Waitrose Petersfield took the win this week with excellent store standards. The “friendly and welcoming” store scored 83 points.
First impressions were strong. The car park had lots of trolleys available and was easy to navigate. Upon entering the store, our shopper was greeted by a seasonal display of plants.
Inside, the store was clean, aisles were wide and signage was clear. A range of counters were available, all without queues. Lots of staff were available on the shop floor, all of whom were “very happy to help and advise”.
At the checkout, our shopper had to wait just two to three minutes. Queues were well managed, and staff opened new checkouts as soon as queues formed. The cashier was “very welcoming” and wished our shopper a lovely day.
Morrisons Harrogate came second with 69 points. Our shopper felt store standards were “inconsistent”. While our shopper noted a nice Easter display, it needed to be restocked.
The store was generally well stocked, excluding the depleted fruit & veg section. There were two spillages in the store, neither of which had been attended to.
On the plus side, the layout was easy to navigate, and staff were “pleasant and helpful”.
The tills were very busy and our shopper had to wait six minutes to be served, but the assistant was “pleasant and chatty”.
Sainsbury’s Birkenhead was next up with 66 points. The store was clean, generally well stocked and orderly. It had a nice layout with well-presented stock and an “inviting” bakery.
Staff were very helpful and made use of stools to look on the higher shelves for items.
However, there were “nowhere near enough tills open”, and our shopper had to wait six to seven minutes.
Fourth-placed Tesco Sheldon in Birmingham scored 59 points. Store standards were mixed. While stock levels were generally good, signage was confusing. Meanwhile, the counters were staffed and well stocked, and the food on display looked fresh.
Staff were of varying levels of helpfulness, and were not that easy to locate. At the checkout, our shopper had to wait four to five minutes, but the assistant was “fabulous”.
Iceland Cheltenham came fifth with 49 points. The shop did not start well, as our shopper noted the entrance looked “a bit messy”. The fruit & veg section was poorly stocked, though the rest of the store was in good shape.
Our shopper felt it was difficult to find staff, and those they found were not very helpful.
The checkout assistant did not greet our shopper or carefully handle products, and “was not especially friendly”.
Asda brought up the rear with 40 points. The store was “chaos” on entry. The promotional displays were seasonal but messy, and some offers were piled in trolleys in the doorway rather than on proper stands.
Once inside, the store layout was tight with narrow aisles. “There were promotional signs and bunting everywhere, which made it all a bit messy.”
Staff at least were helpful when approached. However, the restocking was causing issues for customers, due to massive trolleys that staff were struggling to manoeuvre.
“One pushed her trolley into my ankle,” said our shopper, while another assistant “clearly had trouble controlling her trolley and left it parked in the middle of the already small aisle”.
Our shopper had to wait more than 10 minutes at checkout, as only two tills were open.
No comments yet