Waitrose voted best Oxford supermarket in mystery shop

Oxford’s skyline of ‘dreaming spires’ is, just like the city itself, shaped by the renowned university that has made it a centre of scholarship for 800 years. The city’s educational offerings also make their presence felt demographically, with Oxford a notably international, culturally diverse and somewhat transient place – some 22% of its population are full‑time university students, according to Oxford City Council.

There is much going on outside academia, though, too. Tourism is thriving thanks to Oxford’s combination of small-town walkability and big-city culture, such as the famed Bodleian Libraries and Ashmolean Museum. Meanwhile, the local population works in sectors including healthcare, tech, publishing, the arts and more. It makes for a prosperous but sometimes uneven city, with high wages but very high housing costs.

Oxford is one of the few places that notably over-indexes with the two wealthiest demographic profiles provided by CACI. Indeed, at 24.2% it is home to almost double the UK average of those in the established affluence group. Unsurprisingly, it also under-indexes massively on the low-income living demographic at just 2.4% vs a national average of 13.3%.

In keeping with its relatively prosperous 542,000 population, it was Waitrose that took the win this week with 83 points to be crowned Oxford’s best supermarket. The 24,727 sq ft store on Botley Road, just a mile west of the city centre – one of six Waitrose stores in the city – performed well in most areas other than availability, where it registered two items out of stock and two not stocked. Nonetheless, our shopper praised the “great” layout and described the store as “clean, tidy and litter-free” with “a good range of products available”. She also noted it was “easy to find a staff member for help” and felt everyone she interacted with was “very knowledgeable about the location of products”.

Four miles south and five points behind, the 59,579 sq ft Sainsbury’s on Heyford Hill took second place. Our shopper liked the “fairly modern” interior, particularly the “good lighting levels”, the “clean presentation” and the lack of music, which made the experience “nice and quiet”. She also liked the range of products but noted “many empty or overturned boxes” in the fruit & veg area, incorrect labelling such as “lemons located under grapefruit tags” and found the layout “somewhat confusing”.

Meanwhile, just outside the Oxford ring road in the student area of Cowley, Tesco on Ambassador Avenue took third place with 70 points. Our eagle-eyed shopper identified the store “seemed to be designed in the so-called ‘Essex barn style’, dating it to perhaps around the 1990s”.

Nonetheless, it “seemed to be in good condition”, and he also praised the “friendly and helpful” staff who “took the time to assist with my shopping when my basket was heavy”.  Unfortunately, the shop was also notable for being “overstimulating, especially upon entering”. Our shopper felt Tesco could “do more to make shopping here a calmer and more relaxing experience by reassessing the store layout and sensory experience”.

Just one point back in fourth place was Morrisons on Black Bourton Road in Carterton, a full 18 miles’ drive west of Oxford city centre. Our shopper praised a “nice little supermarket” with a “decent selection” and “great layout”. She noted there were “not many staff around”, but it “was not a major issue” thanks to the relatively small 23,774 sq ft shop floor. There were, however, “some issues with items being out of stock or unstocked”.

Finally, a full 15 points back in last place was Asda on London Road in Wheatley, about seven miles outside Oxford. Our shopper described the entrance as “not inviting” thanks to the “bin right next to the door” with “a number of cigarette butts sat on top”. And things did not get much better from there.

The store was “very tired and messy, with poor lighting” and “rubbish all over the floor”. Overall, there was “nothing to like” about a “cluttered” store where it was “very hard to find products”. In fact, the only positive our shopper could muster about the whole experience was getting “time with my daughter”.