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Asda has chartered its own cargo ship to ensure that it is well stocked with festive decorations, toys, clothes and gifts amid a global supply chain crisis.
Britain’s third biggest supermarket chain also said it had increased the volume of turkeys and pigs in blankets available in stores compared with last year.
Meanwhile, the retailer’s depots are finding room for extra stocks of seasonal products such as mince pies, confectionery, Christmas cakes and puddings.
Asda said it was “successfully navigating the industry-wide supply chain challenges” and taking steps “to help ensure its shelves are stocked with everything shoppers need for Christmas”.
The retailer also said it had hired 15,000 temporary workers to serve customers during the busy period and increased the capacity of home delivery slots in the week before Christmas to one million, up from 765,000 last year.
It comes after logistics industry leaders told MPs last week that consumers could expect a scaled-back festive season in stores with the breadth of choice on offer reduced in order to ensure that seasonal essentials are in plentiful supply.
Britain has been caught up in a global supply chain crisis as ports and shipping infrastructure struggle to cope with the rapid rebound in demand after lockdowns.
Domestically, the problems have been intensified by shortages in key occupations such as HGV drivers and food processing workers, blamed on changes to the labour force caused by Brexit as well as the pandemic.
Asda follows department store chain John Lewis in revealing that it has chartered shipping to navigate its way through the disruption.
Mohsin and Zuber Issa bought the supermarket chain with…
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Source : skynews
