Wyevale Garden Centres (formerly The Garden Centre Group ) was a British chain of garden centres .
55-693: It was the largest garden centre operator in the United Kingdom, with 154 locations following its acquisition of the Blooms of Bressingham chain in February 2007. It had acquired many smaller garden centre locations prior to this, which also helped to allow it to reach its peak. Following Wyevale’s financial difficulties, Dobbies Garden Centres acquired the vast majority of Wyevale locations in 2018. Any remaining locations were sold to Blue Diamond Garden Centres , independent owners and smaller chains, with
110-607: A public limited company (PLC) in 1987, and was listed on the London Stock Exchange . In the 1990s, the chain purchased the Kennedy's Garden Centres, and Cramphorn Garden Centre chains and transformed all outlets into Wyevale. In 2007, Blooms of Bressingham was purchased by Wyevale, Blooms had previously acquired the Jardiniere Garden Centre chain. In February 2009, following the collapse of
165-541: A home shopping service through the Tesco.com website. In May 1984, in Gateshead , England, Mrs. Jane Snowball used a piece of computer technology called " Videotex " on her television to purchase groceries from her local Tesco shop in the world's first recorded online shopping transaction from the home. As of November 2006, Tesco was the only food retailer to make online shopping profitable. Since 2006 Tesco has operated
220-698: A much smaller range of non-food goods than Extra hypermarkets. The shops have always been branded as 'Tesco', but a new shop in Liverpool was the first to use the format brand 'Tesco Superstore' above the door. Tesco operates a number of in-shop cafes but also began to introduce new restaurants in its shops from 2013 under the "Decks Carvery" brand. Tesco Express shops are neighbourhood convenience shops averaging 200 square metres (2,200 sq ft), stocking mainly food with an emphasis on higher-margin products such as sweets, crisps, chocolate, biscuits, fizzy drinks, and processed food (due to small shop size, and
275-581: A number of dark stores dedicated to the fulfilment of online orders of groceries. Tesco launched its customer loyalty scheme, the Tesco Clubcard , in 1995. It has been cited as a pivotal development in Tesco's progress towards becoming the UK's largest supermarket chain and one that fundamentally changed the country's supermarket business. Tesco itself was cited in a Wall Street Journal article as using
330-545: A profit of £130 million for the 52 weeks to 24 February 2007, of which Tesco's share was £66 million. This move towards the financial sector diversified the Tesco brand and provides opportunities for growth outside of the retailing sector. On 28 July 2008, Tesco announced that it would buy out the Royal Bank of Scotland's 50% stake in the company for £950 million. F&F launched in 2001 as Florence & Fred in Tesco's UK and Ireland supermarkets. In 2010,
385-573: A reported cost of £1.2 billion. In September, Tesco announced that it would sell the business to Ronald Burkle 's Yucaipa Companies for an undisclosed amount. That same month, Tesco launched its first tablet computer , a seven-inch model called Hudl . Tesco also purchased the restaurant and cafe chain Giraffe for £48.6 million. In 2015, Tesco confirmed the sale of its Blinkbox on-demand video service and its fixed-line telephone and broadband business to TalkTalk . In January, Tesco sold
440-473: A scaled-down F&F on Tesco.com soon after its deal with Next. Tesco operates a mobile phone business across the United Kingdom, Ireland, Slovakia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. It first launched in the UK in 2003 as a joint venture with O2 and operates as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) using the network of O2 with the exceptions of Hungary where the network of Vodafone Hungary
495-536: A small I.T. support company called The PC Guys in 2007, and were able to launch Tesco Tech Support in December 2008. In the 1960s, Tesco set up a non-food division, Tesco Home 'n' Wear, headed by Leslie Porter . It had stand-alone shops and departments in larger shops, and from 1975 a distribution centre in Milton Keynes . Although Tesco continued to stock non-food items the stand-alone shops were closed and
550-683: Is a British chain of garden centres based in Lasswade , Scotland. It is the biggest garden centre operator in the United Kingdom , operating over 77 stores, some of which it acquired from the previous biggest garden centre chain, Wyevale . The business was founded in 1865 by James Dobbie, who created a seeds business named Dobbie & Co. in Renfrew , Scotland. After being awarded the Royal Warrant for Gardeners and Nurserymen to
605-549: Is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index . Jack Cohen , the son of Jewish migrants from Poland, founded Tesco in 1919 when he began to sell war-surplus groceries from a stall at Well Street Market, Hackney , in the East End of London . The Tesco brand first appeared in 1924. The name came about after Jack Cohen bought a shipment of tea from Thomas Edward Stockwell . He made new labels using
