Asda to open over 100 convenience stores across UK including Newcastle, North Shields and Northumberland

Asda has announced it is opening 110 Asda Express convenience stores in February – a record for a single month – as it looks to reach 1,000 UK stores in total for the first time.

The retailer will convert 109 convenience stores acquired from the Co-op and EG Group (formerly Euro Garages) to Asda Express this month alongside one new Express store in Birmingham.

Asda is continuing its programme to convert all 470 convenience sites acquired from the Co-op and EG Group to Asda Express before the end of March. The supermarket had converted 259 sites by the end of January with a selection of these in and around Newcastle.

The first of these will be in North Shields on Thursday, February 8 when a site on the North Tyneside town's Beach Road will open.

A new site in Newcastle will then open on Tuesday, February 13 in Barrack Road and two days later a further new shop will open on Front Street in Whickham.

The plan will then extend into Northumberland on Tuesday, February 20 when a shop in Newbiggin Road, Ashington will open its doors to the public.

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Andy Perry, Asda’s Vice President of Convenience, said: “Asda’s significant investment in building a nationwide chain of convenience stores is a key component of our long-term strategy to become the number two player in UK grocery.

"February is a transformational month for the programme with a record number of store openings and conversion of all former Co-op sites to Asda Express sites. The teams have worked at pace to reach this point and we look forward to bringing Asda’s quality and low prices to many more communities across the UK.”