This was a tough week across the board for the stores we visited, with scores affected by poor availability on this Friday night shop.
Shoppers were left “disappointed” after discovering so many items missing across all stores. This was reflected in the availability scores, with four out of five stores this week scoring the lowest possible mark. Only Asda registered any availability points.
Tesco managed a narrow win ahead of Waitrose, with just one point’s difference between the two stores. Tesco Allerton Road in Liverpool delivered excellent service and store standards, scoring 66 points.
Winner Tesco did very well on store standards: “The fruit and veg section looked tidy, well presented and reasonably well stocked,” said our shopper, while its “end of aisle promotions were attractively presented”.
Staff were difficult to find but helpful when located. Our shopper was particularly impressed by one member of staff who located the nearest Tesco store that stocked a missing item.
Checkout service was “friendly” and swift, and our shopper did not have to wait long to be served. The customer assistant took the time to smile, thank our shopper, and say goodbye.
Waitrose Reading, which scored 65, also did well on service, with staff dealing “skilfully” with an issue with the tills. Our shopper praised the checkout assistant who “kept her cool and was efficient and professional” and apologised for the inconvenience.
The store was let down by the number of products missing: seven out of stock and four not stocked. Our shopper said it was “immensely disappointing” and reported “the shelves were not full and looked a bit scruffy where the gaps were”.
Asda Wakefield came next with 60 points, and scored the best on shop floor service this week. Staff were “helpful and obliging” and assisted in locating items. There were four out of stocks and our shopper spotted “some gaps” in fruit & veg.
The entrance to the store was “spacious and had lots of plants” and a special section offering seasonal items such as hot tubs. However, the carpet in the foyer was stained, and “there was a water spillage by the houmous”.
Asda was significantly let down by the queues for the checkout, with our shopper having to wait more than six minutes to be served. The queues were “snaking up the aisles on every checkout”.
Sainsbury’s in Redditch scored 57 points. Customer service was good, with customer assistants “very friendly and pleasant”. The checkout assistant was “friendly and chatty” and handled delicate products carefully.
Our shopper suggested more could have been done with the entrance, though the aisle ends had “tempting” displays. The fruit & veg section was very sparse, and there was a “discarded pile of boxes”.
Morrisons Corringham came last with a score of just 32. The entrance to the store was “underwhelming”, and service was poor, with not one staff member offering to look at the back for products that were missing. Staff were “pleasant but not helpful”. Our shopper was guided to products through pointing or directions, rather than being taken to their locations.
The store only had one out of stock item, but our shopper only managed to pick up 18 products as the small store did not range 14 of the lines we were looking for.
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