Asda chief Andy Bond has admitted the retailer could do with an image overhaul to reflect a recent shift in its customer profile.

The chain has attracted 5% more AB shoppers over the past two years as wealthier consumers have become savvier and more value driven, said Bond, and although store improvements were ongoing, more still needed to be done.

"I realise our image is a little bit downmarket," he said, speaking at Asda's annual business update. "We need to change that because the amount of AB demographic consumers who shop with us is now representative of the country as a whole.

"Value is a quality everyone wants, not just those on a budget. People think you have to have high prices to be high quality and yet everyone flies with Easyjet. Well, we're trying to position ourselves as the Easyjet of retailing".

Bond said Asda had previously had holes in its product strategy but these had been plugged by organic and Extra Special ranges as part of Asda's mission to make luxury products affordable for everyone. "A few years ago, organic was just for people driving Chelsea tractors, but no longer. It's now a normal commodity," he said.

Bond also vowed to make the Asda offer available to everybody by extending the coverage of its grocery website from 70% to 100% of the UK. "Everybody in the country will be able to shop with us online for food by the end of next year," he said.

New stores and RDCs would be built and delivery areas stretched in order to extend the service.

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