Two retailers boasted full baskets this week, but Waitrose’s Horsham branch clinched our top store award thanks to its short queue, friendly staff and “cheerful” checkout assistant.
The small branch was busy, but though staff were shelf stacking they did not get in our shopper’s way and an assistant showed her to the Soreen Malt Loaf.
Tesco’s Oldham branch, which only opened in May, was described as “immaculate”. Staff were busy stacking shelves and putting up £1 banners but our shopper found them and the checkout assistant “warm, friendly and very helpful”.
The store provided a full basket but the queue was longer than Waitrose’s and our shopper was not charged for the apples. Asda in Burton upon Trent had one out-of-stock item but a helpful assistant escorted our shopper to several items and asked if she needed any more help.
One out-of-stock item also let down Sainsbury's in Chesham. Although the items were easy to find, an assistant politely told our shopper she couldn’t help her locate the healthy-eating curry because she was new.
Availability disappointed at Morrisons in Seaford. Empty boxes cluttered the aisles but staff dealt efficiently with a yoghurt spillage. Staff were helpful around the aisles, the checkout assistant was polite but charged our shopper for the wrong type of pear.
Winner: Alan Johnson, store manager, Waitrose, Horsham
Tell me about your latest promotions. We have been selling our soft fruits, such as strawberries, raspberries and plums for half price and they have gone down really well.
Do you now sell the whole Essential Waitrose range? Not yet. It has been on a roll-out since it was first launched in March and we expect to have the 1,400 lines in by the autumn. Customers have really taken to the range. It is really encouraging them to do a full weekly shop. Our Essential poultry and dried pasta are particularly strong sellers.
How is your non-food faring? We only stock a limited range because we are quite a small store but it is doing well. Our gadget of the month is an ice cream scoop and it's flying off the shelves. We have just started selling recipe books in the store, too, which have replaced the magazines and DVDs we stopped selling earlier this year, and they have also proved really popular.
What about your online offer? We have just the one van but since we stopped charging for delivery in April, so many more customers are taking advantage of our online service, and sales are up 25%.
If you could change one thing about your store, what would it be? I would love a car park. We don't have one and the nearest place shoppers can park is run by the council so they have to pay. I would also love to extend the store and stock more ranges but we are very restricted because of our town centre location.
What are your everyday management challenges? To keep the partners here informed and up to date on any issues and what is going on in the branch. Because the business is a partnership, it is even more important to keep the partners informed of exactly what is happening in their own branch and business because they invest in it.
How do you and your staff socialise outside work? We have a very active social club. One of the benefits of being a partner in Waitrose is that there are plenty of opportunities to socialise outside work. We recently booked a trip to visit Buckingham Palace and some partners have just enjoyed a trip to see The Lion King musical at the theatre.
The small branch was busy, but though staff were shelf stacking they did not get in our shopper’s way and an assistant showed her to the Soreen Malt Loaf.
Tesco’s Oldham branch, which only opened in May, was described as “immaculate”. Staff were busy stacking shelves and putting up £1 banners but our shopper found them and the checkout assistant “warm, friendly and very helpful”.
The store provided a full basket but the queue was longer than Waitrose’s and our shopper was not charged for the apples. Asda in Burton upon Trent had one out-of-stock item but a helpful assistant escorted our shopper to several items and asked if she needed any more help.
One out-of-stock item also let down Sainsbury's in Chesham. Although the items were easy to find, an assistant politely told our shopper she couldn’t help her locate the healthy-eating curry because she was new.
Availability disappointed at Morrisons in Seaford. Empty boxes cluttered the aisles but staff dealt efficiently with a yoghurt spillage. Staff were helpful around the aisles, the checkout assistant was polite but charged our shopper for the wrong type of pear.
Winner: Alan Johnson, store manager, Waitrose, Horsham
Tell me about your latest promotions. We have been selling our soft fruits, such as strawberries, raspberries and plums for half price and they have gone down really well.
Do you now sell the whole Essential Waitrose range? Not yet. It has been on a roll-out since it was first launched in March and we expect to have the 1,400 lines in by the autumn. Customers have really taken to the range. It is really encouraging them to do a full weekly shop. Our Essential poultry and dried pasta are particularly strong sellers.
How is your non-food faring? We only stock a limited range because we are quite a small store but it is doing well. Our gadget of the month is an ice cream scoop and it's flying off the shelves. We have just started selling recipe books in the store, too, which have replaced the magazines and DVDs we stopped selling earlier this year, and they have also proved really popular.
What about your online offer? We have just the one van but since we stopped charging for delivery in April, so many more customers are taking advantage of our online service, and sales are up 25%.
If you could change one thing about your store, what would it be? I would love a car park. We don't have one and the nearest place shoppers can park is run by the council so they have to pay. I would also love to extend the store and stock more ranges but we are very restricted because of our town centre location.
What are your everyday management challenges? To keep the partners here informed and up to date on any issues and what is going on in the branch. Because the business is a partnership, it is even more important to keep the partners informed of exactly what is happening in their own branch and business because they invest in it.
How do you and your staff socialise outside work? We have a very active social club. One of the benefits of being a partner in Waitrose is that there are plenty of opportunities to socialise outside work. We recently booked a trip to visit Buckingham Palace and some partners have just enjoyed a trip to see The Lion King musical at the theatre.
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