Morrisons has rolled out its ‘when it’s gone it’s gone’ range to nearly all its supermarkets, having first introduced the offer in February.
The WIGIG range recently reached its 450th store, bringing Morrisons customers across the UK the kind of general merchandise bargains usually associated with Aldi and Lidl’s middle aisle.
Morrisons is working with a number of new suppliers to offer a wide range of products, including cookware, toys, homeware and electricals, outdoor and garden, car care and travel. The range also extends to health & beauty, household and food & drink, and includes brands.
It is displayed on wooden crates covered with ‘When it’s gone it’s gone’ signage. Offers are live in store for three weeks at a time, with new products added weekly.
Morrisons has also recently begun adapting the offer to seasonal themes, such as a camping week and back to school selection.
“Our trading mentality is growing – and nothing illustrates this more clearly than the way the whole company has got behind our range of outstanding value WIGIGs,” said Morrisons CEO Rami Baitiéh in an investor call last week.
“For us, WIGIG is not a gimmick. It’s a strategic lever for sales growth and customer delight. The offers have to be great quality… but at genuinely outstanding prices.
“And while we build our strength in WIGIG, we are also building up muscle, experience and supplier relationships in GM and home & leisure… which is an area where we under index.
“We are still at the start of our WIGIG journey, but the best traders in Morrisons now see the potential, have got behind it and we are improving every day.”
The prices are claimed to significantly undercut the market by up to 50%, with rsps displayed to highlight the value.
The offer is adapted to store size, so the extent of the range and the assortment depends on the shop floor space available.
A selection of the WIGIG range is also available online to shoppers within the delivery area of Morrisons’ fulfilment centres in Erith and Dordon, while the supermarket is looking to extend availability through store-picking.
The WIGIG offer is not the only way Morrisons has been mimicking the discounters. In February, it became the fourth major supermarket to launch a price-matching scheme, targeting both Lidl and Aldi. Morrisons’ price match promise extends to about 250 products.
Morrisons reported continued improved performance in its second quarter to 28 April, with group like-for-like sales up 4.1%, following a 4.6% increase in quarter one.
Tesco tried having a WIGIG aisle at its discount chain, Jack’s, which it launched in 2018 in an attempt to take the fight to Aldi and Lidl, only to pull the plug on the operation in 2022.
Iceland also offers general merchandise WIGIG deals in Food Warehouse stores.
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