Tesco is pushing ahead with a significant expansion of its convenience division after buying a number of former Amazon Fresh stores in London.
Britain’s largest supermarket group plans to open more than 70 new Tesco Express stores by March 2027, building on the 60 convenience stores it opened last year. The retailer already operates just over 2,000 convenience stores across the UK and Ireland to capture a greater share of everyday extra spend.
Tesco has taken over five former Amazon Fresh locations in London, on Kensington High Street, Hounslow, Moorgate, Aldgate East and Wembley, after the US tech giant decided to pull out of its short-lived brick-and-mortar grocery experiment in the UK. The sites are expected to reopen as Tesco Express stores before the summer.
Further express openings are planned across a wide geographical area, from Bickington in Devon and Pontrhydyrun in Torfaen to Strabane in Co Tyrone and Wallyford in East Lothian. This underlines the retailer’s ambition to strengthen its presence in both urban and regional communities.
Alongside its convenience offensive, Tesco continues to invest in larger stores. Following the opening of new superstores in Ripon and Harrogate late last year, it plans to open two more in Scotland in 2026, in Pitlochry, Perth and Kinross, as well as the Heartlands project in West Lothian.
Tesco group property director Nick Johnson said the expansion would allow the grocer to serve “even more people in even more communities”. Tesco operates more than 7,000 stores worldwide.
The move reflects a growing land grab across the food sector, with convenience retail, estimated to be worth £48.8bn in the UK, emerging as one of the few areas of steady growth. Time-poor shoppers are increasingly favoring smaller, more frequent local trips over traditional weekly supermarket shopping.
Tesco’s competitors are taking an aggressive approach. Asda is accelerating its convenience rollout, aiming to open 300 Express stores by the end of this year. Waitrose has committed £1 billion to opening around 100 convenience outlets over the next five years.
Morrisons plans to add a further 250 Morrisons Daily stores this year, with a focus on the south of England and the Midlands, while Sainsbury’s continues to open around 20 to 25 local stores annually as part of its Next Level strategy.
The rapid expansion of supermarket giants is putting increasing pressure on independent retailers. Convenience store owners warn that the size, purchasing power and advertising power of supermarket chains are driving up rents and increasing competition, accelerating the decline of traditional corner shops on Britain’s high streets.
