Just when does 'cheap' become nasty, 'economy' become boring and 'value' become unsustainable? Or could EDLP defy the sceptics and prove of lasting benefit, ask Lisa Moore  and Belinda Gannaway

Asda's Every Day Low Pricing is rewriting the promotional rule book for marketers trying to sell their brands, and is changing the competitive face of grocery retailing. But will it last? And is there a danger in being too dogmatic when it comes to pricing strategies?

For Jonathan Smith of Axis Management Consultants it is the potential to strip further costs out of the supply chain that will ensure EDLP has life beyond the medium term. "manufacturers are being forced to look at cost structures in a new way. there is a radical restructuring of the supply chain taking chunks out of it. The way EDLP is linked into this cost slicing makes it sustainable. It's not just a profit drain on whoever is bearing the brunt of the cuts. We're talking about wodges of cost out of the business rather than shaving it at the edges."