TMA04 B202 Accounting & Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

TMA04 B202 Accounting & Finance - Essay Example The name Tesco first appeared above a shop in Edgware in 1929 and since then the company has grown and developed, responding to new opportunities and pioneering in many innovations. By the early 1990s Tesco faced strong competition and needed a new strategy. We were good at buying and selling goods but had begun to forget the customers. Sir Terry Leahy, who became Chief Executive in 1997, asked customers the simple question - what are we doing wrong?". We then invested in the things that matter to customers. For example, we launched our loyalty scheme Clubcard and Tesco.com, our internet home shopping service. Going the extra mile for customers has been key to our growth. We want to make customers lives easier and better in any way we can. We want to appeal to every customer and give them a reason to come back to Tesco. Originally specializing in food and drink, it has diversified into areas such as clothing, consumer electronics, financial services, telecoms, home, health and car insurance, dental plans, retailing and renting DVDs,[4] CDs, music downloads, Internet services and software.(Tesco plc) Among its local competitors most significant ones are Morrisons,Sainsbury and Asda. The following graph shows Tesco’s market shares locally(TESCO MAIN SUBMISSION TO THE COMPETITION COMMISSION (CC) INQUIRY INTO THE UK GROCERY RETAILING) According to TNS World panel Tescos share of the UK grocery market in the 12 weeks to 30 November 2008 was 30.9%, up 4.3% on 12 weeks to 2 December 2007. Across all categories, over  £1 in every  £7 (14.3%) of UK retail sales is spent at Tesco. Tesco also operates overseas, and non-UK revenue for the year to 24 February 2007 was up 18% on 25 February 2006. Wal mart had sales of $287bn ( £160bn) in 2004-5, more than its three closest rivals put together(Deloitte 2006 Global Retailing Powers study). Walmart had put its feet in China.Following suit Tesco aggressively expanded in China, while Wal-Mart plans to hire