80-576: 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 the ninth-largest in the world measured by revenues. It has shops in Ireland,
160-537: 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
240-468: 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
320-466: A maritime or oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb ), in common with the rest of the United Kingdom. The town experiences warm summers and cool winters. Ever since its inception as a garden city, Welwyn Garden City has attracted a strong commercial base with several designated employment areas. Among the companies trading in the town are: Welwyn Garden City was once well known as
400-680: 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 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
480-696: 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
560-531: 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
640-544: 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,
720-568: 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
800-428: A service from Harlow via Welwyn Garden City to Heathrow Airport , stopping at places such as Watford and Rickmansworth . The railway station is in the town centre. Trains are operated by Thameslink and run south to London King's Cross and Great Northern to London Moorgate and Thameslink run north to Stevenage , Hitchin , Cambridge . Welwyn Garden City is well-served by major arterial road routes, namely
880-534: 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
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#1732781031615960-784: A youth cricket programme. WGCCC First XI competes in the Saracens Herts Premier League. The town has a rugby club called Welwyn RFC. The lake in Stanborough Park is the home of Welwyn Garden City Sailing Club (founded 1973) and the WGC Angling Club. See List of people from Welwyn Garden City Associated British Foods Associated British Foods plc ( ABF ) is a British multinational food processing and retailing company headquartered in London , England. Its ingredients division
1040-453: Is Andrew Lewin ( Labour ). The nearby town of Hatfield and the village of Welwyn have parish councils with limited responsibilities, but Welwyn Garden City has none, although it had one between 1921 and 1927. The land earmarked for the town in 1920 straddled the parishes of Hatfield , Digswell , Welwyn and Tewin . On 1 October 1921, a civil parish called Welwyn Garden City was created from parts of those four parishes. The new parish
1120-704: Is a Grade II listed building on Handside Lane. Welwyn Thalians, an amateur dramatic and operatic group, has performed in the town since 1929. Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC London and ITV London . Television signals are received from either the Crystal Palace or the local relay transmitters. BBC East and ITV Anglia can also be received from the Sandy Heath TV transmitter. Local radio stations are BBC Three Counties Radio on 90.4 FM, Heart Hertfordshire on 106.9 FM and Radio Verulam on 92.6 FM. The Welwyn Hatfield Times
1200-473: Is laid out along tree-lined boulevards with a neo-Georgian town centre. It has its own environmental protection legislation, the Scheme of Management for Welwyn Garden City. Every road has a wide grass verge. The spine of the town is Parkway, a central mall or scenic parkway, almost a mile long. The view along Parkway to the south was once described as one of the world's finest urban vistas. Older houses are on
1280-413: Is located near the town centre. Welwyn Garden City's Music Society gave its first concert in 1921 within weeks of the town's foundation; its choir and orchestra, led by James Ross , have performed a regular concert season in the town ever since. The town also boasts a Concert Club, which promotes chamber music recitals, and a Male Voice Choir. Welwyn Garden City Band was founded in 1934. The Barn Theatre
1360-460: Is provided by Centrebus, connecting Welwyn to Codicote and Hitchin . The bus station is close to the railway station. Uno buses serve the nearby towns of Hatfield, St Albans, Potters Bar , Hemel Hempstead, Watford and Barnet . Uno buses also serve further out into North London. Both the 601 and 653 also provide links to the University of Hertfordshire . Green Line bus route 724 runs
1440-649: Is the home of Hatfield Hyde Cricket Club since 1889, predating Welwyn Garden City by 31 years. The playing field was once used by the England football team for training. During the 1966 football World Cup the French, West German and Argentinian football teams stayed at the Homestead Court Hotel alongside the King George V playing fields. There are three golf courses: Panshanger, owned and operated by
1520-542: Is the town's local weekly newspaper. The Gosling Sports Centre houses a dry ski slope, golf driving range, indoor and outdoor tennis, squash, football pitches, an athletics track, velodrome, a gym and bowls as well as a trampoline park. Welwyn Garden City football team founded in 1921, known as the Citizens, are based in Herns Lane. The King George V playing field, on the boundary of the old Hatfield Hyde village
1600-491: Is the world's second-largest producer of both sugar and baker's yeast and a major producer of other ingredients including emulsifiers , enzymes and lactose . Its grocery division is a major manufacturer of both branded and private label grocery products and includes the brands Mazola, Ovaltine , Ryvita , Jordans , Kingsmill and Twinings . Its retail division, Primark , has some 384 stores across several countries, predominantly Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Spain, and
