Nocturnal 
Sainsbury’s and Morrisons held secret talks about a merger that could have created a supermarket giant worth billions, according to reports from Sky News and the Financial Times.
The exploratory discussions reportedly took place between November 2025 and February this year, before Sainsbury’s walked away from the table. Industry sources say no active talks are currently taking place between the two chains.
News of the talks has sent “sainsburys morrisons merger” trending in UK Google searches, with more than 20,000 people searching for the story.
Why it matters
A tie-up between the UK’s second and fifth biggest supermarkets would have been the most significant deal in the grocery sector in more than five years. According to market share data from Kantar, cited by Sky News, a combined Sainsbury’s and Morrisons would control around 23.8% of the UK grocery market, still some way behind Tesco’s 28.2% but well clear of any other rival.
Sainsbury’s has grown in strength under chief executive Simon Roberts and currently sits as the UK’s second largest grocer behind Tesco. Morrisons, by contrast, has struggled since a private equity takeover and has slipped to fifth place in the market, having reportedly been overtaken by German discounter Lidl this year.
Morrisons was bought by US private equity firm Clayton Dubilier & Rice in 2021, a deal that loaded the supermarket with more than £7billion in debt and has made it harder for the chain to keep pace with rivals.
Any merger would likely have brought both benefits and problems for shoppers and staff. Supporters of consolidation argue that combined buying power can mean lower prices and more choice. But regulators typically demand concessions in deals of this scale, and Sainsbury’s would probably have been ordered to sell off a number of stores to satisfy competition concerns.
It would also have raised uncertainty for the thousands of staff employed across both chains. Morrisons currently operates around 500 supermarkets and 1,700 convenience stores.
What happens next
Although these particular talks have cooled, analysts believe further consolidation in the UK supermarket sector is all but inevitable. Retail insiders told Sky News that Clayton Dubilier & Rice remains open to a future tie-up involving one of Morrisons’ major competitors.
Asda, which is also owned by private equity investors and has likewise struggled against competition from Tesco, Sainsbury’s and discounters Aldi and Lidl, is expected to be among the players involved in any fresh wave of dealmaking.
This isn’t the first time two of Britain’s “big four” grocers have explored joining forces. Sainsbury’s and Asda came close to merging back in 2020, but the deal collapsed after competition regulators raised objections.
Analysts quoted by Sky News suggest the industry landscape has shifted substantially since then, with Aldi and Lidl growing into major discount forces. That could mean a future deal between any two of Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s would stand a greater chance of regulatory approval than the failed 2020 attempt.
For now, both Sainsbury’s and Morrisons continue to operate separately, with no indication that renewed talks are imminent. But with rising costs and food security pressures continuing to squeeze the sector, few in the industry expect this to be the last word on supermarket consolidation.
