Nisa Retail increased its membership numbers by 374 stores in the nine months until the end of 2015.

The group said 199 new stores joined in the third quarter alone, helping to take its total membership to over 3,000 stores - including those operating under different brands such as the 140-strong My Local chain, which joined in September.

It said the growth reflected the progress made by the new management team since February 2015, with its focus on providing more competitive pricing and improving its distribution and service offer.

Nick Read, CEO of Nisa Retail Limited, said: “Nisa’s ability to serve and develop a wide range of business types, from symbol retailers through to independent groups, and new start-up operations that need intensive support, sets us apart from our competitors.

“Our improved retailer recruitment is a testament to our distribution, flexible service, popular chilled product range and award winning Heritage brand.

“In an increasingly competitive trading environment, it is our success in these areas that has convinced independent retailers to choose Nisa Retail, and we look forward to welcoming more retailers seeking to benefit from our leading services and scale.”

Nisa recently reported increased sales of 6.3% to £254m for the 10 weeks to 3 January 2016.