Asda returned to underlying sales growth in its third quarter after its new value range proved popular with cash-strapped shoppers.
The group’s like-for-like sales (excl. fuel) rose 4.7% in the three months to 30 September, having fallen 1.9% in the second quarter and 9.2% in the period before that.
The outcome is Asda’s strongest quarterly performance since the first quarter of 2021 when the Issa Brothers and TDR Capital completed the acquisition of the business from Walmart.
Amid toughening trading conditions, the retailer launched its ‘Just Essentials’ range in May. A further 141 new lines were added during the quarter, taking the total range to 270 products.
Citing industry data from Kantar, Asda said 10 million people shopped the range during the quarter, with 400,000 shoppers switching to the chain from other supermarkets.
Asda also continued its ‘Dropped & Locked’ pricing initiative, where 250 everyday products are locked in price for the rest of the year. The group has also been rolling out its new Rewards loyalty programme, with 2.7m users already signed up.
Meanwhile, Asda has been refreshing its bakery, meat, fish and poultry categories, adding over 100 new lines at different price points. This has resulted in a 15.5% uplift in bakery sales year-on-year and 6.4% increase in meat, fish and poultry sales.
“The financial pressures on families across the UK is worsening and they are looking to us for help,” said Mohsin Issa, Asda’s co-owner.
“Asda has a long-standing reputation for providing customers with outstanding value and it’s more important than ever that we deliver on this for them. We’re absolutely committed to ensuring that Asda remains the best value traditional supermarket – while introducing new value initiatives such as Asda Rewards that can make an immediate difference to customer budgets.”
During the quarter, Asda stepped up its plans to enter the convenience channel with the acquisition of 123 forecourt sites from the Co-op. And last week, it opened its first standalone convenience store under the ‘Express’ banner.
Issa commented: “Although we have more the 600 stores across the UK, there are still many communities that don’t Have an Asda nearby. We want to change this and bring Asda’s great products and value to even more people through these new stores.”
