How Tesco is reinventing the large format store | Progresiv
At last month's full year results, Tesco revealed significant progress in restoring the performance of its large store estate. In this article, we explore how Tesco is updating larger stores to re-engage shoppers. 
With shoppers preferring to shop more frequently, quickly and manage their spend more tightly, Tesco is working hard to make large stores more relevant to small basket shoppers. While bigger stores have been designed to service the needs of the traditional weekly family shopper, simple changes to layout can make them relevant to smaller basket shoppers. A pull back from multi-buys is facilitating this but simple changes to layout, with more focus on food-to-go and co-locating fresh produce and meal solutions, can make a big difference.
Conscious that authority in fresh acts as a major driver of footfall to the driver to the store as a whole, Tesco has greatly improved the look of fresh produce sections and the way it connects with the rest of the store. By locating fresh produce at the side of the shop floor it can link with the food-to-go section and putting counters next to the area further builds credibility. While Tesco is reportedly considering selling its Giraffe and Harris + Hoole businesses, new cafes at Bicester and Newmarket show that foodservice is very much part of Tesco's thinking to make grocery shopping a more enjoyable leisure activity.
Elsewhere in store, Tesco is working hard to create more compelling categories and wine is a great example. Different materials have been used at both Newmarket and Bicester to make departments areas that customer want to spend more time in to consider purchases. Tesco's F+F offer is also excellently merchandised at its latest stores, helping it to compete with high street fashion retailers and in so doing capture additional grocery spend as well.
While competition is growing, Tesco remains the dominant player online and is working hard to retain its lead. We have been impressed by the latest click & collect kiosks in-store that encourage people to shop across its grocery and Direct offer online and drive through bays that emphasise the convenience of this increasingly popular way of shopping. Technology clearly has a role to play also in making in-store shopping simpler and quicker. Mobile payment solutions are part of the answer but so too are navigational apps that allow shoppers to spend their time in-store on the shopping they enjoy. (www.igd.com)
