Following questioning by Burnley and Padiham’s MP Antony Higginbotham the CEO of one of the UKs largest supermarkets has confirmed that own-brand budget range products will now be stocked at their smaller convenience stores.
David Potts who heads up Morrisons is the first to take on board the comments raised by Mr Higginbotham in the Parliamentary Business and Trade Committee when he questioned the availability of own-brand essentials.
Speaking in the Committee Antony asked:
“The customers who rely on those stores, they’re not using it for convenience, they’re typically lower income with less access to cars or good public transport.
So, what are you doing to help make sure in those stores there is a better range of own brand essentials?"
The session came after a report by Which? found that supermarkets were failing to make their own-brand budget range products available at their smaller outlets which is hitting the lowest earners without access to transportation the hardest.
In a letter this week, David Potts CEO of Morrisons thanked Antony Higginbotham for his “thoughtful questions at the Business and Trade Committee on the absence of own brand budget ranges from convenience stores” confirming that “Morrisons Savers is Britain’s fastest growing budget range and we are today introducing it into Morrisons Daily stores across the country.”
These saver products will be “available in over 500 Morrisons Daily stores and will be the same price as in Morrisons supermarkets.”
Commenting Antony Higginbotham MP said:
When I raised this issue it was because I was concerned that those without access to a car had very limited choice when it came to purchasing own branded essential items. With cost of living pressures I wanted answers as to why and pushed the supermarket bosses on it.
It’s great to see that Morrisons have taken on board what I raised with them in the Committee. They’ve taken the lead by introducing own branded produce in their convenience stores and equalised the prices between the smaller and larger stores.
I hope that the other big names follow suit and offer a wider selection for people to purchase too. I’ll be speaking with them about it again when are they are next in front of the Committee.
