25p easyFoodstore forced to close by bargain hunters

EasyFoodstore blamed the closure on the huge publicity generated by its 25p promotional offered on all food and drink products this month.

The retailer’s suppliers had been “unable to meet the demand”,​ according to a notice posted on the store’s website. Read the notice in full below.

After restocking the discount store reopened today and has reported brisk trade so far. “​The store is now open again (today Friday 50 and trading business as usual with long lines of customers queuing outside.”​

All priced at 25p​

Launched on Tuesday (February 2), the shop located in West London, sells more than 70 food and drink products – all priced at 25p. Food items included staples such as: spaghetti hoops, chicken pizza, canned soup and digestives.

Drink products on offer included: ground tea and coffee, orange juice and orangeade.

“easyFoodstore currently sells a range of 76 products,​ meaning that a shopper could buy all of the goods on offer for less than £20,”​ said the retailer.

‘Between food banks and discount retailers’​

Easy empire entrepreneur Stelios Haji-­Ionnou said prices will eventually rise in March – probably to about 50p.

The plan behind the project was to launch a new "easy branded player that sits in between food banks and discount retailers”. ​

Haji­-Ionnou said his interest in the UK food retail market was sparked by the widespread use of food banks and his philanthropic operations in Greece and Cyprus. His charity handed out free lunchtime snacks to the needy in both countries.

The easyJet founder was on record as saying there was a gap in the food retail market: "a niche below some of the current budget operators, such as Aldi and Lidl".​

Other brands in Haji­-Ionnou’s easy empire included: easyJet, easyBus, easyCar and easyHotel.