Asda is “throwing its weight” behind regional suppliers, as it looks to make its offer more appealing to local shoppers.
Starting with the south west of England, it will see 58 new West Country products hit stores in the region this summer. It includes new lines from Cornish-based Prima Bakeries, Sandford Orchards cider as well as Cornish Tea & Coffee.
Drinks brand Jolly’s is launching five new lines into Asda stores. Meanwhile, Furniss of Cornwall will launch eight of its “award-winning” bakery lines.
Asda is also expanding its range of some of its longer standing suppliers in the region, including Cornish Sea Salt, Rattler Cornish Cider and spirits from Southwestern Distillery.
“Asda’s customers are looking for the very best produce on the market, and by partnering with experienced and trusted suppliers, we can make sure they’re catered for, while supporting a strong, local supply chain,” said Molly Beeby, Asda local buyer for England.
It’s the latest move by the supermarket to improve its presence regionally, following a £12m investment into enhancing stores in its Yorkshire heartland and surrounding areas.
In October chief commercial officer Darren Blackhurst announced Asda would reset its entire range, as part of a “bay by bay” overhaul aimed at cutting around 6,000 SKUs from its shelves to fuel its turnaround plan. It would initially focus on removing duplication, with a focus on Asda’s core grocery ranges.
Later, in May, Asda announced “one of its biggest” range refreshes for years, as part of its newly launched Take a Fresh Look customer experience campaign. Fresh and frozen have been completely overhauled, but Asda also wants to make its stores more appealing to local shoppers.
“The West Country has an incredibly rich heritage when it comes to food and drink production, with a well-earned reputation for excellence in everything from cider and clotted cream to shortbread and mouthwatering fudge,” said Beeby.
“This summer, we’re thrilled to get behind some of the region’s most hard-working and respected suppliers, scaling up with long-standing partners and building connections with nine new producers, in a series of deals that reflect our commitment to quality local products,” she added.
Asda was once again the only supermarket to see sales fall during July, according to Worldpanel’s latest 12-week market share snapshot to 13 July. However, the rate of decline eased to 1.1% down from 3.6% the previous period.
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