What is ASDA? ASDA Review, Features

Founded in Yorkshire in the 1960s, Asda is one of the UK's leading retailers. Dedicated colleagues serve customers through our network of stores and online services, including supercentres, supermarkets, hypermarkets, lifestyle stores, petrol stations and warehouses across the UK. More than 18 million people shop at Asda every week.

Serve

1. Food delivery

2. Drug delivery

Advantages

1. Relying on Walmart’s strong supply chain

2. Weekends and late nights are both business hours

history

-In 1958, Peter and Fred Asquith opened and sold their first store, and the retail industry was booming. Looking for inspiration, they traveled to America to visit Piggly Wiggly, possibly the world's first supermarket. The trip was a revelation, sparking a revolution in retail.

-In 1963, inspired and energised by their travels in America, the Asquith brothers renamed their once-named theatre The Queens, becoming the UK’s first self-service supermarket in Castleford. Soon after, they transformed the indoor market into a second ‘Queens’ store. At the same time, the Asquith brothers made an incredible discovery: the concept of food discounts. Crosse and Blackwell would offer postal orders of soup for 6d (2.5d) per returned tag. Asquith’s buyer, Jack Hewitt (later Managing Director of Asda), spotted an opportunity and placed an order for 1000 tins of soup. The three men then spent days cutting out the tags for redemption and offering the tins of soup at a 3d discounted price. The concept of food discounts and offering customers value for money had emerged. Customers loved the idea… and they still do! Around the same time, the Asquith brothers pioneered late night shopping on Fridays. It’s a first in retail, and again, customers love it.

-In 1965, Peter Asquith built his first new supermarket from scratch next to a large parking lot because he knew that cars would change the way people shop. Queens soon developed and expanded into a chain of self-service supermarkets.

Around this time, Peter Asquith was also looking for a company to take over his in-store butchery, so he got in touch with Noel Stockdale of United Dairy. This was the beginning of a fantastic retail partnership.

- In 1966, in order to fill excess space in former GEM stores, Asda became the first food store to offer General Merchandise. Customers were delighted - the Nottingham store made £30,000 in its first week and Judith Smith at the Castleford store became the first checkout operator to make £1,000 a week.

-In 1967, the remodelled large GEM store was seen as a landmark event in the development of British retail. In order to expand this new trading format, Peter Asquith launched the first discount petrol filling station. None of the major oil companies would support this new idea, so Peter negotiated a deal with the little-known Russian oil company NAFTA.

-In 1968, United Dairy Company bought out Asquith Brothers, but Peter remained an important force in the company.

-1970 By 1970 Asda had over 30 stores and was ready to expand from its northern heartland into the south.

-In 1971, aged 77, Asda was ready to take things further and appointed Peter Firmston-Williams as Managing Director, recognising that a talented leader was essential for future success. Peter oversaw Asda's expansion into the south, with new stores opening in Newport, Plymouth and Gosport by 1977.

-In 1977, the "Asda Price" TV advert featuring a "pocket tap" was launched. The pocket tap eventually became so well known that sign language replaced Asda's official sign language.

By the end of the 70s Asda was thriving with over 80 stores and a total retail space of 3 million sq ft. During this period the business embarked on a diversification programme. We introduced Asda Property and Asda Drive and acquired a number of businesses including United Carpets and Wade's Furniture.

-1981 The 100th Asda store opened this year, Peter Firmston-Williams left the company and John Fletcher became Asda's new managing director.

-In 1984, John Hardman was appointed Managing Director and embarked on a new strategy to develop new 'ASDA brand' products, give stores a fresh new look and create a centralised distribution centre.

-1985 Asda merged with MFI (Mullard Furniture Industries) in May of this year. MFI was sold again in 1987.

It was during this period that Asda began building seven new distribution centres strategically located across the UK.

- In 1987, Asda's flagship store in Watford opened, covering 64,000 sq ft. This was another milestone in British retailing, it was the longest checkout bank ever, with 45 checkouts.

-In 1988, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher opened Asda's new headquarters in Leeds. A state-of-the-art office building, the building was the foundation for Asda's future growth, which began with the acquisition of 61 Gateway stores.

-Seven new distribution centers opened in the UK in 1989.

- In 1989, George Davies was asked to produce a range of clothing for Asda - high quality, great value and with its own identity. The partnership and pioneering brand George at Asda was born, which would eventually become one of the top clothing brands in the UK.

- In 1990, George created the first supermarket clothing brand

-In 1991, Archie Norman joined Asda, becoming the youngest CEO of a FTSE 100 company.

Archie and his new senior team (including Alan Leighton, Phil Cox and Tony Campbell) listened to the business and developed a radical new strategy. The Asda Way of Working was created, providing the framework for a new organisational structure. It enabled heroes to be in the stores and boosted colleague engagement. This was the beginning of the Asda culture we know and love today.

-1995 In just four years Archie, Allan Leighton and their team return Asda to being a significant force in UK retail.

- In 1996, Asda launched the Tickle It Pink campaign to raise funds to fight breast cancer, a partnership that continues to this day. The first pharmacy also opened in Harrogate. Today, Asda pharmacies offer services for families, including free blood pressure checks, immunisations and shots - helping our customers save money and live better lives.

-In 1998, Asda began its online retail service from a dedicated warehouse in Croydon.

-In 1999, Asda joined the Walmart family and became part of the world's largest retailer, a move that surprised the entire industry.

-In 2000, Asda entered the new millennium at a breakneck pace and enjoyed new growth, adding new business areas, introducing new brands and opening new stores. Asda also launched a grocery shopping business and later launched a non-food online business.

