tesco ,fashion, news page, clothing Click here for the Latest Fashion news on FashionUnited.co.uk Tesco news and facts history Tesco was founded in 1919 and originally specialising in food and drink, it is now diversified into areas such as clothing, consumer electronics, consumer financial services, retailing and renting DVDs, CDs, music downloads, Internet service, consumer telecoms, consumer health insurance, consumer dental plans and software. Click here to view the list of the last related news items, published by FashionUnited in the fashion news archive. Tesco and Asda in Bangladesh The BBC today reported Tesco and Asda are looking into allegations of worker abuse at garment factories used by their suppliers in Bangladesh. The retailers' comments came after a Guardian investigation claimed that workers making clothes were paid as little as four pence an hour. Tesco said it had done all it could to ensure "high standards and good conditions" in the country. Asda said any abuse was "unacceptable" and it may audit its factories. In its report, the Guardian claims that garment workers are regularly forced to work 80 hours a week in factories where conditions are often violent, and where staff do not have access to trade unions.

Charities such as War on Want have campaigned for years to improve the pay and conditions for garment workers in Bangladesh and last year wrote a report based on interviews with 60 workers from six garment factories. The group claimed that retailers could only sell their clothes at very low prices by pressuring suppliers in developing economies to keep costs down. As a result, suppliers in countries such as Bangladesh have had to drive down wages and extend working hours, as there is stiff competition for the retailers' business from other developing nations such as China. Asda told the Guardian that: "We find abuse of any kind unacceptable." The retailer blamed the problem on the fact that one of their approved suppliers was outsourcing its work to another factory without its knowledge and against its wishes. Tesco said it had taken steps to improve working conditions. "We have stuck by Bangladesh, continued to invest in modern factories and done all we can to ensure that high standards and good conditions are maintained," the UK's largest supermarket firm said in a statement.

17 July 2007 Tesco like-for-like sales growth slowdown Tesco has reported a slowdown in like-for-like sales growth in the three months ended 26 May to 4.7 percent, down from 5.8 percent the previous quarter. The results fell below analysts' expectations of 5 to 5.5 percent. As a result, shares in the supermarket giant dropped 2.8 percent. The group attributed the dip to �more subdued markets�. Despite the like-for-likes sales growth slowdown, chief executive Terry Leahy was upbeat about the first quarter results. �We've made a good start to the year across the group,� he said in a statement. Sales rose 10 percent, driven by new store development and the integration of acquired stores. International growth was strong at 24.6 percent at constant exchange rates. Asia performed particularly well, with sales up 32 percent as the group consolidated its operations there. Meanwhile, the UK �made solid progress� with �good growth� in the core food categories and further improvement of its offering. The company last week announced £270 million in price cuts.

19 June 2007 Tesco head given £1m pay rise to stay Terry Green, the head of clothing at Tesco was given a £1m pay rise in return for spurning the advances of Marks & Spencer director Stuart Rose. Green has also had his remit widened at Tesco. As well as overseeing clothing, he has been put in charge of toys, sporting goods, electricals and outdoor furniture. The changes make Green Tesco's de facto non-food director. The pay increase goes a long way to explain Green's decision to remain at Tesco. He is a close friend of Rose and when news broke last month that he was in early-stage talks to run M&S's clothing division - considered by many to be the plum job in British retail - few observers thought he would turn the chance down. Rose and Green worked together at the Burton Group, now renamed Arcadia , in the 1990s. 8 May 2007 Green remains at Tesco Reports earlier this week that Terry Green, Tesco's head of clothing, was in talks to jump ship to Marks & Spencer, have been invalidated by the supermarket giant.

Tesco's commercial and trading director Richard Brasher told the FT that Green was staying on with the company he joined in the second half of 2005. �Our people always get lots of offfers,� he said. �I would say to them that if they are not being offered jobs by other people, maybe I have got the wrong person (working for me). Terry Green is an employee of Tesco, he was then, he is now and that is it.� Brasher further denied that Green had been convinced to stay with a promotion or pay rise. News reports had suggested that Green was in talks with his longtime friend and former colleague, M&S's chief executive Stuart Rose, to head up the retailer's bloominng fashion division. Neither company would comment on the situation. Tesco sales up 5.9% Supermarket giant Tesco has said it enjoyed a "successful" Christmas, with like-for-like UK sales rising by 5.9% in the six weeks to 6 January. Sales were driven by Tesco's premium "Finest" range but it also enjoyed a record year in clothing and accessories sales.

The increase was at the top end of expectations and comes after rivals such as Sainsbury's and Morrisons have also reported record festive sales. Tesco's internet business also experienced strong growth, with total sales up by more than 30% to over £150m. The firm said its grocery team delivered more than 14 million items in its busiest Christmas week to date. The retailer added that its overseas businesses also traded well over Christmas and New Year, with international sales up by 15.8%. According to industry experts TNS, Tesco increased its share of the UK market over the holiday period. TNS said Tesco had a 31.4% share of all sales through UK supermarkets in the 12 weeks ending 31 December. Tesco dominates high street Tesco is continuing to expand on the high street, raising concern about its dominant position in the market. According to data obtained by The Sunday Time, the supermarket giant has acquired up to half of all the new shopping space in the UK this year, after store closures had been taken into account. Retail analyst Richard Hyman of Verdict Research conducted the research and called the statistics �mind-boggling�.

