Who we visited

costcutter, Eden Street, Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey

londis, Brighton Road, Horsham, West Sussex

sainsbury's LOCAL, Ealing Broadway, West London

scottish Co-op Lenzie, Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire

tesco express, Saintfield Road, Belfast

How they performed

The Costcutter store on Eden Street in Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, may have been the only store in this week's survey to deliver a full basket of goods. But our visitor was underwhelmed after he left there just before midday on a Friday.

He described it as "scruffy and disorganised". While he was able to fill his basket, he said the store had a poor overall selection of stock and, worse yet, many of the products stocked had no prices marked on them.

In contrast, the Londis store on Brighton Road in Horsham was in superb condition when our mystery shopper visited. The staff were friendly, which he said gave the shop a local feel. The store did not have several items on our list.

The staff at the Scottish Co-op Welcome store in Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire, were pleasant when our shopper visited. The store was clean and tidy, but it did not stock one item on our list.

Over in Belfast, Northern Ireland, the Tesco Express on Saintfield Road provided a middling experience when our shopper visited. The small store was clean but untidy. While the shop was clearly designed to be easy to navigate, the extreme levels of clutter made that difficult. The store did not have two of the items on our list, although the staff were diligent in checking for them.

Availability and service put the dampener on what might otherwise have been an enjoyable visit for our mystery shopper at the Sainsbury's Local on Ealing Broadway in West London. The store was well merchandised and in a very clean condition. However the staff were not particularly friendly and the store did not deliver a full basket of goods. It did not stock individual cans of Whiskas catfood in jelly or the 4x440ml pack of Stella Artois.

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