Tesco has picked up its second store of the week award in the current Grocer 33 year.
With a respectable 78 points, the supermarket’s South Queensferry branch was the only strong performer in a low-scoring week. Because of a torrential downpour on Friday evening, our mystery shopper found the store to be relatively quiet. She said all members of staff were helpful whenever she asked for assistance, and noted the checkout assistant was “very friendly”.
She was surprised there were very few chicken products available and the drumsticks were out of stock as they were “usually in abundance”. However, overall she considered it a “very good shop” and managed to buy 29 items, with three out of stocks and one not stocked.
Waitrose came second with 68 points despite our shopper completing a rare full basket of all 33 items. Our shopper at its East Sheen store in London still noticed a number of gaps, particularly in the fresh produce and bakery sections.
Our visitor noticed there were plenty of staff on hand, yet there were lots of unmanned trolleys causing obstructions. She also said the customer service at checkout was “poor” as the assistant did not make eye contact nor greet her.
With 59 points, Morrisons Bodmin was described by our shopper as disorganised. The shelves in the soft drinks aisle were filled with barbecue items, while there was a spillage by the milk trolley. He noted some litter and discarded boxes, too.
On the other hand, the entrance display for Baileys Apple Pie was very eye-catching, and the food counters well-stocked and attractive.
Availability was patchy, with gaps on shelves in a number of aisles. For our list, there were two out of stocks and three not-stocked products.
Our shopper was also left frustrated by the lack of tills being manned at the checkouts.
Asda’s Newton Abbot branch notched up 56 points. Our shopper was disappointed from the beginning as she was not aware customers had to pay for parking, and the machines only accepted cash – forcing her to spend time looking for an ATM and queueing at the customer service desk to get change.
The store itself felt spacious and clean, but the restocking trolleys made it harder to navigate. As with other supermarkets, the lack of stock was evident in many aisles. Some gaps were filled with “random” items, and the store’s layout also felt odd at times.
Our visitor had friendly interactions with staff, particularly with her checkout assistant, who was “absolutely lovely”. She went home with 28 items due to five out-of-stocks but said she would have been satisfied with the alternatives if she were doing her normal shop.
Sainsbury’s took last place with just 35 points. Our shopper went home with only 26 items as the retailer’s Biddulph store appeared to have been a victim of the current driver shortage and pingdemic. There were six out-of-stocks and one item was not stocked.
She described the shop as “a bit of a barn”. The store was very quiet, and she noticed the seasonal aisle looked neat and attractive upon entering. However, the fruit & veg section was quite depleted.
Our visitor also struggled to find a staff member to ask for help and was told there was a shortage of staff at the warehouse too. She enjoyed having the store almost to herself but was confused by the fact that general merchandise took up more space than groceries.
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