Tesco enters US market with Fresh & Easy convenience store

by Joanne Payne Brand Republic 08-Feb-07, 12:35

LONDON - Tesco is to open its doors in the US for the first time and has chosen the Arizona city of Phoenix to launch the brand Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market.

The Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market brand will target local grocers in an bid to win shoppers over to shopping locally and keeping stores small and navigable.

The supermarket giant has confirmed it has secured 20 sites in Phoenix and is to model the new stores on its Tesco Express in the UK. The company says it chose the area because of its rapid business growth and predicted it would add 2,500 further jobs to the area.

Tim Mason, head of Tesco US, said: "The Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market format is designed to draw customers back to their local neighbourhoods by offering high quality, fresh and nutritious food at affordable prices."

The Fresh & Easy format is the result of customer research into rival local US stores combined with experience from operating the Tesco Express format. The company operates 1,000 stores in seven countries on this blueprint and it will now find itself going up against established local US store brands such as 7-Eleven and locally run competition.

More outlets in San Diego, Las Vegas and Los Angeles are planned to open later in 2007. Tesco has recently extended its global grip by extending its Malaysian presence and has opened its first Chinese store under its own name in Beijing in January. It also has 155 stores in Thailand.

The US launch comes as Tesco faces huge criticism at home for taking business away from independent stores. The UK Competition Commission is conducting a study into the fall-out from the growth of Tesco and other large grocery chains such as Asda and Sainsbury's.

Supermarkets such as Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury's have attempted to break into the US market before to no avail.