Boss has day on shop floor

But customers and staff at the Crossley Retail Park branch in Kidderminster soon realised this was no ordinary shelf stacker.

Mr King is chief executive of the supermarket chain and swapped his plush London head office to go back to basics. And when he turned up for work yesterday he was the centre of attention for customers and prospective suppliers alike.

Mr King was met by a well wisher and a prospective businessman, both of whom had got wind of his visit. The businessman wanted to supply Mr King with his wares, while the well wisher gave him a quick hug.

Mr King, aged 45, is one of 1,500 staff from the Holborn headquarters spending this week working on the shop floor of one of the firm's 200 supermarkets. The aim is to discover what customers want and address problems of product availability.

It is the third year Mr King has hit the shop floor with fellow managers, which has resulted in seven consecutive quarters of rising sales. For the day, Mr King swapped his suit for uniform, and it was straight on to the fresh produce aisles, stocking up fruit and veg in the Christmas rush.

Mr King - or Justin to customers - soon faced the growing problem of bananas rapidly flying off the shelves.

"We're not going to have enough bananas by tonight. We are going to be busy stacking them up," he said.

He also helped pack bags at the tills and talked to employees.

Mr King, who was raised in Solihull and now lives in Leamington Spa, said: "Coming into the store shows that management is prepared to do the same job as everybody else and we are approachable."

Picture: Store manager Vernon Dix and Mr King, front, pack shelves with oranges and lemons.

By Sol Buckner