Editing Asda (section)

===Asda Essentials===
In April 2006, Asda launched a new trial format called 'Asda Essentials' in [[Northampton]], followed by another in [[Pontefract]] a month later.<ref name="essential">{{cite news|title=Asda's new stores prove not-so-Essential in the discount market|first=Julia|last=Finch|work=The Guardian |location=UK |date=5 December 2006|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2006/dec/05/supermarkets.asda|access-date=9 October 2008 }}</ref> The stores were modelled on France's [[Leader Price]] chain, with a smaller floorplate than Asda's mainstream stores and with a primary focus on own-brand products, only stocking branded items that were perceived to be at the "core" of a family's weekly shop with the aim being to challenge the dominance of [[Tesco]] and Sainsbury's in the convenience store market while at the same time addressing competition from discount supermarkets such as [[Aldi]], [[Lidl]] and Netto.<ref name="essential" />

On 6 December 2006, ''The Guardian'' reported that further planned store openings were under review following poor sales in the existing outlets, while the range of branded products being carried was also being expanded due to customer demand.<ref name="essential" /> In January 2007 it was announced that the original Northampton trial store would close within a month after only 10 months of trading.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.igd.com/analysis/news/index.asp?nid=3468 |title=Asda Essentials trial continues despite store closure |date=9 January 2007 |access-date=11 January 2007 |publisher=IGD Retail Analysis |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713004343/http://www.igd.com/analysis/news/index.asp?nid=3468 |archive-date=13 July 2011 }}</ref>