The Current Position
In 1995 Tesco overtook Sainsbury's as the UK's largest supermarket. In 2001 Tesco occupied 15.6% of the UK grocery retail market and was the market leader by 6%. Tesco's enormous share still grew and by September 2004, it had increased to a massive 28%, around 12% more than its nearest market rival, Asda. In the year ended 26 February 2005 Tesco made a pre-tax profit of £1.962 billon on turnover of £33.974 billion. Some would argue that if we were to include Tesco's share of the convenience store market (bizarrely considered a separate sector by UK competition authorities) in this figure, Tesco could be said to control 34% of the grocery market. Considering how concentrated and cut-throat the 'supermarket' market is, this is quite an achievement.
Tesco is equally impressive when considering its share of the total retail market. In its interim statement of results (August 2003), Tesco claimed 'our share of the total retail market is just 12.3% and there is a lot left to go for.' Already, 'just 12.3%' means that almost one pound in every eight spent in the UK is spent in Tesco.
Tesco profits have increased every year but one since 1987. In April 2004, Tesco announced profits of £1.6bn for the financial year ending on 28 February; £4.4m profit a day, 17.6% higher than the previous year. As a comparison, in 2003 Tesco made as much profit as M&S, Sainsbury, Next and WH Smith combined.
Tesco is Europe's second largest supermarket after the French firm Carrefour, and according to Mintel market research in 2004, Tesco is closing the gap. It is the fourth largest supermarket in the world. Tesco operates 2,318 stores in 12 countries