Asda eyes ecommerce expansion as online sales double

Asda said in its second quarter, covering April 1 to June 30, online grocery delivery sales more than doubled and online click-and-collect orders quadrupled due to the changes in consumer behaviour bought on by the pandemic. 

The retailer said it currently has capacity for 740,000 delivery slots a week but it wants to increase that to 1 million by the beginning of 2021. 

Since lockdown began in the UK at the end of March, Asda said it had already increased its online delivery capacity 65%. 

In terms of overall sales, Asda reported a 3.8% increase in like-for-like sales during the period. 

The grocer said it would also be expanding its delivery partnership with Uber Eats to a further 25 stores over the next eight weeks and has reinstated its same-day and express click-and-collect service at more than 300 stores.

Asda chief executive Roger Burnley said: “The pandemic has created a structural shift in customer behaviours towards grocery shopping. We have accelerated our online capacity expansion to meet levels we had anticipated reaching in eight years within a matter of weeks and we will continue to expand this offer. 

“We will also maintain focus on ensuring our in-store experience delivers what customers want.”

Asda said sales of George Home were growing 13% ahead of the market, while sales of its Extra Special premium own-brand range were up 19.4%. 

Looking forward to the second half of the year, Asda said the current recession would mean that “finances remain a key concern for consumers”.

An internal survey of customers showing family spending power decreased by 2.2% in the year to June to £211 per week – the steepest fall in seven years.

Parent company Walmart chief executive Doug McMillon praised Asda’s growth resilience for being able to grow “during this challenging period”.

Walmart reported 5.6% growth in total revenues to $137.7bn, though net international sales slumped 6.8% to $27.2bn.