Carve Tesco into three, says former director August 26, 2014 A former Tesco executive has called for the business to be radically restructured by its incoming boss, creating three separate entities. Bruno Monteyne, an analyst at Bernstein Research and previously Tesco.com's development director, has argued that carving the supermarket up could be the only way to halt its decline. He suggests dividing it [...]
Fashion wars… a Lidl bit of what you fancy August 20, 2014 The invasion of supermarkets into the fashion sector is hotting up after hard discounter Lidl announced yesterday it was entering the fray. The German retailer is to launch a new fashion range for women next Monday, including ankle boots for £9.99 and even a faux leather jacket for £15. Lidl already sells basic clothing such [...]
Tesco’s credit rating downgraded by S&P amid profit fears August 8, 2014 Tesco suffered a fresh blow yesterday after Standard and Poor’s (S&P) downgraded the troubled supermarket’s credit rating over concerns of rising competition in its home market and its recent profit warning. S&P said it had cut its long-term rating on Tesco to “BBB” from “BBB+”, but reiterated its “A-2” short-term corporate credit rating on the [...]
Aldi closes in on Waitrose as the discounters scent blood July 29, 2014 The challenges facing Britain’s big four grocers was further laid bare yesterday after new data revealed that Aldi was poised to overtake Waitrose to become the country’s sixth biggest supermarket. Kantar Worlpanel data released yesterday showed Aldi’s sales jumped 32 per cent year-on-year in the 12 weeks to 20 July, bringing its market share within [...]
How Aldi is about to overtake Waitrose and become the sixth largest supermarket in Britain July 29, 2014 Aldi and Lidl continue to win in the battle of the supermarkets as their market share surged and sales were up, leaving the big four- Tesco, Asda, Sinasbury's and Morrisons- trailing behind when it comes to growth. Aldi’s stellar performance places it almost level with Waitrose as the big four continue to feel the pressure [...]
How Aldi is about to overtake Waitrose and become the sixth largest supermarket in Britain July 29, 2014 Aldi and Lidl continue to win in the battle of the supermarkets as their market share surged and sale rise, leaving the big four- Tesco, Asda, Sinasbury's and Morrisons- trailing behind. Aldi’s stellar performance places it almost level with Waitrose as the big four continue to feel the pressure from discounters. The latest figures from [...]
Supermarket price wars: Money can’t buy me love…or can it? July 24, 2014 As another CEO falls on his multi-million pound sword this week; the convenient simplification of the problem into pricing and the rampant value-retailer onslaught seems to deliver a somewhat myopic view of the task facing the brooding monoliths that are the big retailers. While Mr. Clarke was seemingly handed a metaphorical deuce to seven [...]
Tesco to splash £11m on Dave Lewis and Philip Clarke rescue operation July 21, 2014 Tesco will spend more than £1.8m on its new chief executive Dave Lewis but up to £9.6m on departing boss Philip Clarke as the supermarket puts its faith in the industry outsider to turn its sales around. Clarke’s shock departure and his replacement with Unilever’s president of personal care, who will start in October, comes [...]
Karl Albrecht obituary: Aldi co-founder dies aged 94 July 21, 2014 Karl Albrecht, the billionaire co-founder of the Aldi discount supermarket chain, died on Wednesday 16th July, aged 94. The growth of Aldi, the name of which is a contraction of Albrecht Discount, made Karl Germany’s richest man, and 24th richest in the world, with an estimated fortune of $25.9bn (£15.2bn), according to Forbes. Karl, who [...]
Dave Lewis: Tesco banks on first outsider in its 95-year history. Will he make a difference? July 21, 2014 Tesco’ incoming boss Dave Lewis will have no easy task on his hands when he takes the reins at the UK’s biggest retailer and the world’s third largest chain in October. But while he lacks the Tesco genes that Philip Clarke had from spending 39 years at the grocer, Lewis makes up for it in [...]