Seven-year-old 'ray of sunshine' Dexter loves his visits to Asda Leamington Spa

When little Dexter Robb is asked if he'd like to go to the park or Asda there's no contest – Asda wins hands down every time!

The seven-year-old is fascinated by our Leamington Spa store and colleagues there just love having him around.

Store manager Jon Clements said: "He really is just a ray of sunshine. Everyone in the store knows him and he knows the names of our colleagues too. It's an absolute pleasure having him here."

Colleagues enjoy taking time out to stop and have a chat with Dexter, and he has a very special bond with front-end colleague Kelly Caldicott, who Dexter calls "my best friend".

They have even given him his own polo shirt, lanyard, name badge and hi-vis jacket which are his "pride and joy".

He was recently given a special behind-the-scenes tour of the store where he visited the warehouse, sat in a forklift truck and a home delivery van, used the phones in the offices, scanned items on the checkout and helped at customer service.

Mum Anna says Dexter is fascinated with all things Asda.

She said: "No word of a lie, if there was a choice of going to the park or Asda, Dexter would pick Asda every time. He absolutely loves it in Asda. He would come in every day if he could. Saying that, we are probably in five days out of seven!

"Just going to get a pint of milk can take at least half an hour as Dexter stops and says hello to all the colleagues. He knows all their names and they all know him. He just loves interacting with people.

"Dexter lost his grandad John recently and he has been struggling to come to terms with it emotionally as he was really close to my dad, but coming into Asda just takes his mind off if. It was just so nice to see his smile back."

She said every time Dexter went shopping in Asda he had to put his uniform on.

"Once we had got halfway to the store in the car when Dexter realised he didn't have his lanyard with him. 'We'll have to go back and get it or the boss won't be happy,' he said. We did, of course.

"Everyone in the store is just brilliant with Dexter, especially Kelly.

"I believe she came in before her actual shift started to ensure she was there for the tour. This is amazing and shows just how special she is. I must admit Dexter would have been mega disappointed if she hadn’t been there. Dexter held her hand the whole time during the tour of the store. Kelly really is an absolute treasure of an employee and person. "

Dexter – whose grandmother Janet worked at the store for 21 years until 2003 – was so excited the night before his tour that he couldn't sleep.

Anna said: "I think he loved being on the checkouts best of all. He was pretty nifty scanning items to be honest and the customers all loved him."

Kelly, who has worked at the store for three years, said: "I do have a big soft spot for Dexter. He is lovely. He gets so much enjoyment out of coming into Asda.

"He was really good on the checkouts – incredible really. He was quite a lot faster than some of the staff actually!"

Community champion Jo Butler, who organised the tour, said Dexter was "such a sweet little boy" who was welcome on their team anytime.