Every Day Low Pricing has been less obvious in UK stores during the last six months, with only Tesco fully embracing the concept, according to Taylor Nelson Sofres research. TNS Superpanel account director Michael Hawkins said Tesco had halved the volume sold on promotions from 21% to 10% in the first half of the year ­ going down an EDLP route ­ although this had since almost reversed. He said there was a growing trend among retailers for promotions to be run for longer periods ­ what he termed "every day low offers". "EDLP does not exist in its pure form in Great Britain. Even though Asda say they want to take it forward, they've got a long way to go. "Maybe it'll exist properly in the next two, maybe five years. But the EDLP tag has worked in building price perception. People believe Asda is cheaper." He said each multiple had its own strategy on price: - Asda uses a different approach from category to category, with longer-term promotions, while stressing supplier relationships - Tesco takes the high ground on price cuts, and has returned to promotions on some staple categories, with local pricing and flyers - Sainsbury concentrates on promotions, especially the multibuy, while focusing on quality - Safeway concentrates on deep cut price promotions, especially local ones Hawkins said consumers were responding to the Mega Deals at Safeway, especially those who scan various chains for the best prices. He added that 33% of Safeway's volume was being sold through price discounting. He also predicted price promotion and competition would remain important for the big four and said micro-marketing ­ reacting locally to competitors ­ would become more prevalent. TNS revealed that basic commodity products are under the most price pressure: Tesco Value flour cost 9p for a 1.5kg bag in August, while Sainsbury's organic flour was priced at 93p. The market researcher predicted that it would be hard for prices to rise in the near future within the staple goods categories, with brands such as Kellogg's Corn Flakes currently at their lowest ever price level. {{NEWS }}

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