 100 is flat, while an index of 105 indicates 5% growth.

"Walmart's everyday low prices are attractive to shoppers regardless of census regions," said Pam Goodfellow, Senior Analyst, BIGresearch. "But we are seeing some growth among other grocers such as Kroger and Publix in the South and ALDI in the Midwest."

For an excerpt from the April report for Groceries, please click the following link: http://info.bigresearch.com/.

BIGresearch's Retail Ratings Reports (RRR) are available monthly for 12 major merchandise categories. They are developed from BIGresearch's monthly Consumer Intentions & Actions (CIA) Survey of over 8,000 online interviews.

About BIGresearch

BIGresearch is a consumer intelligence firm providing analysis of behavior in areas of products and services, retail, financial services, automotive and media. BIGresearch conducts the monthly Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey (CIA) of 8,000+ respondents and the semi-annual Simultaneous Media Survey (SIMM) of 15,000+ respondents. More information is available at http://www.bigresearch.com.