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#1732798377456660-719: Is used and Ireland where Three Ireland is used. As a virtual operator, Tesco Mobile does not own or operate its own network infrastructure. By January 2011 Tesco announced it had over 2.5 million UK mobile customers. Tesco also operated a home telephone and broadband business. Its broadband service was launched in August 2004 to complement its existing internet service provider business, providing an ADSL -based service delivered via BT phone lines. In January 2015, Tesco sold its home telephone and broadband business, together with Blinkbox , to TalkTalk for around £5 million. Its customers were transferred by 2016. Tesco acquired
715-617: The Blinkbox Music streaming service to now-defunct Guvera , and confirmed it would close its Blinkbox Books service by the end of February. In 2016, Tesco confirmed it was seeking to sell Dobbies Garden Centres , Giraffe Restaurants , and Harris + Hoole to concentrate on its main supermarket business. In 2017, it was announced that Tesco had reached an agreement to merge with Britain's biggest wholesaler Booker Group . There were however concerns over market dominance with Tesco being Britain's largest food retailer and Booker being
770-606: The Budgens , Londis , Euro Shopper , and Premier Stores brands which operate under franchises. In the United Kingdom Tesco offers financial services through Tesco Bank, formerly a 50:50 joint venture with The Royal Bank of Scotland . Products on offer include credit cards, loans, mortgages, savings accounts, and several types of insurance, including car, home, life, and travel. They are promoted by leaflets in Tesco's shops and through its website. The business made
825-588: The Dundee -based firm, which operated 57 shops. This paved the way for Tesco to expand its presence in Scotland, in which its presence was weaker than in England. Tesco introduced a loyalty card , branded ' Clubcard ' in 1995, and later an Internet shopping service. In 1996 the typeface of the logo was changed to the current version with stripe reflections underneath, whilst the corporate font used for shop signage
880-512: The South West and the fourth largest in the UK. Following its temporary closure during the COVID-19 pandemic , Dobbies announced a partnership with Sainsbury's to supply its food halls with Sainsbury's branded products. The range will contain over 3,000 products including chilled, frozen, ambient and household products. Dobbies' Edinburgh store was the first to offer the full range at
935-545: The ninth-largest in the world measured by revenues. It has shops in Ireland, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. It is the market leader of groceries in the UK (where it has a market share of around 28.4%). Tesco has expanded globally since the early 1990s, with operations in 11 other countries in the world. The company pulled out of the US in 2013, but as of 2018 continues to see growth elsewhere. Since
990-606: The 1960s to include household goods and clothing under the Delamare brand, and in 1974 opened its first petrol station. In 2001, Tesco became involved in internet grocery retailing in the US when it obtained a 35% stake in GroceryWorks. In 2002, Tesco purchased 13 HIT hypermarkets in Poland. It also made a major move into the UK's convenience shop market with its purchase of T&S Stores, owner of 870 convenience shops in
1045-441: The 1960s, Tesco has diversified into areas such as the retailing of books, clothing, electronics, furniture, toys, petrol, software, financial services , telecommunications and internet services. In the 1990s, Tesco re-positioned itself from being a downmarket high-volume low-cost retailer, attempting to attract a range of social groups with its low-cost "Tesco Value" range (launched 1993 ) and premium "Tesco Finest" range. Tesco
1100-574: The Icelandic investment company Baugur Group who had a large stake in the firm, the Bank of Scotland became the majority owner of the firm in a debt-for-equity deal. In 2009, the name was changed to The Garden Centre Group. The company was bought by private equity firm Terra Firma in March 2012. On 17 July 2014, the company announced it would be rebranding to Wyevale Garden Centres. In May 2018,
1155-690: The One Stop brand. Some have Tesco Bank branded cash machines . The business has attracted some controversy, as the prices of groceries in these shops, often situated in more impoverished areas, can be higher than nearby Tesco branded shops, highlighted in The Times 22 March 2010: "Britain's biggest supermarket uses its chain of 639 One Stop convenience shops–which many customers do not realise it owns–to charge up to 14 per cent more for goods than it does in Tesco-branded shops." Tesco responded to
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#17327983774561210-669: The One Stop, Dillons, and Day & Nite chains in the UK. In June 2003, Tesco purchased the C Two-Network in Japan. It also acquired a majority stake in the Turkish supermarket chain Kipa . In January 2004, Tesco acquired Adminstore, owner of 45 Cullens, Europa, and Harts convenience shops, in and around London. In Thailand, Tesco Lotus was a joint venture of the Charoen Pokphand Group and Tesco, but facing criticism over
