Walmart-owned Asda has accused its competitors of using a voucher war to drive traffic over the festive period.
More than 5% of sales by major rivals were “given away for free” using vouchers, said chief merchandising officer Barry Williams.
“The cost is not born by the retailers, it is born by the customer through the price they pay at the checkout”, he said.
Rival prices were actually higher as a result, and customers who didn’t use vouchers were worse off as a result, said the retail chain.
The retailer’s Price Lock initiative was delivering price integrity to customers, said Williams.
He drew attention to Asda’s new price-comparison website, low-prices.asda.com, enables shoppers to view price variations among competitors on essential grocery items.
Meanwhile, chief executive Andy Clarke said, “We have the widest [price] gap with Tesco we've ever had and are closer to Aldi than ever.”
“We’re playing the long game and the decisions we’re taking now will ensure the long-term growth and health of our business and do the right things for our customers,” he added.
Asda invested £60 million in price drops over the Christmas period.
Earlier this week, Asda reported comparable store sales fell 0.1% in its fourth quarter to Janruary 3.
@ 2014 ESM Magazine