1680-490: Is unique in being both a garden city and a new town and exemplifies the physical, social and cultural planning ideals of the periods in which it was built. Welwyn Garden City was founded by Sir Ebenezer Howard in 1920 following his previous experiment in Letchworth Garden City . Howard had called for the creation of planned towns that were to combine the benefits of the city and the countryside and to avoid
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#17327810316151760-731: The A1(M) and the A414 . The Great North Road also passes around it next to the A1(M). In addition, there are other links to St Albans, Harpenden and Luton (via B653), Hatfield (via A1000 and A1001) and Hertford (via B1000). During the growth in car ownership in the 1950s and 1960s, the town struggled to build enough garages or hard-standing spaces for the additional vehicles, which has led to many properties losing their traditional hedges and front gardens to accommodate driveways. Welwyn Garden City has five secondary schools: A campus of Oaklands College
1840-614: 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
1920-605: 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
2000-531: 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
2080-487: The Howard Centre , was built in the 1980s, incorporating a replacement for the original "temporary" railway station . There is a resurgence of interest in the ethos of the garden city and the type of neighbourhood and community advocated by Howard, prompted by the problems of metropolitan and regional development and the importance of sustainability in government policy. On the outskirts of Old Welwyn village,
2160-607: 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
2240-744: The Welwyn Roman baths are preserved in a steel vault underneath junction 6 of the A1(M) and are open to visitors. The local civic society, which aims to preserve and conserve the garden city ethos, is the Welwyn Garden City Society. The international ecumenical Focolare movement has its British headquarters at Welwyn Garden City. In 2008, during construction of a site for HSBC , 60 unsecured argonite fire suppressant cylinders discharged, killing one person, injuring six others and causing substantial damage. Three firms were later convicted of health and safety offences. 2020 saw
2320-741: The 100th anniversary for Welwyn Garden City with a series of celebrations planned. They could not all be done amidst the Coronavirus pandemic . Welwyn Garden City had a population of 46,619 in 2011, and 51,735 (estimated) in 2016. Welwyn Garden City is part of the Welwyn Hatfield Borough and comprises seven local authority wards. It is in the county of Hertfordshire and the parliamentary constituency of Welwyn Hatfield . Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council has its offices in Welwyn Garden City. The MP for Welwyn Hatfield
2400-650: 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
2480-691: The North American operations fell to his son Galen . The company sold Fine Fare in 1986 to the Dee Corporation, and in 1991, went on to acquire British Sugar . In 1997, ABF sold its retail operations in Ireland (including Northern Ireland) to Tesco . These businesses were: Quinnsworth and Crazy Prices in the Republic of Ireland and Stewarts Supermarket Limited and Crazy Prices in Northern Ireland. This sale also included
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2560-689: 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
2640-665: 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
2720-821: The Stewarts Winebarrel off-licence chain, Lifestyle Sports & Leisure Ltd (a retail sports and leisure business), Kingsway Fresh Foods (a meat processing facility) and Daily Wrap Produce (a fruit and vegetable packaging plant). In May 1994, Greggs acquired the Bakers Oven chain from the company. In 2000, the company sold its interests in Burton's Biscuits. In 2002, it acquired the Mazola corn oil, Argo and Kingsford's cornstarch, Karo and Golden Griddle syrups, and Henri's dressing brands, along with several Canadian brands, from Unilever ; in 2004, it acquired
2800-605: The Tone's spice business and Fleischman yeast business from Burns Philp ; and in 2007, it purchased Patak's Indian food business. On 26 March 2011, Associated British Foods, and its parent company Wittington Investments , were targeted over tax avoidance by UK Uncut during anti-cuts protests . The tax avoidance scheme involved moving capital between ABF/Primark and the affiliated Luxembourg entity ABF European Holdings & Co SNC by means of interest-free loans, avoiding tax of about £9.7 million per year. The protest took
2880-576: 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
2960-540: The UK. ACH Food Companies is an American subsidiary. Associated British Foods is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index . The company was founded by Canadian W. Garfield Weston in 1935, initially as Food Investments Limited, with the name changing to Allied Bakeries Limited a month later. Between 1935 and 1956, ten national and regional bakery companies were acquired by Allied, including Barrett and Pomeroy, and London and Provincial Bakeries. The largest acquisition at this time
3040-413: 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 the 1960s, Tesco has diversified into areas such as
