Asda is stepping up its value strategy in convenience by matching prices with its supermarkets on core lines and launching promotions exclusive to Express stores.
It comes as Asda kickstarted the next rollout of its Express convenience stores in October, with up to 20 new locations planned by the end of the year.
The move marks the supermarket’s return to opening standalone Express stores after integrating the 469 convenience and fuel sites it acquired from Co-op and EG Group in 2022 and 2023 respectively. The conversion programme completed in Q2 last year.
Chief supply chain officer David Lepley told The Grocer the convenience value push was a “key part of its growth” as it looked to introduce the brand and deliver low prices through Asda Price to more communities across the UK.
In Express stores, it is currently matching the price of 14 essential products to its core supermarket estate, including bread, milk, chicken fillets, beef mince, cheese, and some fruit & veg.
Asda said these can vary per store depending on the needs of the local community.
Asda Express is a ‘separate format’
“Asda’s core mission around growth is delivering value for hard-working families, so focusing on key volume lines is where we can demonstrate that in our convenience estate,” said Lepley.
It has also rolled out a wave of Express-exclusive promotions, including two-for-£5 ready meals and pizzas, and a three-for-£5 deal on pasta, sauce, and bread. There are also three-for-two offers on RTDs and wine minis.
A premium meal deal is also unique to Express stores. Priced at £4.92, it undercuts competitors, while the standard lunchtime meal deal is fixed at £3.74 across both supermarkets and convenience stores.
“We think of Express as a separate format from a merchandising and promotional strategy perspective,” said Lepley. “We are making active, conscious decisions to run promotions that we think will work for our customers in this format and we’ve seen a significant volume response to that.”
Asda said the supermarket-matched prices across everyday essentials and unique Express promotions complemented the Rollback deals also in its convenience stores across food to go, food for tonight and BWS.
Asda is set to hit 500 Express stores in total by the end of the year, with plans to open around 20 more in 2026.
“We’ve got a history of converting Co-op and EG sites, but organically raising convenience stores from the ground up, where we’re picking the location, building the proposition, and opening them, we haven’t actually done that many,” said Lepley.
“We are learning as we go, but we are learning fast, and our location planning team are working very hard. Convenience is a huge opportunity for us.”
As Asda scales up its Express estate, Lepley said pushing food to go was a key part of its strategy, including coffee, hot food, and sweet treats. He said there was also a big opportunity to expand its partnerships with Burger King, Subway, and Greggs into Express stores.
It is also rolling out electronic shelf labels and cameras that optimise availability by monitoring stock on shelves. Lepley said it was important to automate these labour processes for staff to ease workloads and allow them to focus more serving customers.
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