Safeway Plus card discount mcColls

The Safeway Plus card discount offer is now available in McColl’s

McColl’s is linking the launch of the Safeway own-brand range to its Plus card in a bid to drive takeup of its Plus card loyalty scheme.

The convenience retailer has now launched the Safeway brand, which has been resurrected by Morrisons, in 25 stores in the north west of England.

Shoppers at the stores can get a 5% discount off any Safeway product if they have a Plus card in a move that echoes the Co-op membership offer, where members receive a 5% discount on all the own-label products they buy.

McColl’s CEO Jonathan Miller told The Grocer the offer was intended to encourage shoppers to try the new range and that it had not yet decided how long it would run for.

The retailer is also looking to promote Safeway with a 100% money back guarantee whereby shoppers who are not fully satisfied with one of the new products can return it to store and receive a full refund.

The 400-strong Safeway range was created by Morrisons for convenience retailers as part of its plan to grow its wholesale operation. It will be sold exclusively by McColl’s for the duration of this year as part of the wider six-year supply agreement it reached with Morrisons last autumn.

The products started going into the first batch of stores earlier this month and Miller said the initial reaction from customers had been positive.

As part of the original plan it has paused the rollout this week to make sure there are no teething problems, and the wider rollout will then commence at a rate of 25 stores a week.

“We are really pleased with the quality of the Safeway range and we want people to try it,” said Miller.

“It looks very striking on shelves with very clear packaging that lets the product speak for itself.”