Tesco is showing its long-term support for the One Stop chain with the conversion of newly acquired stores to the fascia.
The most recent shop to take the One Stop name is a former Londis store in the town of Porlock, Somerset.
The retail giant has so far converted 347 of the original 800-store One Stop chain to its Express format and questions have previously been raised over Tesco’s long-term commitment to One Stop.
However, the retailer said it was now in a position to focus on its plans to add new shops to the One Stop format on an annual basis, with four more scheduled for this year. This also fits with Tesco’s previously stated
future strategy for convenience, which focuses on expansion “mainly through organic growth” (‘It’s hands off… or is it?’, The Grocer, April 16, p4).
Richard Anderson, corporate affairs manager for convenience stores, said Tesco was “totally behind” One Stop and saw it as an important part of the overall business. “We will have more stores operating under the One Stop name and it will remain an ongoing part of our strategy. The One Stop format serves a different purpose from Express.”
Anderson added that the Porlock store was more suited to One Stop than its Express format as Londis’s set-up had been extremely popular locally.
“One Stop is more in line with a traditional convenience store, whereas Express has more of a focus on fresh food. It was a natural fit to replace the Londis store with something similar. These are the judgement calls we have to make in each case.”
Nick Gladding, senior analyst at Verdict Research, suggested the development of One Stop could be an avenue for Tesco to grow its presence in the convenience store sector, while avoiding a consumer backlash against the Tesco brand becoming too ubiquitous.
Tesco’s purchase of One Stop was part of its 1,215-store T&S acquisition in 2002, which propelled the retailer to take a 5% share of the convenience store sector.
Many industry commentators have long speculated that Tesco was grooming One Stop for divestment or to drop the brand altogether in favour of Express.
However, in April, as it reported record breaking full-year group profits of £2.03bn, it pledged to retain One Stop and run it as a “successful convenience format”.
“The One Stop format is still very much alive for Tesco,” Anderson added.
Rachel Barnes
The most recent shop to take the One Stop name is a former Londis store in the town of Porlock, Somerset.
The retail giant has so far converted 347 of the original 800-store One Stop chain to its Express format and questions have previously been raised over Tesco’s long-term commitment to One Stop.
However, the retailer said it was now in a position to focus on its plans to add new shops to the One Stop format on an annual basis, with four more scheduled for this year. This also fits with Tesco’s previously stated
future strategy for convenience, which focuses on expansion “mainly through organic growth” (‘It’s hands off… or is it?’, The Grocer, April 16, p4).
Richard Anderson, corporate affairs manager for convenience stores, said Tesco was “totally behind” One Stop and saw it as an important part of the overall business. “We will have more stores operating under the One Stop name and it will remain an ongoing part of our strategy. The One Stop format serves a different purpose from Express.”
Anderson added that the Porlock store was more suited to One Stop than its Express format as Londis’s set-up had been extremely popular locally.
“One Stop is more in line with a traditional convenience store, whereas Express has more of a focus on fresh food. It was a natural fit to replace the Londis store with something similar. These are the judgement calls we have to make in each case.”
Nick Gladding, senior analyst at Verdict Research, suggested the development of One Stop could be an avenue for Tesco to grow its presence in the convenience store sector, while avoiding a consumer backlash against the Tesco brand becoming too ubiquitous.
Tesco’s purchase of One Stop was part of its 1,215-store T&S acquisition in 2002, which propelled the retailer to take a 5% share of the convenience store sector.
Many industry commentators have long speculated that Tesco was grooming One Stop for divestment or to drop the brand altogether in favour of Express.
However, in April, as it reported record breaking full-year group profits of £2.03bn, it pledged to retain One Stop and run it as a “successful convenience format”.
“The One Stop format is still very much alive for Tesco,” Anderson added.
Rachel Barnes
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