He estimated that the company opened 2 million square foot of retail space in 2006. Rivals of the supermarket leader have submitted complaints to the Competition Commission. The watchdog is to unveil the findings of its most recent investigation of supermarket retailing and speculation is mounting that it may suggest adding in a �competition test� to planning regulations. Tesco online sales surge In the run-up to Christmas, sales at Tesco's online business soared more than 30 percent. 1.3 million shoppers ordered groceries and gifts from Tesco.com, up from 1 million the year before. The increase in sales online was said to have raised concerns amongst a number of high street retailers over Christmas sales, especially the ones who were forced to start sales early, the Retail Bulletin reported. Thanks to heavy price cuts, consumers converged on the high street in droves to profit from the markdowns. While being good news for the consumer, the impact on retailers from the major discounts remains to be seen. 29 December 2006 Tesco expands fashion range Tesco is investing heavily in a clothing and home furnishings catalogue, online sales and shop-in-shop fashion outlets. The British supermarket giant expects the comprehensive range to reach sales of £1 billion next year.

�We have a massive investment coming in and we are going to trial selling our clothing ranges online next year,� said Terry Green, fashion chief executive of the chain. �We have sold 20 percent more clothing than last year and it is a huge growth area for us.� Green, who joined Tesco in September after having worked at Topshop, Debenhams, Bhs and Allders, hopes ultimately to be able to compete with high street fashion chains such as Next, Topshop and Marks and Spencer. Although Tesco is considered a discount retailer, it has recently launched its �Collection� range, which is more upmarket. A spokeswoman for the chain said an online sales trial was scheduled for next year, although she was unable to specify a date. With fashion sales of £750 million last year, Tesco is the fastest growing supermarket fashion retailer. The chain represents 11 percent of that market, following on the heels of Asda, the UK market leader with 17 percent. Tesco profit past £1bn mark British supermarket chain Tesco said on Tuesday that half year profits rose 10.3 percent past the £1 billion mark.

Sales for the world's fifth largest chain rose 12.7 percent to £22.7 billion. The group said results had been driven by a �particularly strong� second quarter thanks to the heatwave effect of the past summer. �Growth in customer numbers was the main driver of our sales, with gains coming from across the market,� said chief executive Sir Terry Leahy. �Customer spend per visit also rose in the period despite deflation in our stores.� The announcement comes amidst rapid expansion plans. The group is looking to open almost 400 stores overseas this year, creating 20,000 new jobs. It also said it was on track to opening its first stores in the US next year. Total international sales increased 21.3 percent to £5.3 billion. Currently, almost one-fifth of the group's £3.5 billion UK sales are derived from non-food products. This signifies a rise of 12.6 percent compared with the same period last year. Tesco is continuing to offer more non-food items like clothes and DVDs, and will even launch its own brand software.

Clothing sales gained 19 percent �in a subdued market�, while consumer electrics rose 36 percent. Katharine Hamnett collaborates with Tesco Ethical clothing campaigner and 80s icon designer Katharine Hamneet is launching an organic and ethically made clothing range for Tesco, marking another step in bringing awareness of ethically made clothes to the masses. The range, which will be launched next spring and comprise men's, women's and children's garments, will be a premium brand but also affordable, according to Tesco CEO Terry Green. Hamnett will be launching her own range of menswear and logo tees at the London Fashion Week exhibition later this month. Organic clothing is not unique to Tesco, however, Marks & Spencer has already started selling Fairtrade cotton clothing, and Tesco said that it knows customers are increasingly interested in environmentally sustainable clothing. Hamnett described the move as "the biggest leap forward yet for organic clothing,� according to WGSN. 11 September 2006 Tesco goes high end Tesco is following H&M as the leading high street omni-retailer to launch its first upmarket clothing range.

Tesco is due to launch its new F&F Collection, designed by Lee Rees-Oliviere, as its most high-end clothing range to date. Lee Rees-Oliviere is Tesco's head of design and the new collections, available for both men and women, will feature occasionwear and formalwear in 25 key Tesco stores nationwide from next week. The label will compete head-on with the likes of Designers At Debenhams and Marks & Spencer's Autograph sub-brand. The launch, according to Draper's is the latest in a long line of new initiatives at the supermarket level that will see it stretch its pricing and product beyond the value and basics line for which Tesco is known. Head of marketing for clothing Sean Murray said: �Because customers trust Tesco for clothing, we want to offer them a full range of products. Customers who had to shop elsewhere for something to wear to a wedding of a job intervie will now be able to buy those items from us too.� Prices for a women's suit are £30 for a skit and £60 for a jacket.

A 1940's-style silk tea dress is £55, 100% wool culottes are £35, a black tuxedo trouser suit is £100 and women's merino wool fine knitwear is £20. For men, prices are £90 for a leather biker jacket, £35 for flannel trousers, and a wool/cashmere blend v-neck sweater for £30. The range will be refreshed every six to eight weeks. F&F Collection by Lee Rees-Oliviere will have a dedicated area in store adjacent to the less expensive Florence + Fred lines. The shopfit will feature heavy graphic treatment to differentiate the sub-brand and each garment has a swing ticket with a photo of Rees-Oliviere. 4 September 2006 Tesco retail online Tesco will sell clothing online for the first time this month to take advantage of the lucrative back-to-school season. A capsule range of school clothing and accessories will be sold on the retailer's Tesco.com website from July 21 in Scotland and August 4 in the rest of the UK . The initiative will run for six weeks until the start of the school term.

