Asda is doubling down on convenience in a major push to win back customers – with plans to launch dozens of new smaller shops in high streets and local communities. In what insiders describe as a “full-blooded assault” on the booming convenience market, the beleaguered grocer is plotting to open 25 new Express stores between June and , more than twice the number it managed in the whole of last year.

The bold move is part of a wider turnaround effort led by the supermarket’s new chairman, Allan Leighton, who has promised to throw everything at bringing the chain back to its former glory. Once a powerhouse of the British retailer scene, Asda has lost ground in recent years amid soaring inflation, fierce price battles with rivals, and a shift in how people shop.

Now, it wants to meet shoppers where they are – on their doorsteps. Mr Leighton said the strategy, backed by fresh investment from owners TDR Capital and the Issa brothers, would mean pouring millions into the rollout of new stores, as well as slashing prices and smartening up existing sites.

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Speaking last month, he said he will “build [Asda], reset it, turn it into what it was.” But he admitted it would come at a cost, warning of a “material reduction” in profits as the group prioritises growth over margins.

Shoppers, however, may be the real winners. Supermarket insiders say the plan will see a significant increase in promotions and lower prices in the months ahead, as Asda joins a renewed price war with , Sainsbury’s and .

Asda’s share of the grocery market has slipped to 12.5%, down from 14.8% when it was taken over in 2021. Analysts say that to avoid falling further, it must grow – fast. The new push into smaller stores follows a temporary slowdown last year, when the company opened just 12 new Express sites amid rising costs and supply chain pressures.

A source close to the retailer said: “There’s a war chest now and the shackles are off. Convenience is where the growth is, and Asda can’t afford to be left behind.”

The expansion is being driven partly by the transformation of 470 former and EG Group stores, snapped up in a £600million deal in recent years. Many are being rebranded as Asda Express, offering groceries, meal deals and click-and-collect services.

The move reflects a broader shift in shopping habits as families increasingly ditch big weekly trips in favour of little-and-often top-up shops closer to home. It also marks a direct challenge to rivals, with Tesco planning 150 more Express stores over the next three years and targeting 100 new sites by 2029.

Asda, founded in Yorkshire in 1949, is betting the next chapter in its history won’t be written in out-of-town megastores, but on Britain’s high streets.