-In 2002, Asda was named the best company to work for by The Sunday Times.

- In 2004, Asda was named the "Most Valuable Retailer" by The Grocer for the seventh consecutive year and became the UK's largest clothing retailer. The first Asda Living store opened in Walsall, the first "general merchandise" store.

This year, Asda also proudly announced that it had helped raise more than £21 million for Children in Need and Tickle the Pink in just five years since 1999. George became the UK's second largest clothing retailer and launched £3 jeans to delight customers

- In 2005, Andy Bond was appointed President and CEO, who brought a new vision for retail and delivered even greater success to Asda. This year we also expanded into Northern Ireland.

- In 2006, Asda launched its 'We Sell for Less' scheme, which reduced the cost of living for millions of people in the UK.

-In 2007, Andy Clarke was appointed Chief Operating Officer and later became President and CEO. Asda also expanded its online retail offering by launching direct.asda.com.

- In 2008, Asda opened its own Eco Store in Bootle - our greenest store ever, including bricks recycled from Liverpool Docklands. The energy saved from using natural light could brew 11 million cups of tea!

This year marked the opening of George's first online store and in October it launched a little black coat priced at £15, which was a huge success.

- In 2009, Asda acquired International Produce Ltd, an important part of its strategy to source fresh produce directly and offer better value to customers. George also went from strength to strength, becoming the UK's number one selling clothing brand. In addition, as part of Asda's mission to support parents in every way, a 100-day money-back guarantee on school uniforms was introduced.

-In 2010, Asda continued to grow. Online shopping was still expanding and we were rising to the challenge. We were still opening new stores, still saving customers money every day and increasing our strength in sustainability.

George introduces a ground-breaking 100-Day Satisfaction Guarantee. This means that if our customers are unhappy with their George purchase for any reason, they can return it within 100 days with proof of purchase for an exchange or refund.

- In 2011, George became the main sponsor of the title fashion sponsor Graduate Fashion Week, affirming its commitment to providing the latest fashions at the best prices.

- In 2012, the new Community Living programme was launched - whether through supporting local events, charities or schools, we are committed to helping local communities make better places to live and work for colleagues and customers. In the same year, the first drive-up Click & Collect was installed in Queensferry. This marked another first for Asda before the launch of Click & Collect. The new Bangor store was the first store to be fully equipped with LED lighting. The store also began using air source heat pumps - adding renewable energy to the new store.

-In 2013, Asda opened its new Centre of Merchandising Excellence in Leeds, in a 90,000 sq ft former bottling plant. It has become an integral part of Asda and a model for best practice for Walmart globally. Sale launched its first standalone petrol station. And the UK’s first temperature-controlled Click & Collect lockers were installed in Pudsy. George achieved market first place in both volume and value in Back to School

- In 2014 the Retail Industry Awards recognised the fantastic work of our community colleagues as we were named 'Community Retailer of the Year'. We were also honoured to be named one of The Times' top 50 employers for women and we are proud to have continued to maintain this position in 2015. By 2014, 600 remote Click & Collect points were installed across the country.

Asda has launched the George Home range, which includes 1,000 new lines including home accessories and bedding, with prices starting from just £1. This year we also launched the first supermarket premature baby clothing range suitable for babies aged 1lb to 5lb.

- In 2015, Asda celebrated its 50th anniversary! It was a landmark year for the company, which achieved many great successes, including the opening of its 600th store and profits exceeding the £1 billion mark for the first time. To celebrate the company's half century and successful partnership with Walmart, Asda adopted its parents' famous "sparkle" on its logo, along with Walmart's purpose of "saving money. Living better". 2015 was also a year of celebration for George Clothing, which celebrated its 25th anniversary.

- In 2016, Asda launched its 20th year of Tickle It Pink campaign, raising £50 million to help support Breast Cancer Care and Breast Cancer Now charities. Sean Clarke has been appointed as Asda’s new president and CEO as the company continues to look for ways to help its customers save money and live better.

- In 2017, Asda’s commitment to delivering great value for customers was recognised once again, with the company being named the lowest priced supermarket for the 20th consecutive year at the Grocer Gold Award. Yorkshireman Roger Burnley returns to his home town to rejoin Asda as Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Chief Executive. He held a number of positions at the company in the late 1990s and early 2000s before moving into senior roles at other retailers. Asda is listed as one of the top 100 employers of apprenticeships in the UK by Centrica - the only one of the top four supermarkets. As part of its support for suppliers and to help small businesses better manage their cash flow, Asda has pledged to pay all small suppliers within 14 days.

-In 2018, after the business returned to positive growth, Sean Clarke took over as President and CEO from Roger Burnley, starting a new era. Asda launched a number of new technologies to help its customers simplify shopping, including the UK's first parcel tower, which means customers can collect online orders in less than 60 seconds, and voice-activated shopping through Google Home. Asda and J Sainsbury PLC announced a proposal to merge and create a new retail business. In 2019, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) published its final report blocking the merger.

- In 2020, Asda held discussions with a number of private equity investors who were interested in exploring partnerships with the supermarket to enable it to develop its strategy. After pausing this process to focus on responding to the Covid-19 pandemic, Asda and Walmart recommenced these discussions in July 2020. On 2 October 2020, Issa Brothers and TDR Capital announced that they had reached an agreement with Walmart to acquire a majority stake in Asda, with Walmart retaining an equity interest in the business. The FCA confirmed its approval of the transaction on 8 February 2020 and the acquisition was completed on 16 February 2021. Asda, Issa Brothers and TDR continue to engage constructively with the CMA to address any competition concerns and expect a positive outcome to its investigation in the second half of 2021.