Tesco plans to expand its clothing customer database through affiliate partnerships, which pay a commission to sites that drive traffic onto them. Its Tesco.com/clothing site, which enables visitors to view items online before they buy in-store, has more than 150,000 registered customers. Keith Chamarette, project director of digital agency WARL Evolution, which helped set up Tesco's clothing website in April 2005. He said: �Until now, the database has grown organically through the site or through in-store promotions. Affiliate programmes should help to drive even more traffic there.� Despite the trial, Tesco is unlikely to sell its entire clothing collection online in the near future. 24 July 2006 Tesco exits Sunday campaign The fight to stay open on Sunday's is no longer a concern for Tesco. The retailers has withdrawn from Deregulate, the lobby group set up to campaign for larger shops to be allowed to stay open longer on Sundays than the six-hour slot currently permitted. Other retail heavyweights including Next and Asda are losing a powerful ally in their efforts to remove restrictions on Sunday shop hours, but Tesco claims it is heeding the view of its customers.

Many shoppers say they don't want full deregulation, even though most are keen to see the six-hour limit extended, the company says. The Government has thrown the issue into the public arena for debate, with a change in hours, if any, unlikely to happen before 2007. Easter Sunday, at present the only Sunday where larger stores, whose with over 3,000 sq ft of trading space are obliged to close all day, is under threat if Deregulate gets its way. Small shops and convenience stores are already allowed to open all day, including Easter Day. At present, larger stores in England and Wales can trade during a six-hour slot in the period 10am to 6pm . Northern Ireland imposes 1pm -6pm opening, but Scotland has no restrictions. Larger stores in the Republic of Ireland open from 10am to either 6pm or 7pm. Tesco, meanwhile is extending its clothing ranges for AW/06 with a new denim-led collection for both men and women, which will be going into many of the supermarket's main store in late summer.

14 June 2006 Tesco to move into designer fashion Tesco is to launch an assault on the designer clothing market in an attempt to take on Marks & Spencer's Autograph collection and Debenhams' Designers at Debenhams lines. The F&F Collection, named after Tesco's existing -Florence & Fred clothing line, will be launched in September. The multi-million pound range is being positioned as "DKNY meets Hugo Boss", according to a supermarket executive. It is being master-minded by Lee Rees-Oliviere, Tesco's new head of design and a former designer at Jaeger. The shift up-market is part of Leahy's plan to double clothing sales of £800 million in the medium term. 30 May 2006 Tesco: growth in challenging year Supermarket giant Tesco today reported group sales of £41.8 billion for the year 2005/6, up 13.2 percent. The retailer saw gains across the board, with group revenues up 13 percent to £38.3 billion and underlying profit up 16.9 percent to £2.2 billion.

The company exceeded its target for return on capital two years early, realizing a return of 12.8 percent. A new target has been set. Meanwhile, the retailer said that £5 billion from its property portfolio would be released, and £1.5 billion of this amount would be used to buy back shares, while the majority will be used to finance future growth. The retailer also added that it had made good progress in all parts of its four-part strategy, although it admitted that it had been a challenging year. Sales in its domestic market, however, slowed. Like-for-like sales in the UK fell in the last quarter to 4.9 percent, compared with 5.7 percent over the Christmas period. Tesco chief executive Sir Terry Leahy admitted that it had been a challenging year for the company and limited himself to �prudent� forecasts for like-for-like sales growth of between 3 and 4 percent. �Of course we'll try to beat that, but that's what we plan for. You know consumers are slightly cautious, competitors are slightly stronger,� he told the FT.

UK sales increased 10.7 percent to £32.7 billion, with like-for-like sales up 7.5 percent and operating profit up nearly 15 percent to £1.8 billion. Meanwhile, international sales, which account for 22 percent of total group sales, rose 23 percent to £9.16 billion while operating profit increased 17.4 percent. Sales from Tesco.com rose almost 32 percent to the £1 billion mark, with a profit gain of 55 percent to £56.2 million. With more than 200,000 orders a week, it accounts for more than 3 percent of UK sales. �These results represent good progress across the group in a more challenging year,� said Leahy in a statement. �By investing to improve the shopping experience for customers in our businesses around the world, we have been able to deliver another strong sales performance, manage the impact of higher oil-related and other external costs and improve returns for shareholders.� Tesco's merry Christmas Tesco reported an increase in sales during the Christmas period of 11.5 percent, thanks primarily to a strong performance in non-food categories, including clothing.

