MAKING THE PRICE RIGHT

Asda owner says store is on the right track despite another fall in sales

BIG FOUR supermarket Asda posted another fall in quarterly sales, but its US owner has insisted that the company is “on the right track”.

The Leeds-based chain, owned by Walmart, reported a 2.8 per cent fall in like-for-likes sales in its first quarter.

The figure represents an 11th consecutive quarter of sales declines but marks a slight improvement on the previous period, which saw Asda sales fall 2.9 per cent.

Asda chief executive Sean Clarke said: “We’re pleased that the momentum of the fourth quarter has continued into the New Year with a third consecutive quarter of improvement.

“We’re delivering more consistently for our customers, particularly in fresh food, service and availability – both in stores and online.

“Participation in our awardwinning Own Brand ranges has increased as we focus on increasing its value and quality and make sure we are offering the right ranges for our customers.

“Despite this progress we are in no way complacent and there is still much for us to do.”

Mr Clarke, who took up the reins last summer after being parachuted in to replace previous boss Andy Clarke, has slashed the prices of everyday items as he attempts to arrest falling sales.

Last August, Asda posted its worst ever sales fall of 7.5 per cent.

In response, it announced in September it was lowering thousands of prices on everyday favourites by an average of 15 per cent, with items such as beef, chicken and sausages all becoming cheaper.

The move, part of a new value campaign dubbed That’s Better, has also seen Asda improve the quality of its own-brand ranges.

The turnaround comes as Asda fights back having lost out recently in a brutal price war that has engulfed the sector.

The big four supermarkets – Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Leeds-based Asda and Bradford-based Morrisons – have all faced major disruption from German discounters Aldi and Lidl in recent years.

Phil Dorrell, partner at retail experts Retail Remendy, said: “The discounters stole Asda’s ball and now they need to invent a new game.”

In a trading update, Walmart said it is confident that Asda is “on the right track”.

Walmart chief executive Doug McMillon said: “We’ve made some progress in the UK and the team is executing their plan.

“We are navigating our way back to a position of strength in that highly competitive market. When normalising comp sales for the later Easter and Leap Day, we continued to see sequential improvement in the business, including customer traffic and ticket.”

Despite this progress we are in no way complacent. Sean Clarke, chief executive of Asda