SUPERMARKET giant Asda will open its first branch in Powys later today.

Asda Express is due to open on Station Road, in Llanelwedd, just outside Builth Wells, taking over the petrol station and shop which had previously been operated by Co-op.

Staff, who will simply transfer over from Co-op to Asda, confirmed earlier this month that the changeover would commence on October 16 and the premises would reopen as Asda on October 18.

Asda confirmed the switch but remained tight-lipped on when it was taking over.

But a spokesperson has now confirmed that the Asda Express is opening on Wednesday, although it will likely be sometime this evening, as the shop and forecourt remained closed as of lunchtime, with workmen still on site.

County Times: The new signage is up at the Asda Express in Station Road, just outside Builth Wells. The new signage is up at the Asda Express in Station Road, just outside Builth Wells. (Image: Matt Jones)

Andy Perry, managing director of convenience at Asda, said “This conversion programme is an incredibly exciting moment for our business and accelerates our presence in the fast-growing convenience market.

“We look forward to bringing Asda’s great value in fuel and groceries to many more communities across the UK and to welcoming over 2,000 former Co-op colleagues to the Asda family in the coming months.”

The converted Asda Express sites will stock up to 3,000 branded and own-label products to suit a broad range of customer needs including ‘top up’ shops for essential items such as milk and bread, grabbing lunch on the go or cooking dinner from scratch.

Customers can also be reassured that they’ll be making a saving when Asda comes to town as the base prices in Asda’s current Express stores are on average 8.9 per cent cheaper than the Co-op. The site is also set to have a Costa Coffee Express on site.

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It was announced last August that the Station Road site would be one that had been acquired by Asda. Asda acquired 132 sites from the Co-op last year in a £438 million deal as part of its long-term strategy to become the UK’s second largest supermarket, by moving into the fast-growing convenience £40 billion convenience market. 

Asda announced earlier this month that it has launched its programme to convert 116 convenience stores and attached petrol station forecourts acquired from the Co-op Group to its Asda Express convenience brand.

The Builth store’s opening this week is one of 14 across the UK, bringing the total number of converted stores so far to 25. The remaining stores are due to open by the end of March 2024.

The other stores will open in locations including Yorkshire, North London, Kent, Greater Manchester and Wiltshire.