Same-store sales rose 7.2 percent or 2.9 percent from net new space. UK sales rose 10.1 percent while international sales soared 16.1 percent over the holidays, said the company. It added that clothing, toys, gifts, home entertainment and electronics sold well. Its Cherokee and Florence & Fred ranges have become especially popular in recent years. The market did not react quite as favourably as hoped, with shares in the British supermarket chain dropping upon release of the figures. According to the FT, the market is used to Tesco beating its forecasts. Tesco suffers weakening consumer confidence UK's biggest retailer Tesco has reported its first slowdown in underlying sales for two years, revealing that it too is subject to weakening consumer confidence, reports the FT. Finance director Andy Higginson said that the 5.5 percent underlying sales growth in the 14 weeks ended 19 November, compared with 6.6 percent in the previous quarter, was �very strong� when seen in the context of the company's �longer-term historical performance�. Although the food sector performed steadily, the non-food sector has felt the effects of lagging consumer confidence.

Growth in non-food sales was below last quarter's 13 percent, although still up in the double digits. Half of all the new space in the UK consisted of non-food. The company said that non-food now accounted for 6.5 percent of total group sales. Higginson said that Tesco planned to open four more non-food Tesco stores in a bid to expand that sector, and added that the company was �sensibly cautious but confident� about Christmas. Despite the slowdown, Tesco � with a market share of 32 percent - still outperformed the three other big supermarkets. �That 5.5 percent rise (in underlying sales) is twice the size of Sainsbury's growth,� Andrew Fowler, analyst at Merrill Lynch, told the Financial Times. Sales in the UK rose 11.6 percent, up from 10.9 percent last quarter. Higginson said that 3.7 percent of that was generated by new stores. With Tesco continuing to cut prices, price deflation was 1.6 percent. International business was �slightly ahead� of expectation, with sales rising 16 percent.

Balenciaga at Tesco Tesco has agreed to stop selling a military-style coat until it settles a copying row with haute couture group Balenciaga. The futuristic fashion house led by French designer Nicholas Ghesquiere has threatened Britain's number one supermarket chain with legal action after its Florence and Fred fashion label produced an almost identical white coat to one from Balenciaga's autumn/winter collection. The major difference between the two garments is that the Tesco coat is priced at £55, while its designer rival costs £1,380. A Tesco spokesman said the company was looking into the dispute with Balenciaga and would not release the offending coat to its stores until it was settled. Terry Green in talks to head Tesco clothing Terry Green, the former chief executive of the department-store group Allders, is in talks to join Tesco, the supermarket giant, and head its clothing business. If successfully completed, the move would mark Green's return to the retail sector following the collapse earlier this year of Allders with the loss of nearly 1,000 jobs.

The colourful retailer would replace John Hoerner - his former boss at Burton Group - who joined Tesco in 2001, but who recently stepped back from day-today involvement to take on a consultancy role. It is unlikely to be a main-board appointment. Both Tesco and Green declined to comment. Tesco feels Euro-expansion tension UK conglomerate Tesco and Wal-Mart are facing expansion trouble in East Europe. Data to be released by management consultants AT Kearney on Monday will show that the markets in Poland, Russia and Czech Republic are saturated. The report says "with new players entering this region and existing players expanding, market saturation is tugging many traditional eastern European countries down the index. The Czech Republic, for example dropped and Poland fell out of the top 30 all together. "Poland is now saturated," Tesco's Mike Sage said These markets are definitely not saturated. They are young, emerging markets and you need to take a medium to long term view and we know that when we open stores there is a big demand. We will continue with expansion as planned.

10 July 2005 Tesco to expand clothing Tesco will add its Cherokee, Florence & Fred and Value clothing ranges to another 20 Tesco Extra stores, which ar eplanned to open over the next year. It is currently sold in around 200 stores. The supermarket has also lauched a dedicated clothing website The website offers the latest fashion and gives info on where clothing is sold as well as fashion advice. Speculation continues that Tesco is a potential buyer for Cherokee, which has been put up for sale by its US parent company. 14 May 2005 Cherokee heads for England and abroad Tesco is in talks to buy the Cherokee clothes brand as part of a massive expansion of its international clothing operation. A deal could be announced within the next six weeks. Tesco has exclusive rights to distribute the American casualwear brand in Britain, but not in its stores on the Continent or in Asia. The brand has been put up for sale by US owner Cherokee Group, for an estimates £200m. Campbell for Tescos Supermodel Naomi Campbell is starring in a new ad campaign for supermarket chain Tescos. In the ad, which aired on television last night, Naomi parodies herself.

She is seen reacting violently to pop-ups of the low prices of the Cherokee label she is wearing. Lashing out at them is a tongue-in-cheek reference to Campbell's widely documented temper tantrums. The Cherokee label is a casual American label that is sold at Tescos in the UK. A spokeswoman for the label said: "The clothes are inspired in the same way as all the most popular labels. The quality speaks for itself though - it's on a par with Gap, or even better, because the supermarket is able to source the best materials." It is not known whether Campbell will feature in any other ads for Tescos, but in the meantime she is sure to draw plenty of attention to the brand. 26 April 2005 Tesco first non-food store The leading British supermarket chain, Tesco, will be testing its first non-food store this year. The focus will be on products such as clothing, homeware, electrical goods, CDs and DVDs. A spokesperson for Tesco told the Press Association news agency: "We will trial a non-good store at some point this year.

