- Free range very large eggs (pack of 6): - ASDA: £1.29
- Waitrose: £1.71
- Whole fresh milk (4pints): - ASDA: £1.11
- Waitrose: £1.49
- Kellogg’s Cornflakes (750g): - ASDA: £1.78
- Waitrose: £1.95
- Spaghetti (1kg): - ASDA: £0.45
- Waitrose: £0.55
- Hovis Best of Both thick loaf: - ASDA: £1.02
- Waitrose: £1.02
- Granny Smith Apples (per kg): - ASDA: £1.18
- Waitrose: £1.49
- 8 pork sausages: - ASDA: £0.45
- Waitrose: £0.98
Häagen-Dazs Belgian chocolate (500ml): - ASDA: £3.78
- Waitrose: £3.79
Stella Artois (4x440mlCan): - ASDA: £4.18
- Waitrose: £4.19
Maryland choc chip cookies (150g): - ASDA: £0.65
Waitrose: £0.65
Orange juice with bits (1litre): - ASDA: £0.79
- Waitrose: £0.89
Chocolate sponge cake: - ASDA: £0.78
- Waitrose: £1.48
Haribo starmix (225g): - ASDA: £0.97
- Waitrose: £0.99
Snickers 5 multipack (5x62.5g): - Asda: £1.28
- Waitrose: £1.29
Total: :
ASDA : £23.29
Waitrose: £26.76
Just from looking at these results you can see that ASDA sells the same products at much cheaper prices. It illustrates how Waitrose believe their goods are of a better quality and therefore sell them at a higher price in order to make more profit. Asda however, believe that if they sell their goods at a lower price to most supermarkets, then they will be more popular and earn more profit through the amount of sales they produce.
Supermarkets and other businesses everywhere around the world are forced to make pricing decisions based on what competitors are charging every once in a while. This is what is called competition based pricing and is what the company must think about thoroughly if they wish to try and be the best around.
Supermarkets use this pricing strategy as a form of competing with other supermarkets that they see as a threat to their sales success. Some
Stores do this by simply lowering prices. Others create promotions such as 3 for 2 on a product. The advantages of this strategy are that if you get the pricing correct then you could grow in popularity and maybe even gain customers from nearby supermarkets as well. The disadvantages of this are that if you do not get the pricing correct and your competitors do, then you could be losing customers and money.
Location
My nearest ASDA supermarket is situated on Chase Side in Southgate Circus (as shown in the map below). It is only down the road from the Southgate tube station and is near various other shops, banks, pubs, cafes, restaurants and even a church and petrol station. This location is very important because this allows easy transport access for suppliers and distribution, and is near customers due to the nearby bus stop and their very own car park.
My nearest Waitrose supermarket is situated on High Road in Whetstone (as shown in the map below). It is also very near a tube station (Totteridge and Whetstone) and is on the same road as many other businesses such as shops, banks, cafes, restaurants, estate agents, hairdressers and car dealers. The location of this store is very important for the success of the business because it means that there is simple transport for suppliers and distribution, is in close proximity to a bus stop for easy access for customers as well, and is right in the middle of many other shops meaning that customers will find it easy to find and shop when they need to.
These two ASDA and Waitrose are both positioned in busy and easy to find places and because of this, the distribution of goods and supplies is made easy and means that they have been more popular than other branches, which may be in hard to find and isolated places.
Overall, location is very important towards a business’s success and popularity. It can determine how much stock can be delivered, the size of the supermarket, and most importantly, the amount of customers that will visit depending on where it is situated.
I personally think that both of these supermarkets are in ideal locations for what they do, but ASDA may have the upper hand here. I believe this because although Waitrose is also in a main road and is near other shops, ASDA is more recognisable due to its locality. It is near many other shops, there is not another supermarket near them and they are filling a niche market meaning that there is very little competition for customers.