3120-554: 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
3200-532: 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
3280-510: The bakery businesses owned by the Trust. Allied, under its new name, adopted in 1960, of Associated British Foods, continued to run A.B.C. as a separate brand after its takeover, with a major A.B.C. bakery in Camden Town , London. This closed in 1982 and the A.B.C. name was retired. Following the death of the founder in 1978, control of the company was passed on to his son Garry , while
Tesco - Misplaced Pages Continue
3360-652: The borough council, Mill Green Golf Course located in Gypsy Lane, and the Welwyn Garden City Golf Club, of which Nick Faldo was once a member. The Digswell Park Sports Association brings together Welwyn Garden City Cricket Club, Welwyn Garden City Bowls Club and the Digswell Park Sports and Social Club, at Digswell Park, Knightsfield. Welwyn Garden City Cricket Club was founded in 1921 and runs 7-weekend senior sides along with
3440-479: 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 a scaled-down F&F on Tesco.com soon after its deal with Next. Tesco operates
3520-605: 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
3600-459: The company denied being involved in unscrupulous uses of land, in an article containing reports of forced evictions by other companies. In November 2024, George Weston, chief executive of ABF claimed that the recent UK Budget may lead it to invest more outside the UK over fears the High Street will bear the "weight of tax rises". 54.5% of ABF is owned by Wittington Investments . 79.2% of
3680-482: The company on to a group of investors led by Midlothian Capital Partners and Hattington Capital for £217 million. Welwyn Garden City Welwyn Garden City ( / ˈ w ɛ l ɪ n / WEL -in ) is a town in Hertfordshire , England, 20 miles (32 km) north of London . It was the second garden city in England (founded 1920) and one of the first new towns (designated 1948). It
3760-682: The corner of Bridge Road and The Campus. The new building was formally opened in January 1937. This building served as the headquarters of Welwyn Garden City Urban District Council until its abolition in 1974. Between 20 May 1948 and 31 March 1966 the development of the town was also administered by the Welwyn Garden City Development Corporation, set up under the New Towns Act 1946 ( 9 & 10 Geo. 6 . c. 68). Welwyn Garden City Urban District Council
3840-418: The disadvantages of both. It was designed to be 'The Perfect Town'. The Garden Cities and Town Planning Association had defined a garden city as "a town designed for healthy living and industry of a size that makes possible a full measure of social life but not larger, surrounded by a rural belt; the whole of the land being in public ownership, or held in trust for the community" In 1919, Howard arranged for
3920-622: 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
4000-512: The form of a mass sit-in in Fortnum & Mason . In February 2013, the firm denied "illegal and immoral" tax evasion after it was accused by an international charity of moving its profits outside Zambia to reduce its tax bill. ActionAid said Zambia Sugar, a unit of AB Foods, had made profits of $ 123 million since 2007, but had paid "virtually no corporate tax" in Zambia. In October 2013,
4080-544: 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
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#17327810316154160-605: 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
4240-494: The home of the breakfast cereal Shredded Wheat , formerly made by Nabisco . With its large white silos, the disused Nabisco Shredded Wheat Factory is a landmark on rail routes between London and the north of England. The factory, designed by de Soissons and built in 1924 by Peter Lind & Company, is a Grade II listed building . Production moved to the Cereal Partners factory at Staverton , Wiltshire in 2007 when
4320-797: 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
4400-1035: 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
4480-407: The major nearby towns of Stevenage , Hatfield , St Albans and Hemel Hempstead , as well as neighbouring villages Woolmer Green and Knebworth . The 301 additionally connects both the nearby hospitals in Stevenage and Welwyn Garden City, while the 300 provides a direct link to recreational areas such as Stanborough Lakes in Welwyn Garden City and Verulamium Roman town in St Albans. Service 314
4560-579: 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
4640-406: 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
4720-625: 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
4800-507: The open country. "Welwyn, though far from perfect, made the New Towns Act possible, just as Hatfield, by its imperfection, made it necessary." In 1966, the Development Corporation was wound up and handed over to the Commission for New Towns . The housing stock, neighbourhood shopping and green spaces were passed to Welwyn Hatfield District Council between 1978 and 1983. The New QEII Hospital , completed in June 2015, offers outpatient, diagnostic and ante/postnatal services. A shopping mall,
4880-562: The owner, Nestlé , decided that the factory required significant and prohibitive investment, due to the age of the building. Tesco applied to build a supermarket on the site, but planning permission was refused by the local authority in January 2012 after significant public protest. In December 2018, the newly renamed "Wheat Quarter" area had planning permission approved for complete area redevelopment, consisting of 1,454 units, mainly homes, as well as office, retail and community uses. The former supermarket chain Fine Fare had its head office in
