Market Street has been a staple in Morrisons supermarkets since the concept was first introduced in 1985.
The aim is to give the stores a ‘market feel’, with stalls offering different products like meat, fish and deli items. These are run by expert butchers and fishmongers who are on hand to provide advice, cut and weigh items and package them up.
However, in recent months Morrisons has made several big changes to its supermarkets, including closing 35 meat and 35 fish counters, in addition to the loss of 13 florists, four pharmacies and 52 cafés.
And the changes look set to keep on coming as the retailer works to ‘modernise’ Market Street, with the most recent one being a switch in the way the meat selection is cut and displayed on the counters.
Instead of bigger joints and cuts of meat on display in the butchery counter at Morrisons, the meat will be cut each morning to pre-packaged sizes, so shoppers can help themselves to what they want.
If a customer is keen for something of a different size, butchers are still able to cut meat there and then on request. However, it’s worth noting that there will also be a ‘slight’ reduction in the hours butchers are working, so they might not be around all day long.
A spokesperson for Morrisons said: ‘Our customers can still enjoy traditional meat counter products, which our butchers can cut to size and help with what they may need.
‘Alongside this, we are moving at pace with the modernisation of Market Street as part of our Morrisons Magic programme, and following successful trials, we’ve begun to roll out flatbeds in our butchery departments. These showcase the same range, with the freshness and quality that Market Street is renowned for but with a more modern and contemporary look.
‘They offer both the convenience of self-service for customers that prefer it and the traditional individual service from an in-store butcher.’
They added that customer reaction to the change has been ‘very positive’ so far.
What else is changing at Morrisons?
In March, Morrisons revealed there were a ‘number’ of areas where the cost of operations are ‘significantly out of line with usage, volumes or the value that customers place on them’.
So they proposed changes, including the aforementioned closures of various services.
Rami Baitiéh, Chief Executive of Morrisons said changes were ‘necessary’ to ‘renew and reinvigorate’ the retailer.
He added: ‘Market Street is a beacon of differentiation for Morrisons and we remain committed to it. But as we modernise we are making some necessary changes to the areas of the model which are simply uneconomic. In some stores where we are closing counters or Cafés, we plan to work with third parties to provide a relevant specialist offer.
‘Although these changes are relatively small in the context of the overall scale of the Morrisons business, we do not take lightly the disruption and uncertainty they will cause to some of our colleagues. We will of course take particular care to look after all of them well through the coming changes.’
When it comes to Market Street, the retailer has an initiative, known internally as ‘Morrisons Magic’ and according to Freshtalk Daily, it involves refreshing the Market Street areas and offering more ready-to-cook options like foil trays of marinated and breaded fish or meat, alongside deli selections.
There will also be a number of promotions running on Market Street counters. Currently, More Card holders are being offered a 10% discount on products from the butchers, fishmongers, bakery, deli, salad bar, cake shop, oven fresh section and pie shop.
This offer is available every Monday throughout the summer and will be automatically applied at the checkout.
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