Nadeem Ashraf is managing to increase his customer base despite his Costcutter store being in close competition with a nearby Sainsbury’s Local.

How has business been since last year?

Business has been excellent, I have steadily seen more and more new faces in the shop, adding to my core base of loyal customers. Word is getting around about my competitive prices and wide range of products.

Are you still opening seven days a week?

Yes, I believe in servicing my customers in the best way possible and to do this you need to be open on Sundays.

Do your customers still demand a large selection of products?

Always. The nearby Sainsbury’s Local can’t match my wide range of products in certain key lines. Cereals are a great example of this, Sainsbury’s only stocks about seven different types, whereas I stock over 20!

Which other categories do you champion?

Alcohol and drinks is another area where I offer a considerably better selection to my customers and on top of this, my prices are very competitive too. I have also moved away from selling pre-packaged fruit and vegetables. Instead I recently installed a fresh counter to sell loose greengroceries, it’s been a huge hit with shoppers.