1265-552: The Royal Household, the company expanded into a seed catalogue business, where it built up a customer base of 50,000 over the following century. In 1969 the company expanded out of its Scottish base into England, and was floated on AIM in 1987. Up until 1984 Dobbies continued to operate principally as a seed merchant. It was then bought out by David Barnes, managing director of Waterers. Between 1984 and 1989 Dobbies opened five new garden centres in Scotland. The company
1320-648: The UK's largest wholesaler. In April, the company confirmed it would sell its in-shop opticians' business to Vision Express . In June, Tesco announced a major cost-cutting initiative that would reduce the company's workforce by over 1,200 workers. Key reductions included over a quarter of its employees in Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield, and the closure of the call centre in Cardiff. The company hoped to reduce costs by £1.5 billion. In 2019, Tesco announced another cost-cutting initiative that would close
1375-557: The United States market in 2013, following performance issues. In 2010, Tesco started funding a small film studio intended to produce Tesco-exclusive direct-to-DVD films. The first film was released on 6 September called Paris Connections , based on a popular novel by Jackie Collins. In 2013, Tesco confirmed that it was pulling out of its US market (Fresh & Easy) stores in April, after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, at
1430-481: The article stating "It is a separate business within the Tesco Group, with its own supply chain and distribution network. One Stop shops offer a different range to Express shops and its operating costs are different. One Stop's price strategy is to match to its nearest competitor, Costcutter , and is frequently cheaper." Tesco completed its acquisition of the food wholesaler Booker in March 2018. Booker also owns
1485-576: The biggest garden centre in the UK. In February 2020, Dobbies closed its Dalgety Bay Store in Fife , stating its small size and proximity to a larger store in Dunfermline as reasons for the decision. Dobbies announced in June 2020 that it would open a flagship store near Tewkesbury at the planned Designer Village Cotswold . The store is scheduled to open in 2022 and will become the largest store in
1540-399: The brand started to open stores in of itself starting with a London store. In the early to mid-2010s, it expanded to multiple countries stores and online. In the UK, F&F had its own website until 2016 when it was folded into Tesco Direct - which itself folded in August 2018. After this, F&F had no online UK presence until it partnered with Next PLC a year later. Tesco launched
1595-606: The brand would be retired as only 31% of customers were using the stores for larger shops. 89 locations converted to the Tesco Express format while the remaining 58 adopted the standard superstore format. Dobbies is a chain of garden centres across Scotland, England, and Northern Ireland. Tesco completed its acquisition of Dobbies in 2008, and the company continued to trade under its own brand, from its own head office in Melville, near Edinburgh . On 17 June 2016, Tesco sold
1650-472: The company announced that its investors (Terra Firma) had decided to put it up for sale as a complete business or for its individual garden centres. On 16 August 2018, Wyevale sold eight of its largest garden centres to Blue Diamond Garden Centres, including Bicester, Oxfordshire; Endsleigh, Devon; Sanders, Burnham-on-sea; Cadbury, Bristol; Cardiff, Wales; Percy Thrower, Shrewsbury; Melbicks, Birmingham; and Weybridge, Surrey. On 30 August 2018, Wyevale announced
1705-520: The end of July with other stores following throughout 2020. However, in 2022 certain stores trialled a Waitrose branded food hall. In October 2023, the company opened their largest store in Antrim in Northern Ireland , costing over £10 million to construct. In October 2024, the chain announced the closure of 17 centres across the UK, with anticipated job losses of 465 staff in an attempt by
Wyevale Garden Centres - Misplaced Pages Continue
1760-572: The final outlets sold and converted to British Garden Centres in 2019. In September 2023, the final holding company of Wyevale was dissolved, with no entity acquiring the Wyevale brand or intellectual property. The company started as a mail-order nursery operated by the Williamson family in the 1930s in Hereford and in 1967 opened the first Wyevale Garden Centre on Kings Acre Road. It became
1815-627: The food counters in 90 stores, affecting around 9,000 workers. In October 2019, Tesco announced that CEO Dave Lewis would step down in 2020, and would be succeeded by Ken Murphy . In 2023, Tesco acquired all nine Shoprite shops on the Isle of Man from the Nicholson family who had built the chain up since 1972. As of April 2023, Tesco's UK shop portfolio was as follows: Tesco Extra shops are larger, mainly out-of-town hypermarkets that stock nearly all of Tesco's product ranges, although some are in
1870-545: The growth of hypermarkets CP Group sold its Tesco Lotus shares in 2003. In late 2005 Tesco acquired the 21 remaining Safeway / BP shops after Morrisons dissolved the Safeway/BP partnership. In 2006, Tesco announced plans to move into the United States by opening a chain of small-format groceries in the Western states (Arizona, California, and Nevada) in 2007 named Fresh & Easy . Tesco would eventually pull out of