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#17327810316154960-432: The project was already being discussed generally as the "new garden city near Welwyn". On 29 April 1920, the company changed its name to become Welwyn Garden City Limited. Sir Theodore Chambers chaired the company, whilst Louis de Soissons was appointed as architect and town planner, Charles Purdom as finance director and Frederic Osborn as secretary. The first house was occupied just before Christmas 1920. The town
5040-496: The purchase of land in Hertfordshire that had already been identified as a suitable site. A company called Second Garden City Limited was formed in October 1919 to start buying the land and developing the town. On 4 February 1920, the company's board decided to call the new garden city Digswell , taking the name of the existing small village which would be surrounded by the development. Six days later they changed their minds, deciding instead to call it Welwyn Garden City, reflecting that
5120-399: 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 is listed on
5200-424: The sale of 20 million biscuits per day. Allied's sales the year prior were $ 154 million with profits of $ 12.6 million in current dollars. With the acquisition of A.B.C., Allied almost doubled its share of the UK's bread market by the end of the decade. In December 1954 they purchased from Howardsgate Trust the single Fine Fare Supermarket in Welwyn Garden City , the Welwyn Store grocery branches and
5280-462: 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
5360-419: The share capital of Wittington Investments is owned by the Garfield Weston Foundation , which is one of the UK's largest grant-making charitable trusts, and the remainder is owned by members of the Weston family. Wittington Investments also owns Fortnum & Mason and Heal & Son . George G. Weston became chief executive of ABF on 1 April 2005, and Galen Weston, the chief executive of George Weston Ltd. ,
5440-423: 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
5520-425: 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
5600-502: The town at one time, as did ICI's Plastics Division. There used to be a Xerox office located in Welwyn Garden City but it closed in 2016. There is a Sainsbury's in the town centre, and a Morrisons in Panshanger. Welwyn Garden City's proximity to London makes it a convenient commuter town . Buses are provided by Arriva Shires & Essex , Centrebus and Uno , with some assistance from Hertfordshire County Council . Arriva's 300/301 Centraline service links Welwyn Garden City to
5680-420: The west side of Parkway and newer houses on the east side The original planners intended that all the residents of the garden city would shop in one shop and created the Welwyn Stores, a monopoly which caused some local resentment. Commercial pressures have since ensured much more competition and variety, and the Welwyn Stores were in 1984 taken over by the John Lewis Partnership . In 1948, Welwyn Garden City
5760-494: 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
5840-602: 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
5920-474: 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
6000-591: 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
6080-502: Was designated a new town under the New Towns Act 1946 ( 9 & 10 Geo. 6 . c. 68) and the Welwyn Garden City company handed its assets to the Welwyn Garden City Development Corporation. Louis de Soissons remained as its planning consultant. That year The Times compared Welwyn Garden City with Hatfield . It described Welwyn Garden City as a world-famous modern new town developed as an experiment in community planning and Hatfield as an unplanned settlement created by sporadic building in
6160-674: Was granted a coat of arms on 15 December 1958. Welwyn Garden City Urban District was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 , merging with Welwyn Rural District and Hatfield Rural District to become the district of Welwyn Hatfield on 1 April 1974. There are some successor civil parish created for the town, and so it is governed directly by Welwyn Hatfield District Council (Borough Council after 2006). The Welwyn Garden City Urban District Council's former offices at The Campus are still used by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council as its headquarters. Welwyn Garden City experiences
6240-534: Was in 1955 when Allied bought the British operations of the Aerated Bread Company , founded in 1862. This acquisition included both the bakery business and the chain of cafeterias, the A.B.C. Tearooms. Allied paid $ 8.1 million for A.B.C. At that time, Allied had a large share of the UK baked goods market. Allied's market share prior to acquiring A.B.C. was 10% of all UK bread production and
6320-592: Was initially part of the Welwyn Rural District . By 1923, the Welwyn Garden City parish council was based in offices on Bridge Road, on the edge of the site identified for the new town centre of the garden city. The parish of Welwyn Garden City was made an urban district on 1 April 1927, making it independent of the Welwyn Rural District Council. New offices were built on the site of the former parish council's offices at
6400-455: 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,
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