Allan Leighton sets ambitious timeline to revive Asda
- Allan Leighton rejoined Asda as executive chairman after a 24-year absence, intending to tackle significant market challenges.
- He emphasized three priorities for revitalization: restoring pricing strategy, improving product availability, and recruiting a new chief executive.
- Leighton projects that the revival process will span three to five years, asserting the need for a comprehensive plan to overcome current difficulties.
In the UK, Allan Leighton has returned to lead Asda as the executive chairman, a role he previously held until 2000. Leighton acknowledges the significant challenges facing the supermarket chain, including declining sales and a loss of market share to rivals like Aldi and Lidl. He has outlined three primary priorities for the revival of Asda: restoring its pricing strategy, improving product availability, and finding a new chief executive to steer the company forward. With Asda's shareholders fully supporting his vision for growth, he aims to present a comprehensive revival plan by the end of January 2025, although he notes it may take up to five years to achieve sustainable success and fix the existing IT issues. Leighty's commitment to returning to Asda reflects a personal investment in the brand's future after helping it secure a significant sale to Walmart over two decades ago.