Tesco Plans to Expand Despite Economic Downturn
BY JACOB MASLOW



BANGKOK: -- Tesco Lotus is set to expand this year, opening more stores despite Thailand’s economic downturn. Ek-Chai Distributions Systems Co, the local operator of the hypermarkets, says it will speed up its plans for retail expansion while also expanding its online business through its official website and Lazada.

John Christie, chief executive, announced that the company will be opening over 65 small and large stores this year. The company also plans to renovate 18 locations to improve the shopping experience for its customers.

No details have been released on Ek-Chai’s investment budget, but the company did note that it plans to hire 3,000 new workers this year.

Full story: https://ethailand.com/business-news/tesco-plans-to-expand-despite-economic-downturn/2317/

-- eThailand 2016-04-21

Any plans to start offering more Western foods at competitive-prices, or to start asking customers what they'd like to see, on the shelves ?

Any plan to clean up the filthy shelves and freezers?

They need to shore up the stocking of their current stores before they spend any money to expand

You can't sell stuff if you can't get it to the store shelves; the major problem with Tesco is not the lack of stores but the lack of goods in them

But I seriously doubt if any executive of Ek-Chai Distributions Systems Co have ever been in a Tesco and stumbled over the cartons of goods that are just left on the floor awaiting a worker to put them up

Edited April 21, 201610 yr by Langsuan Man

Any plan to clean up the filthy shelves and freezers?

No.

Also there is no healthy-organic-MSG free food in offer, just junk.

They should spend money on management training, to improve them from the loser stores they are at the moment.

My nearest Tesco hypermarket is over 100 km away. It would be great if they would build one in a large town a bit closer. As for the small Tesco shops, plenty of them, but many empty shelves "no have" and very poor selection of farang food (no cheese being my biggest gripe) and despite the number of long stay farangs in the area it seems any ability to speak English, at all, even "good morning" is not a requirement for their staff.

....John...you better get your !@#$%^&* together buddy...

,,,forgot Carrefour... ???

...every Lotus Express I walk into has faulty and leaking refrigerators....which leads to perverse loss of revenue...and clientele....

...who is 'calling the shots' here.....???

• Needs to look at the one in Ban Chang it is a disgrace noodle stalls every where motor cycles parked all over can hardly get into the store and when you do very limited stock

Any chance of expanding the current offering of three tiny loaves of bread?

Forgive me for being a typical whiny 'expat', but, other than by name, the Tesco here is in no way, shape or form comparable with its UK mother, which in itself is considered bottom of the rung.

Its seems a trend New stores opening but the existing ones are terrible!

Here in PKK the fresh meat (i use the term loosely ) area stinks not unusual to have it empty or very old stock

Aisles packed with boxes at busy times, you cant even get down them, shelves empty

No cheese they did have a semi decent cheddar but now replaced by processed plastic cheese slices

vegetables best left alone

air con seems to have given up the ghost

Staff doing their best to ignore you

Sort out the old ones first!

They have to clean up the old stores before they open new.

I go there once a year to look maybe somthing change and go bach without buy nothhing.

Too much dirty and mess, not enough goods.

Hmmm....what a cunning plan

They need to shore up the stocking of their current stores before they spend any money to expand

You can't sell stuff if you can't get it to the store shelves; the major problem with Tesco is not the lack of stores but the lack of goods in them

But I seriously doubt if any executive of Ek-Chai Distributions Systems Co have ever been in a Tesco and stumbled over the cartons of goods that are just left on the floor awaiting a worker to put them up

Yeah. They never heard of night stocking. They come in and dump pallets of stuff blocking sometimes nearly every single aisle, including the one across the back of the store and then stuff around all day deciding which one to do first. I wonder how much they pee people off who go elsewhere, where there is an alternative. Where we live there is no alternative without a 3/4 hour drive (3/4 hour with good traffic, 1.5 hrs at a bad time.) Perhaps they use night stocking in areas with competition.............

Waiting for Aldi or Lidl come here,but won't happen.

They need to shore up the stocking of their current stores before they spend any money to expand

You can't sell stuff if you can't get it to the store shelves; the major problem with Tesco is not the lack of stores but the lack of goods in them

But I seriously doubt if any executive of Ek-Chai Distributions Systems Co have ever been in a Tesco and stumbled over the cartons of goods that are just left on the floor awaiting a worker to put them up

Very true, whoever does the stocktaking and ordering needs the sack. If it is done through the tills by computer it needs reprogramming. The "local" stores are worse.

Beats me how the staff put up with it.

In the UK I went from shopping at Tesco to going to ALDI. So much better and much cheaper too. Oh I wish the likes of ALDI would come to Thailand.

Edited April 21, 201610 yr by eliotness

In the UK I went from shopping at Tesco to going to ALDI. So much better and much cheaper too. Oh I wish the likes of ALDI would come to Thailand.

Won't happen,thais don't like fair competion

Tesco Lotus Thailand is the biggest un professional Joke, I ever have seen.

I used to work as a staff teacher for a shop like Tesco Lotus.

Never have seen something worst. I could post thousands of failures.

They should shut down.

Its seems a trend New stores opening but the existing ones are terrible!

Here in PKK the fresh meat (i use the term loosely ) area stinks not unusual to have it empty or very old stock

Aisles packed with boxes at busy times, you cant even get down them, shelves empty

No cheese they did have a semi decent cheddar but now replaced by processed plastic cheese slices

vegetables best left alone

air con seems to have given up the ghost

Staff doing their best to ignore you

Sort out the old ones first!

"Here in PKK ..........."

Does anyone know what PKK stands for? Thank you.

"Here in PKK ..........."

Does anyone know what PKK stands for? Thank you.

Prachuap Khiri Khan ?

PKK = Phrachuap Khiri Khan for those not in the know!

Or

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdistan_Workers'_Party

The Kurdistan Workers' Party, commonly referred to by its Kurdish acronym, PKK(Partiya Karkerên Kurdistanê) is a Kurdish militant organization based in ...

‎Abdullah Öcalan - ‎KCK - ‎Communalism - ‎History of the Kurdistan ...

But i dont think Tesco is popular there either

Westerners probably make up an extremely small (perhaps infinitesimally small) proportion of the customers in the vast majority of their stores. Perhaps that is why they don't bother with cheese or a wide range of bread?

Personally I find a breadmaker a really good investment. although I do balk at a herd of cows to make my own cheese!

☺

Whist i agree us Westerners are a mere pimple on their balance sheet it does not excuse poor stocking and dirty stores and a care less attitude of staff

My Mrs is Thai doesn't eat bread or cheese but if you want to hear someone complain about how crap Tesco is especially the one in PKK (now wheres that) ...... she is top of the list

I do wish Tesco-Lotus would spend a little more of this money, on maintaining their shopping-trolleys to a higher standard, the one I use this morning drove like a drunken-pig !

BigC FTW. Lotus is for cheap arse locals, maimee being the main article.

They do stock a very good brand of leather sandals.

My daughters puppies are very partial to chewing the straps.