Tesco Lotus chief executive John Christie has announced the Thai retailer’s commitment to expansion plans, telling the Bangkok Post that five new large format stores and 50 express stores would open in Thailand this year.
The expansions will also focus on cutting prices of fresh food and groceries, with Thb4bn (US$122.7m) already invested in its ‘Roll Back’ campaign to decrease product prices and Thb600m (US$18.4m) invested in cutting fresh produce prices.
“Tesco Lotus has made huge investments over the years to help Thais save on their cost of living,” Christie told the Thai daily. “We are confident that out investment plan will strengthen our leadership in the modern retail sector, while we continue to work with Thai suppliers and business partners to grow together with us and help Thai people cut the cost of living.”
The expansion plans comes as the Bht3.5bn distribution centre has been completed in Surat Thani in southern Thailand, with around 1,800 stores operating across the country.
Tesco, the UK-based parent company of Tesco Lotus, posted a pre-tax loss of £6.4bn(US$9.75bn)in what Tesco CEO Dave Lewis called a “very difficult year” for the company. Tesco’s Asian operations posted a profit of £565m (US$860.6m), down 18 per cent on the previous year, with tough trading conditions in South Korea and Tesco’s phasing out in China cited for losses in the group’s 2014/15 preliminary results.
“Thailand is a strategic market for Tesco Group. Growth opportunities here remain promotising and we will continue to invest to grow our business,” Christie said.
