Rain drifts across the car park of Crawley's sprawling Asda, but the gloom does little to slow the steady stream of shoppers this midweek afternoon. Parents hurry past with school bags and groceries; car boots slam shut as people load up their weekly shops.
For Carol Stimpson, who grew up in the area, the Asda is only a ten‑minute walk from her home, and she pops in most days. "It's my corner shop," she says.
Joanne Dench, another local, is also shopping in Crawley, and says she visits the town's Asda for its variety. "They've got a good range of stuff — clothes, all sorts of things... And they have lots of international food, which is lovely because I like trying new things."
But despite the bustle in this West Sussex Asda, the chain has been losing ground to rivals at an alarming rate.
The UK's third biggest supermarket had a dreadful Christmas. Two sets of industry data show Asda suffered a big slump in sales while all its main rivals reported an increase.
