Tesco's Fresh & Easy keeps pushing along in the U.S. as the chain recently announced plans to open its first two stores in San Francisco.
"We could not be more thrilled with the strong performance of our first 11 stores in Northern California and we're excited to get our doors open in San Francisco," said Tim Mason, Fresh & Easy CEO, in a press release. "Judging by the fantastic reception we've seen from customers throughout the Bay Area, we are certain these stores will also be a hit."
Mr. Mason's optimism aside, there are many Tesco shareholders who doubt whether the chain has found the right formula to make it on this side of the Atlantic.
Charlie Munger, vice-chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, told The Telegraph earlier this month, "It's difficult to be a new boy. ...Tesco is God Almighty in England. But you come into Southern California and you have Trader Joe's and Costco -- that's tough competition."
Tesco has said it expects to reach profitability in the U.S. by 2013, although there are many doubters outside the company if not in its c-suite. A RetailWire poll in October of last year found only 35 percent thought Fresh & Easy would reach its goal in that timeframe.
Fresh & Easy, as a Bloomberg Businessweek article and others have pointed out, has made adjustments. The company has expanded the number of items it carries from from 3,500 to 5,000. It has added more healthy items and frozen foods to cater to local tastes in Arizona, California and Nevada where it currently has stores.
Simon Uwins, Fresh & Easy's chief marketing officer, told the magazine "We're very confident that we've got Fresh & Easy in a place that customers like it. We've just got to get more customers into it."
The changes have brought some improvement. Same-store sales in 2010 were up 9.4 percent.