We will just have to see how it goes." The decision to test a non-food store was prompted by the success that Tesco's Extra stores enjoyed. These stores sell a larger selection of non-food items. Last year, non-food sales stimulated growth and accounted for approximately GBP 7 billion of Tesco's turnover. As yet, the new name and location of the store have not been revealed. 18 January 2005 Tesco triumph Of every £8 spent by British shoppers in any shop, anywhere, £1 of it will be making its way to Tesco. Tesco will sell £30 billion of goods this year in Britain - more than double either of its nearest rivals, Sainsbury's and Asda. If Tesco were a nation it would be the 74th biggest economy in the world - bigger than Libya or Kuwait. Tesco buys nearly one third of all produce from British farms. Sir Terry Leahy doesn't appear to have lost any of his ambition, telling Management Today magazine this year that Tesco still had only 6.5 per cent of the non-food market and that £1 in every £8 spent was not enough.

He said: "Our market share of UK retailing is 12.5 per cent - that leaves 87.5 per cent to go after." You have been warned. Green Baby Signs With Tesco Organic cotton baby and toddler brand Green Baby is to design a babywear collection for Tesco, as part of the UK's largest retailer's drive to add value to parts of its clothing offer. The range of basics, to be called Green Baby for Tesco, will be trialled in 25 of Tesco's larger format stores from March, with plans to roll it out to more stores by the end of the year. Designer for newborns to 18-month0olds, it includes bodysuits, babygrows, hats and booties. Green Baby's new designer Nicola Bradshaw, who joined from Elle in the spring, will head the design of the range. The main components of Tesco's clothing offer are the UK license of Cherokee and the Florence & Fred and Value own labels. The company is known to be looking at broadening its sportswear range, and the Breen Baby deal signals a willingness to look to niche brands.

Green Baby's clothing, toiletries and nappies are sold in over 300 UK independents. The company also operates a home shopping business with a mailing list of around 50,000. Green Baby's range of organic cotton clothing is produced at a Fair Trade project in South India. Other products are sourced mainly from Europe, notably in Germany where organic cotton is commonly used. Tesco's Clothing Lines Fastest Growth Tesco's clothing lines, run by former Arcadia chief executive of John Hoerner, are now the fastest growing brands in the UK. The chain has 1.8 per cent of the clothing market and Sir Terry Leahy believes the sky's the limit in terms of growth. He said: "Clothing has more than doubled in three years. It's a very profitable part of our business, but within the mass of Tesco it's only low single digits as a percentage of turnover. The non-food market is as big as the food market and so we see a really good opportunity to grow there." Tesco surges ahead Britain's largest supermarket group has reported a growth in its share of the British non-food market from 6% to 6.5%.

Clothing sales increased by 39% in the first half. Tesco's clothing brands Cherokee and Florence and Fred continued to expand in the UK in terms of size and monetary value. Total sales for the company rose to £16.5 billion, an increase of 12.2%. In the UK sales for the non-food division rose by 17%. In the first half, Tesco opened 34 stores outside the UK and plans on adding another 65 to its overseas operations in the second half. Tesco To Concentrate On Clothing Offer Sales at supermarket chain Tesco will get a boost as its clothing business is set to grow in the UK market. It has been estimated that clothing sales at Tesco are about 2 per cent of its total sales, leaving much room for growth and improvement. With revenues at GBP600 million, the developing clothing market for Tesco will be an important future growth driver. No longer being content with being looked at as a food retailer, Tesco has increasingly been emphasizing its non-food offer and aside from clothing is now also stocking toys, home furnishings and electrical items. In September 2002 Tesco launched its Cherokee clothing brand and now also has a range called Florence & Fred.

With about a 5 per cent share of the UK non-food market, Tesco believes its Florence and Fred, Cherokee, Value and own-brand clothing quadrupled the market rate last year. 25 February 2004 Tesco And Sainsbury's Plan Fashion Brands Tesco is thought to be planning to overhaul its fashion offer with brand acquisitions just as Sainsbury's is gearing up to unveil its revamped own-label clothing ranges. Tesco has been working hard in recent months to agree deals to secure replica football shirts, which it will sell at a discount to traditional sportswear retailers, but it is keen to broaden its clothing portfolio. It is now understood to have a multi-million pound war chest ready for fashion acquisitions. Tesco is understood to have been keen to buy value sportswear brand Admiral before it was snapped up in a licensing deal by rival Asda last October, and it is looking at similar brands. The strategy of buying in brands has been employed by Matalan and Marks & Spencer, which bought its sports brand, View From. Meanwhile, supermarket rival Sainsbury's is gearing up to launch its clothing brand Tu. The ranges, which will start to arrive in stores in July, are set for a full launch in September.

The launch is part of an effort to catch up with its supermarket rivals' non-food ranges and is being spearheaded by its head of clothing, former M&S executive Richard Jones. 28 January 2004 Matalan and Tesco Merger Rumour Played Down Reports that discount retailer Matalan and supermarket giant Tesco have held merger discussions have been firmly played down by both companies. Matalan shares rose sharply on Monday, up 3.2 percent to 211p, following a report in the Mail on Sunday which said the two retailers had been held talks until early this year, which could now be resurrected. Neither company commented directly on the report, but news agency Reuters quoted 'sources familiar' with Matalan which said "John Hargreaves and Terry Leahy have never met." Hargreaves, founder of Matalan, was said by the report to want to retain control of the business, while other members of the family are reported to be keener to explore a sale. Matalan was also recently linked to interest from Asda owner Wal-Mart, which is trialing stand alone clothing stores using the George brand.

