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Tesco Plc, the U.K.’s largest grocery company, said it will likely leave the U.S. after announcing a review of its Fresh & Easy unit in the country and the departure of the unprofitable business’s head.
Full Story Here.
Tesco considers selling, closing Fresh & Easy grocery chain
(via Bloomberg) · December 5, 2012 · 10:46 AM
Discussion: 19 comments so far...
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They should sell Fresh & Easy to Dollar General. Both are great places to shop if you don't want to get lost in a Supermarket.
Very sad to hear we might be losing fresh and easy. I love the British bacon, Big Kahuna Cabernet Sauvignon , Underworld Beer, French Bread, F&E Vindaloo sauce and the Tesco finest choices now appearing. If they stock more world foods then that will attract shoppers from different ethnicities.
Shortly after they opened in LA Metro, I went to one of the stores to see what all the fuss was about. Well, I found empty shelves, unappealing environment and a store that just didn't have what I wanted or needed.
With a Trader Joe's close and a Von's just as close and a Whole Foods not too far from me, why go to Fresh & Easy?
But I guess that's what most American's have wondered now.
For me its convenience.. I like the smaller store and it carries most things I'm looking for.... If they close I will miss them a lot!
As for the comment about being trendy... I never saw them as a trendy place... more like a local neighborhood market. Smaller footprint than the big boys and quick in and out convenience. The prices are OK if your not shopping for a big family.
Hard to believe they are not profitable.. there are always many people in the 2 stores that I visit.
Glaziers...far and above the rest. The place is awesome. Whole Foods is nice as well. Albertsons, Vons, Smiths...eh. I'm not going to miss F&E.
If Tesco would have fulfilled its promise to open in underserved, redeveloping urban areas, instead of chasing the same suburban dollar as everyone else, they would have done much better.
Fresh and Easy didn't have a pull or any kind of gimmick. IF Target can sell food, any store can sell food, it's not hard. Can't say I'll miss it. They were always out of the way.
Next to close is ALBERTSONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
reza,
fresh and easy did open up several stores in our urban areas. there were two in the neighborhood where i work near lake mead and las vegas blvd. unfortunately, the concept didn't catch on and they were the first stores to close when the recession hit. they did seem to proliferate into the suburbs much more though. i think failing to grasp their demographic had a lot more to do with their lack of success than their chosen locations.
i hope some small chain like sunflower moves into those stores because the size is perfect for those of us who are frightened by the mega-lo-marts that seem to dominate the valley.
Fresh and Easy was a welcome addition to anyone who knew how to read.
Much more thought went into their products and the limited choices were pretty much all consumer friendly.
Anyone who couldn't shop there was ignorant or had 10 kids and they didn't stock the store for large families with young children.
It will be a great setback if they go.
Calling Fresh & Easy trendy is an insult to the word trendy.
RobRBarron hit the nail on the head. From the moment they opened, the shopper experience in their stores (ie. store design, layout, ambiance, selection, branding, etc.) has just been underwhelming. I remember the hype-machine prior to their opening, and then walking into the a couple of their stores for the first time and thinking "this is it?". I had hoped/expected more. My main interest in their store was to check out their options for healthy, tasty, affordable and quick faire, but their options in this department were generally lacking in taste and were often priced more than comparable items that could be found in the much more convenient and ambiance-friendly, fast-casual dining chains.
Nonetheless, it will be sad if they do actually close or sell shop - I do like their choco milk and a couple of their pre-packaged salads are good (albeit oversized and overpriced).
When they first opened in Vegas, I went to one of the stores a couple of times. Neither time was I impressed. I don't know if they still do it, but I will not buy already packaged vegetables, ie cucumbers, tomatoes. I like to pick out what I want. There was nothing in there that I could not purchase at Smith's (the one on Rampart near Sun City). If you want "fresh" things, you can go to Whole Foods. Fancy stuff, including imported beers and wines, you can get at Smith's or even Albertson's, depending on the location.
They are basically 7-11's with a very poor selection of product and meat. Terrible concept whose only possible niche would be a single person who wanted to stay out of the real grocery stores.
.
Definitely not sad to see them go, however, I think we are already saturated with drug stores and I can't think of any other tenants for those soon to be vacant spaces.
People complain that there is no healthy food in the West LV area but Fresh and Easy was close by. People did not come, but they lined up for Ribs, and Catfish at Jerry's ...people want comfort food in this economy I guess. (I'll take a side of spaghetti)
I love Fresh and Easy and when I lived in LV shopped there every two or three days for two adults. It's not really a family grocery store as the price, packaging and selection seemed geared for DINK households [double income, no kids]. That said I think that F&E would have done better in SF and PacNW markets than in SoCal and Nevada.
The problem isn't that enough people aren't using the stores or a failure in the concept, the problem lies with logistics and the economy.
Fresh and Easy staked a lot on their brand and opening a huge base in Riverside, CA. Then they went and acquired many of the locations for Rite Aid, some were good but quite a lot were poor locations. This 'failure' and a crashing economy caused a massive curtailment in new stores.
This meant Fresh and Easy had a huge logistics/brand operation but not enough stores to make that profitable.
At the moment Fresh and Easy is caught in a corporate inertia. They can't open new stores because the shareholders are unhappy with the cost. They can't consolidate because that costs them money.
I highly doubt TESCO had anyone with any real analytical or decision making responsibility on the ground here in Vegas. Decisions about this market were likely made someplace far away.
It's obvious they didn't accounted for, or quickly adapt to, hiccups in development progress, with many stores placed in areas surrounded by empty dirt, or very close to other grocery stores.
Businesses come here without understanding how different Vegas is from other markets. They fail. Add Fresh & Easy to the list.
Unprofitable because of shoplifting and robberies?
I never like to hear/see a business close their doors mainly because it means people will be out of work. The closing of these stores has no effect on my life. I can count the number of times I've shopped at Fresh and Easy on both hands and there is one within walking distance of my home. Their product choices leave a lot to be desired. Their pre-made dinners are high in fat content. Overall, I have never been impressed with this store. I prefer to shop at Sunflower Market (now Sprouts) and Smith's. At least these stores provide selections.