These are two words I never thought I’d see in the same sentence: Tesco and crisis. While the supermarket behemoth isn’t exactly about to collapse, it does have problems it really needs to sort out.
Only two weeks ago, the retailer announced that its profits had been overstated by £263m: profits for Q1 and Q2 fell by 92%. As its share price dropped to an 11-year low, chairman Sir Richard Broadbent announced he would step down (see Supermarkets feature, p39). Plans are yet to be revealed as to how Tesco will reverse its fortunes.
Meanwhile, other chains are having their own woes. Morrisons is seeing its profits take a hit – partly because of heavy investment in new convenience stores and online sales. And Sainsbury’s, which saw chief executive Justin King leave, began 2014 with two quarters of falling underlying sales.
Yes, the rise of discounters Aldi and Lidl have hit the supermarket doyennes, but it will be interesting to see what the big chains are going to do in 2015. As the new year fast approaches, there will be a lot of thinking and planning. But one thing is for sure – we definitely haven’t seen the end of these big names.
Happy birthday, Ronald!
It was 40 years ago last month that McDonald’s first brought its US-style burgers to the UK when it opened a restaurant in Woolwich, SE18 (see feature, p20). That was the start of McDonald’s changing not only the British palate, but the way in which the fast-food market operated.
It now has 1,200 restaurants, with plans for about 30 more each year for the foreseeable future. So it is more than likely we will be celebrating Ronald McDonald’s birthdays on these shores for a long time to come.
