Morrisons is to carry out a major overhaul of its UK stores as it seeks to bring in a more premium farm shop-style fresh food offer for customers.
The revamp is being spearheaded under a strategy called Morrisons Magic, led by the company’s new group trading director Andrew Staniland.
Morrisons’ Warrington store has become the first to integrate the changes, with major changes to the store including the removal of 2,500 SKUs and addition of 500 new SKUs to its lineup.
The Grocer understands Morrisons plans to roll out the changes across its estate in the coming months, as it continues its fightback under CEO Rami Baitiéh.
Morrisons Market Street overhaul
The Grocer revealed in March that Staniland was planning a new-look Market Street as part of his plans to modernise Morrisons, but the retailer stressed its changes went much further.
It said the store overhaul would focus space on Morrisons’ bestselling lines, with the main focuses being a new look for Market Street and its ready meals section.
The Market Street revamp is intended to focus heavily on farm shop influences, including value-added products such as foil trays in which fish are sauced, marinated, breaded, coated and ready to cook.
Morrisons said it wanted to make Market Street more accessible and attract a wider array of amateur and accomplished home cooks.
Its ready meal offer includes many new world flavours, including a tie-up with Yo Sushi.
Morrisons is also introducing branded bays, with sign-up from brands including BrewDog, Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Myprotein.
It said another key part of the overhaul would be to focus on simple merchandising, with a “laser focus on clear pricing and value”. The Warrington store features rows of prominent aisle-end promotions for products priced at £1 and two for £3, on products such as squash, bread and biscuits.
The offer also includes a new £6 meal deal and a three for £5 fresh fruit deal, as well as a pick ‘n’ mix bakery and a tiered pizza offer.
Premium products
Although stressing the aim to make Market Street more accessible to cooks, Morrisons has shifted its line-up towards a more premium product weighting as part of the makeover.
Staniland told The Grocer: “It’s early days, we are testing and we are learning, but the Morrisons Magic programme is now well underway.
“The trial in Warrington is going really well and customer reaction has been fantastic. Market Street’s modernisation is continuing at speed and the farm shop influence and added-value fresh products is really catching our customers’ eyes.
“And through the rest of the store the crisper, cleaner look is underscoring our value credentials, together with a tighter focus on customer favourites, some great innovations and some wonderful new products.”
Morrisons has courted controversy over Market Street and its famous fresh counter offer, with Baitiéh revealing in March it was shutting 72 fresh meat and fish counters, along with 52 cafés, 17 convenience stores and 13 florists, as he announced plans for hundreds of millions in savings.
Morrisons also announced it was closing all 18 branches of its Market Kitchen grocery/takeaway fusion concept – first introduced in its Canning Town store in 2019.
However, the retailer had strongly denied the suggestion it is moving away from the Market Street proposition, insisting it makes a point of difference for the supermarket
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