LONDON (AP) - Tesco, Britain's biggest retailer, is reviewing options for its slow-growing U.S. venture, Fresh & Easy.
The company also announced Wednesday that the chief executive of Fresh & Easy, Tim Mason, is leaving.
Chief Executive Philip Clarke
said Fresh & Easy's "journey to scale and acceptable returns will
take too long relative to other opportunities." The unit's like-for-like
sales, which do not include new stores and space, grew less than 2% in
the third quarter.
Clarke has been concentrating on Tesco's U.K. base, where its dominant market share has recently slipped a bit.
Like-for-like sales in the home market, excluding petrol, were down 0.7% in the quarter.
Fresh & Easy operates 200 stores in California, Arizona and Nevada.
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