Tesco is rumoured to be considering shutting down its remaining deli, fishmonger and butcher food counters this year.
The supermarket giant is the UK's biggest food retailer, and is the only one of the so-called big four - including Sainsbury's, Asda and Aldi - to still offer fresh food counters, as customers opt for pre-packed items as a result of the ongoing cost of living crisis.
Last year, Tesco closed over 300 fresh food counters and are now reported to be closing all remaining food counters as part of a new cost-cutting drive, according to industry website Grocery Gazette. The move could lead to hundreds of job losses, on top of the hundreds already axed in the first round, although Tesco offered staff members different roles within the company at the time.
Now read: Morrisons shoppers face the biggest price rises compared to likes of Aldi, Lidl and Tesco
A Tesco spokesman declined to comment on the claim, saying: "We never comment on rumour or speculation."
Research has shown that less than one in ten of shoppers visited supermarket fresh food counters in the final three months of 2021, and many of the counters are said to have had their opening hours scaled back over the last year due to a lack of interest from shoppers.
But speaking to The Telegraph, independent retail consultant Richard Hyman said there was definitely a market for fresh food done well. “I would view it negatively, because it is withdrawing from an area of business – service – where British supermarkets could offer true differentiation," he said. “But if you are going to do something in retail, you need to do it well – and doing it in a mediocre fashion, simply as an excuse to charge higher prices, will just result in the sort of reaction from shoppers that we have seen.
"There is definitely a market for fresh food, and during the cost of living crisis I think we are going to see people eating out less and cooking from home more often, so the kind of variety these counters can offer may be something that is more in demand. But you need to believe in your offer and put investment behind it. Tesco is never going to outprice Aldi and Lidl, so you need to give customers a reason to shop with you.”
Tesco was founded in 1919 in Hackney and now has more than 4,000 stores across the UK and Ireland. The retailer employs more than 360,000 people worldwide.
Now read:
- Aldi is making major change for every shopper wanting to purchase Specialbuy products
- Newcastle pub chain serves up tasty offers on meals and breakfasts for cost-conscious diners
- Waitrose accused of "woke hypocrisy" for banning the sale of vapes
- Millions of DWP Universal Credit claimants missing out on £1,200 savings boost
- How to get 48 days off by booking just 19 days leave in 2023
