Asda seeking new buyers as part of operating shake-up

Leeds, United Kingdom-based grocery chain Asda is seeking new buyers as it introduces a new operating model at its corporate office.

“The change is part of Asda’s ongoing transformation to ensure it has the right structures, technology, and people skills in place to support its long-term ambition to become the U.K.’s second-largest grocery retailer,” the operator of more than 630 stores in the country said.

As part of the new operating model, Asda is investing in 36 new positions, including an extra 28 buying roles to give it additional capacity and capability. The change will also result in around 37 redundancies, predominantly from category planning, modular planning, and supply functions.

“We are introducing a new commercial structure to ensure that our teams are in the best position to support Asda’s long-term growth ambitions, which include significant expansion in the convenience and foodservice markets,” Asda Chief Commercial Officer Kris Comerford said. “The move to a more agile way of working, with simpler processes and extra investment in key areas like buying, will help strengthen our relationships with suppliers and ultimately deliver better outcomes for our customers too.”

Asda’s new operation encompasses eight integrated business units, which are aligned to specific categories and led by a business unit director with full responsibility for sales and profitability in their area.

“Within each unit, there will be dedicated teams responsible for buying, ranging, and pricing – replacing the current structure where these responsibilities are split across multiple functions. Embedding these responsibilities into category-specific business units will allow teams to act with greater agility and respond better to customer needs, as decision-making becomes faster and better informed by insight and data,” Asda said.

Adsa did not respond to SeafoodSource’s request for comment.

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