Asda is aiming to lower the price of prepared produce with the launch of its Smartprice brand into the category as it looks to continue to improve its produce offer.
The retailer is set to launch two new low-price branded products, a prepared bagged salad and a stir-fry offer.
Mary Ling, produce marketing manager, said: “We’re lowering the cost of produce for families by bringing the Smartprice brand into the area. It’s now one of our biggest brands and we’re growing that.
“This will be the first time we’ve gone down the Smartprice route on prepared produce and I think it’s a very positive step.”
The two new products are set to go into stores from July 5, and the salad will feature a basic mix of highest selling products, Ling said.
“It will have iceberg lettuce, cabbage and possibly a bit of carrot. All the produce is the high volume, high selling stuff, and having the Smartprice offer will allow us to use a larger proportion of the crop, and the same will apply for the stir-fry mix.”
She said the customer perception is that prepared produce is more expensive than traditional produce. “Many customers will say, surely I can just buy the iceberg and chop it up, it’s cheaper, so with this new launch we’ll be targeting those customers.”
Smartprice has already proved popular in other areas for Asda, with strawberries performing well under the brand, said Ling.
“We’re effectively using class II product, but it’s purely cosmetic. The taste and quality is still there, but it means we can utilise a greater proportion of our suppliers’ crop.”
The retailer is also looking to expand on its organic produce offer, Ling said. “At the moment we’re doing extremely well on organics, doubling sales year-on-year, and I think our customers are recognising that our organic offer is better value.”
Asda will be offering 10 new organic lines, including beetroot and cos lettuce, in a bid to broaden choice for consumers. “Customers say they like our offer, but they want more to choose from,” she said.
Another key win on organics has been a decision to reorganise the sector and put all organic produce together in one fixture. “Just by doing that, we saw a 14 per cent uplift in sales in store,” Ling added
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