1925-609: The heart of town centres and inner-city locations. The largest shop in England by floor space is Tesco Extra in Walkden , with 17,230 square metres (185,500 sq ft) of floor space. In common with other towns, such as Warrington , the St Helens shop, which at 13,000 m (140,000 sq ft) is one of the biggest in England, was developed on the same site as the town's new rugby league stadium. Tesco Superstores are standard large supermarkets, stocking groceries and
1980-802: The initials of the supplier's name (TES), and the first two letters of his surname (CO), forming the word TESCO. After experimenting with his first permanent indoor market stall at Tooting in November 1930, Jack Cohen opened the first Tesco shop in September 1931 at 54 Watling Avenue, Burnt Oak , Edgware , Middlesex . Tesco was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1947 as Tesco Stores (Holdings) Limited. The first self-service shop opened in St Albans in 1948 (which remained operational until 2010 before relocating to larger premises on
2035-1037: The intelligence from the Clubcard to thwart Wal-Mart's initiatives in the UK. Cardholders can collect one Clubcard point for every £1 (or one point for €1 in Ireland and Slovakia or 1 point for 1zł in Poland) they spend in a Tesco shop, or at Tesco.com, and 1 point per £2 on fuel (not in Slovakia). Customers can also collect points by paying with a Tesco Credit Card, or by using Tesco Mobile, Tesco Homephone, Tesco Broadband, selected Tesco Personal Finance products, or through Clubcard partners, E.ON and Avis . Each point equates to 1p in shops when redeemed, or up to four times that value when used with Clubcard deals (offers for holidays, day trips, etc.) Clubcard points (UK & IE) can also be converted to Avios and Virgin Atlantic frequent flyer miles. One Stop, which includes some of
2090-638: The name was no longer in use when Tesco Extra was launched. In May 2005, Tesco announced a trial non-food only format near Manchester and Aberdeen , and the first shop opened in October 2005. The shops offered all of Tesco's ranges except food in warehouse-style units in retail parks. Tesco introduced the format as only 20% of its customers had access to a Tesco Extra, and the company was restricted in how many of its superstores it could convert into Extras and how quickly it could do so. Large units for non-food retailing are much more readily available. The format
2145-406: The necessity to maximise revenue per square foot) alongside everyday essentials. They are located in busy city-centre districts, small shopping precincts in residential areas, small towns, and villages, and on Esso petrol station forecourts. In 2010 it became known that Tesco was operating Express pricing , charging more in its Express branches than in its other stores. A spokesperson said that this
2200-539: The new owners to reduce rents and return the company to profitability. Tesco Tesco plc ( / ˈ t ɛ s . k oʊ / ) is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City , England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen in Hackney, London , in 1919. In 2011, it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues and
2255-736: The number of Homeplus shops in the United Kingdom had reached 12; the newest shop opened in Chester in July 2009. In 2012 it was reported that Tesco was looking to close the business to focus on groceries. Tesco closed six Homeplus shops on 15 March 2015, and the remaining six shops closed on 27 June 2015. Tesco Metro shops were sized between Tesco superstores and Tesco Express shops, averaging 1,000 square metres (11,000 sq ft). They were mainly located in town centres and other urban locations and were designed to accommodate larger weekly shops as well as top-up shopping. In May 2021, Tesco announced
Wyevale Garden Centres - Misplaced Pages Continue
2310-584: The offer made on 20 June 2007. Although the deal had been confirmed by Tesco the offer remained open to Dobbies shareholders until 20 August 2007. Tesco raised its holding to 65% in September that year, although Sir Tom Hunter took the company to court in May 2008 in an attempt to avoid further shares in Dobbies being issued, as it would reduce his holding. The legal challenge was unsuccessful, and on 5 June 2008 Tesco announced that it would be compulsorily acquiring
2365-483: The remainder of the shares in Dobbies Garden Centres PLC. On 10 May 2009, Dobbies announced it had made £1 million sales of its Grow Your Own range in that year to date. Grow Your Own allows many of Dobbies' 10 million-strong customer base to grow salad, vegetables and fruits from home with more than 100,000 tomato plants sold in the previous two months alone. For the year to early 2009, turnover
2420-520: The sale of five garden centres to individual buyers, including Nailsworth Garden Centre which was sold to Blue Diamond Garden Centres. A further four centres were sold to individual buyers on 4 September 2018 Dobbies Garden Centres , headquartered in Scotland, agreed to purchase a portfolio of five Wyevale Garden Centres sites in England on 8 October. On 21 May 2019, Wyevale announced the sale of two garden centres to Blackbrooks Garden Centres. The sale consisted of their Lower Dicker & Hastings stores. In
