Asda has opened its very first "Express" convenience store in the West Midlands today - with 30 more sites planned for next year.
The store has opened its doors in Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, creating 17 new jobs in the local community.
It stocks around 3,000 products, from fresh and chilled groceries to Asda’s premium Extra Special range, as well as a broad selection of beers, wines and spirits.
Shoppers can also get their hands on a selection of hot and cold "food for now" options from Asda and partner brands including Leon.
There are also "food for later" choices, including ready meals and a selection of £10 meal deals for two people.
The new Express store will offer "toyou" parcel collection, return services and a rapid delivery service through Uber Eats.
Mohsin Issa, Asda’s co-owner, said: “The launch of our first Asda Express convenience stores is a landmark moment and a key step on our journey to bring Asda to more customers in more communities right across the UK.
“The stores have been designed to cater for a broad range of customer needs – whether that’s popping in for a pint of milk, grabbing a spot of lunch on the go, or buying the fresh ingredients to cook dinner from scratch.
“We’re confident customers will find everything they need in these stores and enjoy the convenience of having a new type of Asda store on their doorstep.
“I’m delighted to welcome the new colleagues at Sutton Coldfield to the Asda family – leading us on our first steps into this market and am grateful to all the colleagues who have worked with such pace and enthusiasm to bring this vision to life for Asda.”
In a bid to bring Asda value products to more local communities across the UK, another Express store will open at Tottenham Hale next month on December 6.
This will be followed by 30 sites next year. The new stores will create roughly 500 new jobs for residents in local communities.
Asda hopes that its Express stores will help them establish a presence in the fast-growing convenience sector.
The stores are wholly owned and operated by Asda, and are separate from the Asda On the Move convenience sites, typically located on petrol pump sites - which are owned and operated by EG Group.
The new Asda Express stores will also be separate from the 132 convenience stores that the supermarket has acquired from the Co-op Group.
