Five branches in Yorkshire, a viral TikTok presence, a gourmet-style restaurant inside its flagship store and a nationwide halal meat delivery service, it seems Abu Bakr Supermarket has it all. Its newly appointed MD, Hamza Hussain, however, feels otherwise.
Appointed to the role in December, the second-generation family business head is now aiming to make the Abu Bakr experience available to every Brit across the UK.
Speaking exclusively to Asian Trader, 22-year-old Hamza did not mince his words.
"We want to be the Asian version of Asda," he said. "That's our goal. We want to do it before everyone else. We don't want to wait and follow somebody else.
“We are in massive expansion mode,” he says with the kind of conviction that doesn’t feel rehearsed. “We want the Abu Bakr supermarket everywhere in the UK from London to Birmingham and Manchester to Leicester.”
Abu Bakr’s origin can be traced back to 1981 in a small convenience store in Leeds, opened by Hamza’s father Abid Hussein. The business flourished and in 2002, it was rebranded at Abu Bakr with the opening of a second store at Queen’s Road.
Two decades later, the brand has five supermarkets in its kitty with the flagship store spanning to 16,000 square feet and an in-house restaurant.
Now every major city in the UK is on the radar of Abu Bakr Supermarket and the man behind it delivering it intends to move fast.
"Abu Bakr supermarket is not just an ordinary supermarket but it's a seven-star experience.
“We don't just offer grocery, food, fruit and vegetables, and we also offer a large, I think one of the biggest, range of butchers, fresh meat, fresh cooking.
Hamza Hussain,Image from Abu Bakr Supermarket
“We also have a restaurant inside our flagship store offering the best of Asian foods. We offer hot fresh authentic Asian food from biryanis, curries, onion bhaji, chicken masalas to chai.
“We have 300 car parking spaces in our store. Our customer service is one of the best asset. Our customers keep visiting to us for this overall experience and wholesome range that we offer,” he said.
With a mix of wholesalers like East End and P&B Foods Ltd’s Heera, alongside a bunch of local suppliers as well as mainstream wholesalers like Bestway, Abu Bakr balances variety, quality, and price.
“An ordinary supermarket keeps only the basic when it comes to world food lines. We have not only much more variety to choose from but also proper authentic taste and quality,” he pointed out.
Under Hamza’s fresh leadership, Abu Bakr has also doubled down on community engagement.
Earlier this year, the supermarket launched an initiative called “Aisles of Support”, aimed at helping pensioners feel safe, connected and comfortable while shopping, a nod to the brand’s philosophy of being more than just a store.
That community‑centric approach runs alongside product innovation. The supermarket campaigns for health initiatives like “five a day” for children, ensuring its fruit and veg counters aren’t just colourful but central to everyday shopping habits.
“The quality and freshness of our fruit and vegetables is unmatchable,” Hamza said. “I am proud to encourage and support children in healthy eating and in meeting five-a-day requirements.”
Hamza is also preparing Abu Bakr for a digital age. Recognising the power of social media, he has hired a dedicated team to build brand awareness online. The early results are already in.
“Recently, I met a family from Sheffield who drove down to the store all the way since they were impressed by our lines after seeing it on TikTok,” he told Asian Trader. “A couple of months ago, a family from London came down because they saw our store on social media.”
Hamza’s ambitions don’t stop at the national footprint of physical stores. His latest brainchild Ayah Halal, an online platform delivering fresh halal meat nationwide, is now live and gaining popularity each day.
“We are providing fresh high quality halal meat online. We are nationwide now. A lot of people are ordering down south as well,” he says.
Image from Abu Bakr Supermarket
Despite his goals, Hamza remains rooted in the lessons that molded him.
“I wouldn’t be where I am without my father’s lectures and teachings. With his decades of experience, I learnt so much from him and am still learning.
“Our dinner discussions often revolve around Abu Bakr and what more can we do,” he revealed.
Looking forward, Hamza’s vision is bold and clear- nationwide expansion, giving the UK the best of world food.
For someone who is just 22, it’s a statement brimming with confidence and backed by years of experience most people his age cannot imagine.
“I did not go to university,” he said plainly, “but I am an expert in what I do. Working in the supermarket ensured I meet a lot of people, make good connections with suppliers and customers. That’s the biggest education you can get, meeting new people.”
He started on the shop floor at 16, juggling college with weekend shifts in the family business.
“I was learning how to manage stuff, how to run a business, how to deal with suppliers and service customers. For me, my hands‑on experience and learning from my father is better than any education from school or college,” he insisted.
That confidence has shaped how he leads today.
“I am aiming to copy-paste our flagship store model in each of the big cities. There is clearly a huge gap in the market and we are best placed to fill that in.
“I know people feel I am too young for this,” Hamza said, “but my experience here is massive. I’m ready to tackle anything.”