23 September 2003 Clothing Sales Boost Tesco Supermarket chain Tesco posted a 21.3 per cent jump in first half pre-tax profit on Tuesday as it was boosted by surging apparel sales.The chain said its profits in the six months to August 9 jumped to £661 million as group sales rose 17 per cent year-on-year to £14.9 billion. Chief executive Terry Leahy said he was delighted with the results and described his firm as the fastest growing clothing business in the UK. September 15 2003 Tesco's Gains Puts Pressure on Discounters Tesco's expansion plans for its clothing offer are likely to put extra pressure on the bottom end of the market, according to analysts. The supermarket grew its YUK clothing market share by 40 per cent in value and 60 per cent in volume terms in 2002, to 1.4 and a 4.4 per cent of the market respectively. Analysts estimate it is currently achieving sales densities of around GBP350 to 400 per square foot.

During an analysts' tour of stores in the Manchester area, Tesco said it was on track to double its number of hypermarkets over the next three years. Two-thirds of growth would come via extensions of existing stores, which analysts say is likely to lead to greater clothing market share gains. By September, Tesco will have recruited 260 specialist clothing managers and, with its new clothing only warehouse in Daventry, this should lead to productivity gains. The City further expects Tesco to start to use it's leverage price further as it grows its clothing business. 22 July 2003 Tesco in talks with Turkish Kipa UK supermarket operator Tesco is in exclusive discussions with Turkish hypermarket group Kipa to acquire part or all of Kipas share capital. The deal is subject to a number of material conditions, but if cleared, is expected to close in the current financial year, Tesco said in a statement. Kipa operates five stores in Turkey. Tesco said the maximum amount payable for the entirety of Kipas equity capital would be GBP 76,2 million, subject to a net cash adjustment.

April 19, 2003 UK: Tesco Launches "Florence & Fred" | Apparel Industry News | just-style UK: Tesco Launches "Florence & Fred" By just-style.com | 27 February 2001 Supermarket chain, Tesco, has launched a new range of clothing, focusing on design and wearability. Tesco carried out extensive research to find out what customers wanted in terms of clothing. The result was the "Florence & Fred" collection for men and women. Florence is available in over 230 stores and Fred in 150 stores. Graham Ash, director of Adult Clothing for Tesco said: "This is our most exciting clothing venture to date. It complements our existing clothing and is exclusive to Tesco. "The Florence & Fred collection has been developed in response to our customers' needs and its success relies upon the crucial elements of design, fabrications and wearability. "The range will be presented in an exciting and understandable format that aims to bring the fun back into the shopping experience." The range, say Tesco, "embraces a modern silhouette while still retaining the classic elements".

For women, it includes a Harrington-style cement jacket teamed with an argyle check shirt, a carnation short sleeve sweetheart neck jumper and a bias cut buttermilk skirt. For men, it includes a classic black mac teamed with a pink gingham shirt with cutaway collar and stone trousers. By Deborah Bowyer Retailing giants like Wal-Mart, Tesco and Kingfisher are putting China at the centre of their expansion plans. However, the French giant Carrefour has gained the upper hand in China's market in terms ... ANALYSIS Safeguard action by the US and EU against soaring Chinese clothing and textile exports has been fuelled by strong lobbying from domestic manufacturing trade groups. But how effective are these moves t... ANALYSIS Wal-Mart is famous for its everyday low prices. The world's largest company continues to dramatically transform the retail landscape by exploring new growth avenues, selling new categories of merchand... NEWS Supermarket giant Tesco has reported an 11.5% rise in sales for the Christmas trading period, helped by strong results in non-food categories including clothing.... NEWS UK supermarket giant Tesco is suffering from the recent restrictions placed on EU imports of Chinese goods, but will continue to rely on China as an increasingly important clothing supplier....

NEWS Supermarket giant Tesco has appointed Terry Green, ex-chief executive of the collapsed Allders chain, as head of its clothing division.... NEWS The ex-boss of collapsed department store chain Allders is in discussions to take over the lead of supermarket giant Tesco's clothing division, according to a report in The Sunday Times newspaper.... NEWS Cherokee Inc, which licenses and represents a range of brands, said that growth of its Cherokee apparel range and its Carole Little brands boosted first-quarter revenue and earnings.... Subscribe to our newsletters Tesco looks to expand F&F range - Design - Fashion-news Tesco looks to expand F&F range Thursday, 19 January 2012 Tesco has launched a new franchise model for Florence and Fred (their low range clothing line) as they look to make the label into a major global brand. Under the new model Tesco will work with local partners to launch F&F in a range of settings, including stand alone stores within shopping malls and units within department stores and hypermarkets. The first franchise will open in Saudi Arabia later this year, whilst the retailer confirmed it is exploring other franchise opportunities in the country.

