If the Greens’ Natalie Bennet was a supermarket, she would be The Co-operative

In a survey asking shoppers which supermarket most reminded them of each politician, the Green Party’s Natalie Bennett was associated most with The Co-operative food stores, while Waitrose reminded people of David Cameron.

An analyst from Shopping research company SBXL, who led the survey, said: “Aside from the majority of people who didn’t know of Natalie Bennett, many relate her to the Fairtrade, convenient, community-focused Co-op. But like the Co-op, the Greens need to become more than just a small basket destination.”

Looking at answers from 5,000 shoppers, Labour leader Ed Miliband was deemed “too close to call”, with shoppers split between the Co-operative, Tesco and Asda. Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg was also in the “too close to call” category with people saying he reminded them of the Co-operative, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s.

Meanwhile, almost 50% of shoppers said Conservative leader David Cameron reminded them of the John Lewis Partnership-owned Waitrose, with Marks and Spencer coming second at 20%.

UKIP leader Nigel Farage was associated with Iceland – while Lidl and Aldi closely followed.

SBXL managing director Phillip Adcock said: “We survey a wide range of shoppers geographically and across the income scale so we thought it was a good opportunity to test the political temperature among shoppers.

“It is clear that people associate David Cameron with the quality brands, although not representing the mainstream for many people. Ed Miliband is seen as mainstream more than premium, though lack of brand identity could confuse some people.

“Interestingly Nigel Farage was seen to be as disruptive to politics as the discount supermarkets have been to shopping habits, while Nick Clegg seems to struggle to let people know exactly where he fits in – a bit like Morrisons or Sainsbury’s. Obviously our survey doesn’t indicate voting intentions, but it’s an interesting take on people’s perceptions of politicians.”