Asda has started consulting with around 1,200 staff in preparation for a major overhaul of its in-store bakeries which will see the end of bread and other bakery lines being made from scratch in-store.
In future, Asda’s baked products will be made in a central bakery and then warmed in stores. The group stated that the changes would provide a broader range of products baked fresh several times a day, compared to just once a day at present. The move comes as consumers shun traditional loaves in favour of speciality breads, bagels and pancakes.
Derek Lawlor, Chief Merchandising Officer at Asda, said: “The current in-store bakery model has restricted our ability to respond to changing customer demands and offer them the speciality products and freshly baked goods they want to buy throughout the day.
“The changes we are proposing will deliver a much better and more consistent bakery offering for customers across all our stores. We know these proposed changes will be unsettling for colleagues and our priority is to support them during this process.”
The group stressed that it hopes to move as many affected workers as possible into alternative roles within the business, with redundancy the last option.
The potential job cuts come less than two months after Asda revealed that 5,000 roles in its stores, back offices, and warehouses were at risk as part of a workforce restructuring to align its business to the current shift towards online grocery shopping. This includes expanding its ‘in-store pick’ model further by creating 4,500 new roles in its online operations.
Asda has stated that the changes are not related to its sale to the Issa brothers and TDR Capital, with the deal still awaiting final clearance by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
The major supermarkets have been trying to make savings in their stores as their battle the discounters on price. Asda and Sainsbury’s began closing their meat and fish counters last year, following a similar rationalisation by Tesco in 2019. The UK’s leading grocer also overhauled its in-store bakeries last year, citing a similar shift away from traditional bread.
NAM Implications:
- The issue is not 1,000 Asda workers…
- …but the extent to which this move will be a pointer for all the mults.
- i.e. a cessation of in-store baking.