Jason Tarry, CEO of F&F International said: “The franchise model is a natural extension of the work we have been doing to turn F&F into a truly global fashion brand. We have in a very short time created a market leading fashion brand in Central Europe, now worth over GBP 400 million. Now we have the opportunity to grow our brand further, in markets where Tesco does not have a presence.” Advertisement Tesco looks to expand F&F range Tesco looks to expand F&F range Tesco has launched a new franchise model for Florence and Fred (their low range clothing line) as they look to make the label into a major global brand. Under the new model Tesco will work with local partners to launch F&F in a range of settings, including stand alone stores within shopping malls and units within department stores and hypermarkets. The first franchise will open in Saudi Arabia later this year, whilst the retailer confirmed it is exploring other franchise opportunities in the country. Jason Tarry, CEO of F&F International said: “The franchise model is a natural extension of the work we have been doing to turn F&F into a truly global fashion brand.

We have in a very short time created a market leading fashion brand in Central Europe, now worth over GBP 400 million. Now we have the opportunity to grow our brand further, in markets where Tesco does not have a presence.” Tesco to make its West End fashion debut - Telegraph Retail and Consumer Tesco to make its West End fashion debut Tesco, the supermarket chain, is set to take on New Look, Primark and Topshop with the opening of a standalone clothing store in London's West End. Tesco is already the fifth biggest player in the 'value' clothing sector Photo: ALAMY By James Hall, Retail Editor 7:00AM BST 09 Jul 2010 Comments The supermarket, which is more used to operating from out-of-town sheds than chi-chi boutiques, has already looked at potential sites on Oxford Street and High Street Kensington. The store would be branded F&F after Tesco's own-label clothing range, previously called Florence & Fred. The bold move will see Tesco try to succeed where its competitors have failed. Retail rent levels in the West End of London are among the highest in the world.

In 2008 arch-rival Asda closed its chain of George high street shops following a four-and-a-half-year trial run of the stand-alone clothing concept. Asda pulled the plug on the venture as it could not make the economics stack up. Terry Green, Tesco consultant and former clothing boss, told Drapers magazine: "We're looking for a store in the West End as a flagship for F&F. It will be a one-off to showcase the brand and complement our online and supermarket offer." The retailer is thought to be after a store of around 6,000 square feet. Tesco's clothing division has annual sales of over £1bn. However the so-called 'value' clothing sector is worth around £9.3bn. According to Verdict Research, Tesco is the fifth biggest player in this sector with a 10.4pc share. Primark, which on Thursday reported strong sales , is the market leader with an 18.5pc share, followed by George, TK Maxx and New Look. Being fifth in any product category will be an alien feeling for Tesco, which normally dominates every sector it operates in.

Related Articles Tesco sees a greater sense of optimism on the high street 11 Jun 2010 Tesco's move could be partly driven by the fast that fashion brands are having to shout louder to get heard in an ever-more-crowded marketplace. As well as being home to thousands of stores from established brands like Primark and New Look, the UK is attracting a raft of international clothing brands. US chain Abercrombie & Fitch and its sister brand Hollister made their UK debuts a few years ago, however chains such as Forever 21, Vero Moda and Victoria's Secret are also set to enter the UK. Maureen Hinton, senior research analyst at Verdict, told Drapers: "If Tesco can get the look and feel right in a standalone store, then it could be a good way of building brand awareness. This look and feel would then need to be translated into the supermarkets too though, so there is not a discrepancy between the flagship store and the other offers." Tesco has form in launching successful new formats and retail concepts. It revolutionised the convenience store market with its Tesco Express chain and has launched non-food homewares-only stores.

Tesco also owns the Dobbies garden centre chain and has moved into banking. Its F&F brand has grown fast over recent years. According to Tesco's website F&F has a Couture sub-brand, as well as Petite and True (plus-size) sub-brands. While a simple F&F dress would cost a customer as little as £16, dresses in its Couture range cost up to £140. Last year F&F held a fashion show in London's West End. Tesco looks to grow in clothing | Business | The Guardian Tesco looks to grow in clothing Photograph: Frank Baron Share on Messenger Close Tesco has set out ambitious plans to take on some of the biggest names in fashion retailing with a "massive" investment to expand its clothing business. Terry Green, the chief executive of Tesco's clothing business in the UK, said the supermarket chain intended to open "stores within stores" and start selling fashion online and through catalogues next year.

Mr Green said he was planning more upmarket ranges and said Tesco would "invest massively" in order to take on high street giants such as Next, TopShop and Marks & Spencer: "We currently have 3% market share and Marks & Spencer has 9%. We want to close that gap." Tesco raked in clothing sales of £750m last year and accounts for 11% of the value clothing sector. It has a smaller presence in the fashion market than its rival Asda - which has 17% of the value sector with its George label - but Tesco is growing faster. It is expected to achieve clothing sales of £1bn this year. Mr Green said the supermarket would expand the shopfloor space it devotes to clothing - from the current 1.6m sq ft - and differentiate it from the rest of the store: "People don't want to feel they are shopping for clothing in a supermarket." He also intends to stock more upmarket ranges to change Tesco's image as a discount retailer. The grocer's brands include the Value range of basics, Cherokee casuals and Florence and Fred fashion offer.