2475-406: The same month, Dobbies purchased 37 Wyevale locations, doubling their reach and becoming the largest garden centre company in the UK. On 10 September 2019, the business announced the sale of its remaining centres to British Garden Centres, leading to the closure of the historic Wyevale Garden Centres brand. Dobbies Garden Centres Dobbies Garden Centres Limited (styled as dobbies )
2530-579: The same street, with a period as a Tesco Metro), and the first supermarket in Maldon in 1956. During the 1950s and 1960s, Tesco grew organically, and also through acquisitions, until it owned more than 800 shops. The company purchased 70 Williamson's shops (1957), 200 Harrow Stores outlets (1959), 212 Irwins shops (1960), 97 Charles Phillips shops (1964) and the Victor Value chain (1968) (sold to Bejam in 1986). Jack Cohen's business motto
2585-475: The smallest shops (smaller than a Tesco Express), was (until 2018, when the first Jack's store opened) the only Tesco shop format in the UK that did not include the word Tesco in its name. The brand, along with the original shops, formed part of the T&;S Stores business but, unlike many that were converted to Tesco Express, these kept their old name. Subsequently, other shops bought by Tesco have been converted to
2640-427: The southeast of the United Kingdom. In 1998, Tesco and Esso (part of ExxonMobil ) formed a business alliance that included several petrol filling stations on lease from Esso, with Tesco operating the attached shops under its Express format. In turn, Esso operates the forecourts and sells fuel via the Tesco shop. As of 2013, there were 200 joint Tesco Express/Esso sites in the UK. In the United Kingdom Tesco operates
2695-495: Was "because of the difference in costs of running the smaller shops". Tesco first started selling petrol in 1974. Tesco sells 95, 97, and 99 RON (a fuel developed by Greenergy of which Tesco is a shareholder) petrol from forecourts at most Superstore and Extra locations. Tesco recently diversified into biofuels , offering petrol-bioethanol and diesel-biodiesel blends instead of pure petrol and diesel at its petrol stations, and now offering Greenergy 100% biodiesel at many shops in
2750-605: Was "pile it high and sell it cheap", to which he added an internal motto of "YCDBSOYA" (You Can't Do Business Sitting On Your Arse) which he used to motivate his sales force. In May 1987, Tesco completed its hostile takeover of the Hillards chain of 40 supermarkets in the North of England for £220 million. In 1994, the company took over the supermarket chain William Low after fighting off Sainsbury's for control of
2805-476: Was approved by the European Commission on 6 May 1997. The company was the subject of a letter bomb campaign lasting five months from August 2000 to February 2001 as a bomber calling himself "Sally" sent letter bombs to Tesco customers and demanded that Clubcards be modified to be capable of withdrawing money from cash machines. The company started to expand the range of products it sold during
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#17327983774562860-595: Was changed from the familiar "typewriter" font that had been used since the 1970s. Overseas operations were introduced in the same year. Terry Leahy assumed the role of Chief Executive on 21 February 1997, the appointment having been announced on 21 November 1995. On 21 March 1997, Tesco announced the purchase of the retail arm of Associated British Foods , which consisted of the Quinnsworth , Stewarts and Crazy Prices chains in Ireland and Northern Ireland, and associated businesses, for £640 million. The deal
2915-524: Was floated on the Stock Exchange in 1997 and this led to Dobbies expanding their garden centre operations further South into England. Tesco announced its intention to purchase Dobbies Garden Centres for £155.6 million on 8 June 2007. The deal was confirmed as successful by the board of directors of Tesco on 17 August 2007 when the board announced that they had received 53.1% of shares (or 5,410,457 shares), which confirmed conditions set out in
2970-455: Was not Tesco's first non-food-only venture in the UK. Until the late 1990s/early 2000s there were several non-food Tesco shops around the country including Scarborough and Yate. Although not in a warehouse-style format, the shops were located on high streets and shopping centres and stocked similar items to Homeplus shops. In both cases, this was because another part of the shopping centre had a Tesco Superstore that stocked food items only. By 2014,
3025-603: Was £97 million. In 2010, Dobbies opened their first outlet in Northern Ireland , and the store, near Lisburn , opened in September 2010. On 17 June 2016, Tesco sold the company on to a group of investors led by Midlothian Capital Partners and Hattington Capital for £217m. Dobbies now operates 77 garden centres and restaurants across the UK, as well as several large tourist attractions including Anker Wood , in Atherstone . In May 2019, Dobbies bought 37 stores from Wyevale Garden Centres, doubling its reach and becoming
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