Winner: Asda Eastlands
Store manager: Jason Teens
Opened: 2002 Size: 85,000 sq
Nearest rivals: Aldi: 1.6 miles Tesco: 2.2 miles Morrisons: 2.8 miles
Store data source: Analysis by CACI.
Call the market planning group on 020 7602 6000
The store is next door to the Manchester City football ground. How does that affect trading? On match days you get a lot more impulse buys and more people come in to the restaurant. But overall, fewer people come through the doors as some of the access roads are closed. What you tend to get then is better trading days either side of match day.
How have you coped with the fuel crisis over the past week? We did experience a big increase in demand – in line with the rest of the country. On Thursday and Friday we ran out and had to shut for a few hours. We had people on the forecourt explaining the situation to customers. Overall, I’m pretty pleased that we only had to close the pumps for a total of about eight hours.
How has the recent warm weather affected trading? Ice creams, salads and cold drinks all did well. There was also a big uplift in sales of garden furniture sales. This year, we put the full range in earlier and we have made a real effort to display out of the box and offer people help with taking some of the bulkier items to their cars. Helped by the good weather, that work seems to have paid off.
Are you ready for the tobacco display ban? We’ve been operating with the shutters for the past two weeks. Both customers and staff seem to be OK with it. We haven’t seen any dip in sales.
And how are you setting up for Easter? We’re preparing for some busy trading days ahead. Instead of closing earlier, we’ve extended our opening hours on Saturday from 8pm to 10pm in order to give customers the best possible access to the store.
How is the £5 voucher for £40 shops that Asda extended to Easter going down with customers? We’ve pushed it a lot in stores and customers are getting used to the vouchers. When people have to spend a bit more – at times like Christmas and Easter – then the money-o vouchers give them a bit of extra help.
Jason Teens was talking to Guy Montague-Jones
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