Waitrose hopes to pull on the purse strings of recession-hit middle England by launching an “essential Waitrose” range in an effort to attract customers from mid-market competitors including J Sainsbury and Tesco.

Acknowledging that a quarter of Waitrose shoppers believe the upmarket chain is more expensive than rivals on everyday items, Mark Price, managing director, said the group would invest up to £25m in cutting prices on existing own-label products that will now sit under the “essential” brand.