Tesco to Use Site Selection Tool for U.S. Operation

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — U.K.-based Tesco has signed a multiyear agreement with The Gadberry Group, Little Rock, Ark., to use its MicroBuild household geo-demographic product in support of retail site selection for Tesco’s U.S. operation, which debuted in Southern California this week. Tesco plans to open 32 10,000-square-foot Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market stores in Southern California, Phoenix and Las Vegas this year, followed by another 100 stores in 2008. It could have as many as 1,000 stores in the U.S. in five years, by some estimates. “MicroBuild will help us make informed real estate location decisions and have a better understanding of the demographic changes in the neighborhoods we’re considering for our grocery store location,” said Benjy Meyer, Fresh & Easy site research manager, in a statement. The system delivers household and population counts beginning at the census-block level.

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