Major UK supermarket opens 2 new stores – locations listed | UK | News

Supermarket chain Asda has reached a major milestone by opening 500 stores at the beginning of 2026.^This Express store. The chain has opened its doors in two new locations in the north of England and has a successful 2025 in which it opened 17 new stores.

The stores in Salford and Bradford will offer more than 3,000 branded and own-label products, catering to everything from refurbished stores to lunches on the go. Joseph Sutton, vice president of food service and fuel at Asda Express, said: “We’re excited to start the year by opening two new Asda Express stores, building on our fantastic momentum in 2025. In less than five years, we have built a grocery store of over 500 stores across the country, which now outperforms the broader grocery market thanks to the combination of our great products and unrivaled value.

“We look forward to welcoming our customers to these new stores.”

In the latest opening, the brand returns to opening new stores after transforming 469 sites acquired from the Co-op and EG Group in 2024.

The latest openings are the first of approximately 20 sites the brand is believed to open throughout 2026, with its convenience arm remaining a key focus.

In the third quarter of 2025, the convenience arm of the business saw comparable sales growth of 3.5%; by contrast the wider business suffered a 2.8% sales decline over the same time period, driven in part by severe disruptions to systems following the transition from Project Future.

As part of its focus, it is believed that the brand will continue to develop its presence in areas where it has traditionally had a smaller footprint, including urban areas with high foot traffic, residential areas and transportation hubs.

The grocery giant said it had a “strong pipeline” of new stores opening later in the year.

The Bradford Express store takes over the Hare and Hounds pub in Toller Lane, while the Salford site is located in Norton Street.