Tesco's US venture Fresh & Easy has unveiled ambitious expansion plans today.
Three weeks after launching near Los Angeles, Fresh & Easy chief executive Tim Mason, visiting the British retailer's first 15 stores, said the number of outlets would reach around 200 by February 2009.
"We want the stores to be no more than two miles apart so no one has to travel more than a mile to get to a Fresh & Easy," Mr Mason said.
Fresh & Easy's roll out in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Diego and Phoenix is being closely watched, with Tesco, the world's third-largest retailer after Wal-Mart Stores and Carrefour, bankrolling it to a tune of £250 million sterling ($516 million) per year over five years.
Industry analysts predict the small, 10,000 square-foot convenience markets will cause a shake-up of what is the world's most competitive retail market and the home of Wal-Mart.
Fresh & Easy has a hard-discount model, which is unusual for Tesco but is crucial to its aggressive US expansion plans, allowing the chain to sell higher-quality produce at lower-than-average prices.
Agencies