Two months ago it moved into higher price points with its F&F Collection, a premium range created by the former Jaeger and M&S designer Lee Rees-Oliviere described as "a design-led capsule wardrobe of carefully conceived essentials in sumptuous fabrics and yarns". Prices now range from a £3 pair of Value jeans to a £100 F&F tuxedo trouser suit. "Customers have told us that they have got used to shopping for clothes in a supermarket and now they are looking to do more," a spokesman for Tesco said. Mr Green was hired by Tesco's chief executive, Sir Terry Leahy, 12 months ago. He was previously chief executive of Allders, which collapsed into administration. Before that he was chief executive of Bhs and at Debenhams, where he dreamed up the Designers at Debenhams concept. Sir Terry recently described Mr Green as "a brilliant merchant". Mr Green's plans emerged in an interview with City AM, a free daily business newspaper. Tesco will be the first supermarket to start selling clothes on the internet. The online fashion business will be run alongside the new Tesco Direct operation, launched in August to take on Argos.

After a relatively slow start, clothing is one of the fastest-growing sectors in online retailing. Next has recently reported web sales performing far better than high street sales - though the ranges on offer are the same. Last month Littlewoods unveiled plans to spend £30m on efforts to change its image from that of a downmarket northern catalogue company into a fashion-forward online retailer. Tesco 'slave labour' row | London Evening Standard Tesco 'slave labour' row Thursday 26 June 2008 09:15 BST Click to follow Plea from Obama: Tesco chief executive Sir Terry Leahy 2/2 Tesco's Florence and Fred range Price of fashion: a design from Tesco's Florence and Fred range which is made by workers in Bangalore Plea from Obama: Tesco chief executive Sir Terry Leahy Tesco is accused today of exploiting workers who are paid an average 16p an hour. A damaging investigation alleges that Britain's biggest retailer - which made a £2.8 billion profit last year - is being supplied by an Indian factory where textile workers earn, on average, £8.75 for a 54-hour, six-day week. The lowest paid receive less than £7 a week.

A researcher flown in from India will present the figures at the retail giant's annual shareholders' meeting tomorrow in an attempt to maximise Tesco's embarrassment. The meeting in Birmingham is being used by several organisations and individuals to pick a fight with Tesco, which takes about one pound in seven spent on the High Street and is the world's third biggest retailer. Tesco will also come under fire from: US presidential candidate Barrack Obama, who has written to Tesco chief executive Sir Terry Leahy about workers' rights at its US subsidiary Fresh & Easy. The head of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, which represents 1.3 million American employees, will attend the AGM. TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, who is putting a resolution about chicken welfare to the AGM. He has paid £86,888 for the printing and circulation of his resolution. Chinese biology professor Shi Hai Tao, who plans to speak out about the treatment of live turtles in Tesco's Chinese stores. The report into Indian factory conditions has been compiled by the charity War on Want and the campaign group Labour Behind the Label, which are demanding improved pay and conditions in factories which supply British high street chains.

Workers at the factory in Bangalore, which is not being named for fear of reprisals from bosses, make clothes on a contract basis for Tesco's hugely successful Florence and Fred range. It also manufactures garments for other High Street chains. War on Want claims as many as four out of five women examined by doctors for the Indian workers' rights organisation Cividep showed evidence of malnutrition. The price of rice in India is said to have risen 20 per cent over the last year. The report alleges that workers risk dismissal for failing to meet strict targets and are forced to work overtime but only receive money for half the extra hours recorded. It also says factory bosses ordered employees, most of whom are women, to work on a Sunday to prevent them attending a union meeting scheduled for that day. The Bangalore Garment and Textile Workers' Union has calculated that a living wage should be £52 a month. Simon McRae, senior campaigns officer at War on Want, said today: "Our new evidence reveals how Tesco's cheap clothing comes at the shameful price of workers' poverty. Again and again scandals exposing UK retailers exploitinggarment workers underline that the public cannot trust stores to police themselves.

It is high time the British government legislate to stop this abuse." A Tesco spokesman said: "It's disappointing that War on Want has once again chosen to publicise unsubstantiated allegations without engaging with us. We have been trying to discuss our approach to ethical trading with them but they have ignored our calls. Now, out of the blue, they make these allegations without producing any evidence or giving us any detail on the factories they claim have problems. This means we cannot investigate. "We insist on high standards and go to great lengths to ensure our suppliers meet them. If there is an issue in a factory supplying Tesco, we will deal with it and ensure the interests of workers are protected." SUPERMARKET DEFIES CALLS TO PULL OUT OF ZIMBABWE Tesco has confirmed it will not be pulling out of Zimbabwe as retailers face growing pressure to cut business ties amid the growing violence. Supermarkets have been criticised for selling produce from the country where millions are starving under President Robert Mugabe's regime. But Tesco said trade provided crucial support to small farmers, adding it would be "irresponsible" to leave now. A spokesman said: "By trading with Zimbabwe we are supporting hundreds of small farmers and not the Mugabe government.

"There is precious little employment of any sort in Zimbabwe and it would simply be irresponsible to deprive thousands of people of their only means of feeding their families." Tesco is among a number of British supermarkets who sell Zimbabwean sugar snap peas and fine beans. Earlier this year Waitrose stood by its decision to sell fish from Zimbabwe, saying it stocked tilapia as a sustainable alternative to wild cod.

Question: Which UK retail chain sells the ‘Florence and Fred’ range of clothing?
Answer: Tesco