ASDA turns around sales slump

Taken from the Ranger magazine www.theranger.co.uk

New style packaging along with extra shelf space and a redesigned fixture have seen supermarket giant ASDA reverse a trend of falling free range and organic egg sales.

Despite previous strong growth, sales showed signs of slipping towards the end of 2005 and when egg buyer Hannah Naseem took over the category the following spring,

"sales of free range and organic were going backwards," she told producers gathered at a meeting of the Midlands Free Range Discussion Group.

"When I took over the category free range and organic sales were in need of focus, commitment and action," said Ms

Naseem, now in her second year in the role.

Ms Naseem quickly got to work with colleagues at ASDA and suppliers Stonegate to address the downturn in sales.

"First and foremost we listened to our customers," she told the meeting. "Customers buy with their eyes and there is a need for clear messages and an ease of shop."

Customers' views on thepackaging in place at the time

revealed that there needed to be a clear message about the size and type of egg. "Both myself and Stonegate also

believed that the Lion ought to be emphasised more, particularly at a time when Lion advertising was

very clearly linking the Lion to Britishness—a message our customers in particular relate to very strongly," went

on Ms Naseem."

The meeting heard that new style packaging was launched in autumn 2006 which addressed these areas of concern,

with the focus on clearly communicating the type of production with a very strong free range message.

"The Lion is much larger and some may even say that free range eggs are one of the very few products in store where the size and prominence of ASDA branding is upstaged!"

said Ms Naseem. "I am very proud of the packs and believe they have been one of the foundations for our strong performance over the past eight or nine months."

As well as introducing new packs, the egg fixture was redesigned to give more space to free range and make it 'first in flow'.

"This means that for the majority of customers who follow a natural flow round a store they will come across free range eggs first on the fixture. Free range eggs were also

given more space on the fixture."

The outcome of these initiatives has been a swing upwards in free range sales of around five per cent since last November, along with improving sales for organic eggs.

ASDA has plans to dedicate even more space to free range and organic eggs in an effort to further boost sales, along with timely promotional activity.

As for a bespoke supply base for free range eggs—similar to that of other retailers such as Waitrose, Marks & Spencer and latterly Sainsbury's—Ms Naseem commented that while Asda currently sourced its eggs from the total British market, they were considering having their own supply base.

"There are many advantages to this approach. There is improved security of supply, a system that necessitates closer working relationships with producers and, vitally, the opportunity to provide our customers with a real point of difference.

"The real challenge is to make these differences sustainable at minimum cost. The Asda business model would necessitate me being at least as, if not more, price

competitive with other retailers.

"We do have some thoughts," went on Ms Naseem. "The two trend 'mantras' in the grocery sector currently would be local and environmentally responsible. If I can land a

supply chain that reflected these two, at minimal cost, then that really would be a feather in the ASDA cap and would help secure the future for our egg suppliers."